University of Wisconsin Madison

Anupreksha is an entomology graduate student at UW-Madison, where she works with Dr. James Crall on global change and pollination ecology in agroecosystems. Her research uses computer vision based tools to investigate the mechanistic effects of anthropogenic stressors such as pesticide exposure and drought on pollinator behavior, health, and efficacy. She is originally from India, and earned a BS in Biological Sciences from Cornell University. She is passionate about building community across departments and universities to facilitate interdisciplinary understanding of complex socio-ecological issues.

South Dakota State University

Diana Wairimu Njuguna is a graduate student in her final year of a Master’s at the Department of Biology and Microbiology under the supervision of Dr. Senthil Subramanian at South Dakota State University.

University of California Davis

Ivan received a BS in Plant Biotechnology from University of California Davis in 2021. I started attending graduate school there shortly after. He is currently pursuing a master’s in Horticulture and Agronomy. During his Graduate career, he had worked on uncovering the role that winter chill plays in pistachio dormancy. This is a topic which has become more important in recent decades as we see winter temperatures getting warmer in California, leading to less chill accumulation in pistachio Orchards. 

University of California Davis

Jonny is a PhD student in the Horticultural and Agronomy Graduate Group at the University of California, Davis.  Jonny is interested in breeding for improved nutritional quality and his research focuses on the integration of genomic, crop modeling, and remote sensing tools. Jonny completed a B.S. at Cornell University in 2019, majoring in Agricultural Sciences. As an undergraduate, Jonny worked on characterizing anti-nutrient factors in wheat.

Michigan State University

Jhon is a PhD Candidate in Plant Breeding, Genetics, and Biotechnology at Michigan State University working on the application of phenomics on evaluating and predicting fusarium head blight resistance and grain yield in soft winter wheat. He is also exploring the integration of phenomics with genomics to further increase prediction and selection accuracy and to further understand the genetic architecture of such complex traits. Previously, Jhon worked on abiotic stress resistance in rice at the Philippine Rice Research Institute and Louisiana State University.

South Dakota State University

Karishma is a Graduate Research Assistant in the Department of Agronomy, Horticulture, and Plant Science at South Dakota State University in Brookings, South Dakota. Originally from India, she is currently pursuing her second master's degree, working under the guidance of Dr. Ali Mirzakhani Nafchi. Her areas of expertise include the detection and estimation of biotic and abiotic stress in plants using machine learning and deep learning models. Additionally, she has worked on various projects involving the detection, classification, and counting of different kinds of cover crop seeds.

South Dakota State University

Larousse is a graduate student in the  Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science Department at South Dakota State University. She is originally from Haiti. Her research focuses on investigating the impacts of starter fertilizer on corn development, nutrient uptake and grain yield on eastern South Dakota. 

Texas Tech University

Nick is a PhD. student at Texas Tech in Dr. Katie Lewis’ lab and his research focuses on carbon cycling and greenhouse gas emissions in regenerative cotton cropping systems. He graduated from Texas A&M last summer with his master’s degree, also with Dr. Lewis. Before coming to Texas, he received his bachelor’s degree at the University of Tennessee. Nick is originally from Edgewater, Maryland. 

University of California Davis

Sam Dudley is a second year PhD student at UC Davis in the Horticulture and Agronomy graduate program. Before coming to Davis, Sam received his B.S. degree in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology from UC Santa Cruz. He now researches the physiological and genetic basis of drought tolerance in grapevine roots under Dr. Megan Bartlett. His work frequently uses unusual methods to make observing roots easier, and oftentimes his favorite part of his research is developing these new protocols. Outside of work, Sam enjoys cooking, playing soccer, and sailing.

Texas A&M University

Yaswant Pankaj (pronounce as "YAS-wahnt.) is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in plant breeding within the Department of Soil and Crop Sciences at Texas A&M University. His research focuses on developing drought and salinity-tolerant high-oil Spanish peanut varieties for biodiesel production. Before his doctoral studies, he earned his master’s degree in Agricultural Biotechnology from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) in New Delhi, India. During his master's program, he conducted his thesis work on the molecular mapping of wheat under heat-stress conditions. He later worked at the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) and the National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR).