Agro Technology & Horticulture

He is been the research scientist 2007−present in the Department of Food Technology , Ataturk Central Horticultural Research Institute. He was also an auditor of 'Food Safety and Standards’ 2004−2007 in the Agriculture Ministry Office, Yalova, Turkey

He is been the research scientist 2007−present in the Department of Food Technology , Ataturk Central Horticultural Research Institute. He was also an auditor of 'Food Safety and Standards’ 2004−2007 in the Agriculture Ministry Office, Yalova, Turkey

Daniele De Wrachien is full professor of Irrigation and Drainage at the Department of Agricultural Engineering of the State University of Milan. He graduated in Geology at the same University ,where he received is PhD in Applied Geology. Director of the Institute of agricultural Hydraulics ( 2000-2006) Director of the Computer Centre of the Faculty of Agriculture ( 1989 - 1995) President of EurAgEng (European Society of Agricultural Engineers ) (2002-2004) Member of the Executive Board of CIGR ( International Commission of Agricultural Engineering ) ( 2006- 2014) Member of the Executive Board of ICID (International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage) (2005-2012) Member of the Board of Directors of WIT ( Wessex Institute of Technology ) (2010-2014) Author of more than 150 publications ( scientific papers ,keynote papers,books and technical papers ) Organizer of more than fifty international Events ( Conferences, Congresses,Symposia and Workshops ) held in about fifteen countries throughout Europe,Africa,Asia,America, Australia

water resources management; irrigation and drainage technology; performance assessment of sprinkler irrigation systems; modelling of transport processes in porous media ;modelling and fluid-dynamics of debris and hyper-concentrated flows; flood control and mitigation measures; desertification and environmental impact of climate change.

Prof. Dr Dorien DeTombe is the founder and chair of the field Methodology for Societal Complexity. She developed the Compram Methodology for political decision making on complex societal issues like sustainable development, terrorism, credit crisis and water affairs. The Compram Methodology is advised by the OECD to handle Global Safety. She studied social science and computer science. Her doctorate is in Methodology for Societal Complexity. She spend her main carrier at Utrecht University and Delft University of Technology in The Netherlands, and is since 2015 connected with Sichuan University, Chengdu, P.R. China. She published many books , more than 150 articles. She gives lectures and workshops as Visiting Professor and Conferences all over the world. She organizes yearly conferences and is editor of many journals. She is in the board of many research groups and established a world-wide research network on International Society on Methodology of Societal Complexity.

Agriculture, complex societal problems,sustainable agriculture.

He is a Dr. engineer East Mediterranean Agricultural Research Institute, Adana-TURKEY. He is a Dr zootechnian. He is the Division of Feeds and Animal Nutrition Head. He received the Ph.D. degree from Cukurova University Agricultural Faculty, Department of Animal Science (TURKEY) in 2004. He formerly worked 5 years (1995-2000) as a Research Asistant at Cukurova University, Agricultural Faculty Dept. of Animal Science, Div. of Feeds and Animal Nutrition His major subject is poultry nutrition but he can review silage quality and ruminant nutrition articles (cow nutrition, heifer nutrition, sheep and goat nutrition and veterinary). He is the author of more than 114 sciencific articles and the reviewer of more than 862 (eight hundred sixty two) scientific articles and he have 2 the BEST REVIEWER AWARD.

agricultural science,poultry nutrition and ruminant nutrition

Mankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan (born 7 August 1925) is an Indian geneticist and international administrator, renowned for his leading role in India's "Green Revolution," a program under which high-yield varieties of wheat and rice seedlings were planted in the fields of poor farmers. Swaminathan is known as "Indian Father of Green Revolution" for his leadership and success in introducing and further developing high-yielding varieties of wheat in India. He is the founder and chairman of the MS Swaminathan Research Foundation. His stated vision is to rid the world of hunger and poverty. Swaminathan is an advocate of moving India to sustainable development, especially using environmentally sustainable agriculture, sustainable food security and the preservation of biodiversity, which he calls an "evergreen revolution." From 1972 to 1979 he was director general of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research. He was Principal Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture from 1979 to 1980. He served as Director General of the International Rice Research Institute (1982–88) and became president of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources in 1988. In 1999, Time magazine placed him in the 'Time 20' list of most influential Asian people of the 20th century.

Agriculture, Food, Food security, crop yield.

He is a Associate professor with Habilitation at Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro. He is a PhD in Electrical Engineering. He was Member of General Board of UTAD (Jan.2013-Dez2016), Dean of Electronics and Electrical Engineering Graduate Course (2003-06), Member of Executive Commission of CETAV– Research Centre (2004-06). More than 15 years experience in R&D+i projects (researcher and coordinator). Development of Electronics devices and WSN for precision agriculture and smart cities. He is the co-author of more than 50 articles.

Development of Electronics devices and WSN for precision agriculture and smart cities. WSN protocols and propagation models.

He is a Associate professor with Habilitation at Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro. He is a PhD in Electrical Engineering. He was Member of General Board of UTAD (Jan.2013-Dez2016), Dean of Electronics and Electrical Engineering Graduate Course (2003-06), Member of Executive Commission of CETAV– Research Centre (2004-06). More than 15 years experience in R&D+i projects (researcher and coordinator). Development of Electronics devices and WSN for precision agriculture and smart cities. He is the co-author of more than 50 articles.

Development of Electronics devices and WSN for precision agriculture and smart cities. WSN protocols and propagation models.

Youry Pii is Assistant Professor at the Free University of Bolzano (Italy) since 2013 and his research activities are mainly focused on plant nutrition and the rhizosphere processes underlying nutrients uptake. In particular, the study of the complex relationship between plant, soil and microorganisms in the process of nutrient acquisition is one of the central topic. He applied thereby interdisciplinary methodologies, such as molecular biology, genomics, genetics, biochemistry, analytical chemistry and plant physiology, aimed at identifying the molecular mechanisms that control important plant traits related to mineral nutrient acquisition, biotic and abiotic stress tolerance. In details, the research activity of dr. Youry Pii has been focused on i) Physiological and molecular responses to nutritional deficiencies and heavy metal stresses in model plants (e.g. cucumber, barley, tomato) and in tree plants (e.g. strawberry, apple, grapevine), ii) interaction between plants and PGPR to improve plant nutrients uptake/use efficiency, and iii) rhizosphere metagenomics. Author of 30 scientific publications, 28 of them indexed in SCOPUS; 389 citations; H-index 10.

molecular biology, genomics, genetics, biochemistry, analytical chemistry and plant physiology

Graduated from Michigan State University with M.S. and Ph.D. in Crop and Soil Sciences. Currently, a professor at Oregon State University (OSU). He has been teaching a web, graduate and undergraduate courses, in Seed Science and Technology and related subjects and major advisor of many graduate students. His national and international activities include 2016 Chair of seed physiology, production and technology division of the Crop Science Society of America; Associate Editor of Crop Science; Chair of the research committee, the statistics committee and the seed moisture committee of the Association of Official Seed Analysts (AOSA); invited professor in Brazil, Uruguay, Nepal, and Canada. His research activities include seed quality evaluation in relation to the physiology of seed germination, vigor, dormancy, storability, post-harvest technologies, and the relationship to field performance. He is an author and co-author of books such as Seed Testing- Principles and Practices, Seed Moisture Determination handbook and Seed Vigor Testing handbook. He is also an author of book chapters, and over 50 refereed, peer-reviewed and extension articles.

Research interest include seed quality evaluation in relation to the physiology of seed germination, vigor, dormancy, storability, post-harvest technologies, and the relationship to field performance

Dr. Payne recently moved from Ethiopia, where he worked with the International Center for Agricultural Research for the Dry Areas as Director of a $150 million research program aimed at improving food security and livelihoods in the dry areas of the world. Dr. Payne serves as Professor of Crop Physiology at Texas A&M University, and is former Research Director of the Norman Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture. He has advised charitable foundations, national and international agencies, publishers, foreign governments and universities on science, food security, and sustainable agriculture. Dr. Payne has been named fellow of five international scientific societies and has held numerous leadership roles at the state, national and international level.

Sustainable agricultural production,Crop Physiology,conservation of natural resources,healthy food systems

Dr Agr. Fabienne Trolard (INRA) is permanent researcher at the UMR INRA-UAPV « Mediterranean environment and modelling of agro-hydrosystems ». With a PhD and “Agrégation de l’Enseignement Supérieur” in Earth Sciences, specialist in mineral geochemistry and geophysics, she has been working at INRA, for more than 25 years, in soil and environmental sciences. She has provided expertises for DGVI (1998-2002), DGXII (1999-2003) EU and for the IPCC (2012-2013). She co-created the INRA lab « Geochemistry of soil and water » at Aix-en-Provence in 2000 and was its leader for 6 years (2004-2009). She was the INRA scientific leader of the Astuce & Tic program (2008-2011) and lead of the pathfinder PRECOS (2013-2014) and PRECOS Business (2015-2016). Since 1986, she has published over 280 papers and supervised 16 PhD candidates and 3 post-docs. She teaches at the Universities of Aix-Marseilles (Master MAEVA), Poitiers (Master NMAC, Eramus Mundus) and Avignon (CNAM - Ecole des Arts et Métiers).

Geochemistry of soils and waters, mineralogy, modeling of soil - solution - plant interactions.

Ilan Chet serves as Chairman of Advisory Board of Aquagro Fund and Aqua-Agro Fund, L.P. He serves as a Director at FertiSeeds Ltd. Prof. Chet served as a Member of the Board of Directors of Makhteshim Agan Industries Ltd. Prof. He also serves as a Member of the Advisory Board of Pimi Agro Cleantech, Inc., Mitam Biological Control Ltd. and Granot Ventures. He served as a Director of Yeda Research and Development Co. Ltd. Prof. Chet was the President of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot from 2001 to 2006. He is a Member of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, and the European Academy of Sciences. He was Founding Director of the Otto Warburg Minerva Center for Agricultural Biotechnology from 1983 to 1986. He is a Professor of Microbiology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Faculty of Agriculture in Rehovot, specializing in Biological Plant Control. Prof. Chet served as Director of Evogene Ltd. Prof. Chet’s scientific research focuses on the biological control of plant disease. In his field, he has published more than 350 articles in international scientific journals and edited three books. Prof. Chet has received many prestigious prizes and awards, including the Rothschild Prize in Agriculture in 1990; the Max-Planck Award for Distinguished Research in 1994; the Israel Prize in 1996; the Japanese Arima Prize for Applied Microbiology in 1996 and the Wolf Prize in 1998. He holds 32 patents. He is a prominent, leading Microbiology Scientist. He received an honorary Doctorate from Sweden’s Lund University in 1991. He has a BS, an MS and a PhD, all from Faculty of Agriculture, Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Biological control of soil-borne plant pathogenic fungi, and genetic engineering of biocontrol agents. Lytic enzymes of fungal cell walls (chitinase and glucanases). Induced resistance of plants to fungi. Host-parasite relationship. Fungal-fungal interaction. Cell recognition and lectins. Chitin synthesis inhibition. Biochemical aspects of fungal morphogenesis. Microbial degradation of ligno-cellulose.

Byoung Ryong Jeong completed PhD (Nitrogen nutrition in bedding plants) from Colorado State University, USA.Later in 2008 became President of Korean Society Plug Seedling Research and presently Vice President for Publication & Editor-in-chief of the journal, 'Horticulture, Environment, and Biotechnology' Korean Soc. Hort. Sci

Horticultural and medicinal crop production in plant factory systems Organogenic and somatic embryogenic micropropagation Substrate development and hydroponic solution recycling Silicon as a nutrient for horticultural crops Propagation and cultivation of roses Control of stem stretchiness in container-grown plants by genetic and cultural means

Dr. Leclerc joined the ranks of the faculty at the University of Georgia in 1995, where she served as an associate professor until 2001, when she became a full professor. She was previously an associate professor in the Department of Physics at the University of Quebec at Montreal (1990-1995) while being simultaneously an adjunct professor at McGill University in the Department of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences (1991-1996). In 1988, she was invited to work at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) during her faculty appointment as an assistant professor at Utah State University from 1987-1990.

Dr. Leclerc is interested in the transport of gases to and from vegetation. She is also looking at the transport of gases, energy and heat inside vegetation canopies,biomicrometeorology.

Graziano Ghinassi born in Talla (Arezzo) in 1961 and graduated in Agricultural Science at University of Florence in 1988. He began research with a doctorate in the Department of Agricultural and Forestry Engineering (DIAF) of University of Florence. Since 1997 he is a researcher at the University of Florence . Is engaged use of irrigation water, both agricultural and residential. He has participated in national and international research groups and has been scientific coordinator of national research projects. IS member associations and academies, as well as Italian representative at the International Commission working groups Irrigation and Drainage (ICID). He is the author of over 40 publications on the use of water in agriculture, the productive response of crops with different irrigation management,irrigation deficit. He is the author of blackberries than 40 papers on agricultural water use, crop yield response to different irrigation managements, irrigation deficit. He authored the ICID manual on the performance evaluation of sprinkler and drip irrigation systems

He is interested in the irrigation use of water, both agricultural and residential.

Dr., Prof. Feibo Wu has completed her PhD in 2003 from Zhejiang University (ZJU). She is the Deputy Director of Crop Science Institute of ZJU. Her main research interest is evaluation and identification of plant germplasm, mainly in barley, resistant/tolerant to abiotic stresses and its molecular physiology, and phytoremediation of metal-contaminated environments and safe crop production. She has published 97 papers in reputed SCI-JOURNALS and has been serving as an editorial board member of Plant Growth Regulation.

Molecular physiology of abiotic stress tolerance in crops; Plant germplasm evaluation, mainly in barley; Phytoremediation of metal-contaminated environments and safe crop production

He is been the research scientist 2007−present in the Department of Food Technology , Ataturk Central Horticultural Research Institute. He was also an auditor of 'Food Safety and Standards’ 2004−2007 in the Agriculture Ministry Office, Yalova, Turkey

New food technologies, Table olive technology, Food technology, Olive oil, Functional foods, Food safety.

Dr. Mohammad Reza Alizadeh has completed his PhD. in the field of Agricultural Machinery Engineering from Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, I.R. Iran in 2007. He works as Associate Professor and head of Agricultural Engineering Department, the Rice Research Institute of Iran (RRII) with nearly 25 years active research experiences in the area of mechanization of agricultural crop production and post-production. He has authored and co-authored more than 80 original and review papers in the national and international peer-reviewed journals. He joined as a member of the editorial board and reviewer of many international reputed journals related to agricultural engineering and post-harvest technology.

Field and post-harvest machinery management, Design and development of agricultural machinery, Engineering Properties of Agricultural Products, Precision Farming in plant Production and Post-Production.

Laura Rival is Associate Professor at Oxford where she has been teaching and researching the anthropology of nature, society and development since 2001. In addition to her position at the Oxford Department of International Development (ODID, also known as Queen Elizabeth House, QEH), where she has directed the MPhil in Development Studies, she is an active member of the School of Anthropology (SAME), the Institute of Human Sciences (IHS), and the Latin American Centre (LAC)Technology

Historical and political ecology; development and environmental policies in Latin America

Dr. (Mrs.) Angela M. Lamptey is a Lecturer at the Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences, University of Ghana, Legon. She has a Ph.D in Fisheries Science from the University of Ghana. Her research interests include Aquaculture, Fisheries Ecology, Fish feeding habits, Biodiversity studies (Seabirds and sea turtles), aquatic biotopes studies and water quality studies. She is a reviewer to a number of International Peer-reviewed Journals and has over seven (7) publications in top peer-reviewed journals. She is a motivational speaker to various youth groups and a role model for young ladies.

Aquaculture, Seabird-fisheries interactions, Seabirds ecology, Fisheries ecology, Water quality studies, Fish feeding habits, Biodiversity studies (Seabirds and sea turtles), Aquatic biotopes studies.

Daniele De Wrachien is full professor of Irrigation and Drainage at the Department of Agricultural Engineering of the State University of Milan. He graduated in Geology at the same University ,where he received is PhD in Applied Geology. Director of the Institute of agricultural Hydraulics ( 2000-2006) Director of the Computer Centre of the Faculty of Agriculture ( 1989 - 1995) President of EurAgEng (European Society of Agricultural Engineers ) (2002-2004) Member of the Executive Board of CIGR ( International Commission of Agricultural Engineering ) ( 2006- 2014) Member of the Executive Board of ICID (International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage) (2005-2012) Member of the Board of Directors of WIT ( Wessex Institute of Technology ) (2010-2014) Author of more than 150 publications ( scientific papers ,keynote papers,books and technical papers ) Organizer of more than fifty international Events ( Conferences, Congresses,Symposia and Workshops ) held in about fifteen countries throughout Europe,Africa,Asia,America, Australia

water resources management; irrigation and drainage technology; performance assessment of sprinkler irrigation systems; modelling of transport processes in porous media ;modelling and fluid-dynamics of debris and hyper-concentrated flows; flood control and mitigation measures; desertification and environmental impact of climate change.

Prashant Kawar joined ICAR-CPRI, Shimla in 2014 as Sr. Scientist and led the multi-faceted biotechnology project . He has published 23 research papers in peer reviewed journals, 2 books, 2 book chapters, many popular articles in vernacular languages, 1 biology documents, 2 training manual, 4 invited review papers, more than 20 national and international conference papers, 1500 ESTs sequences, 13 MYB genes, 3 promoters. He was organizing committee member of International Conference on potato held at Shimla in 2015 and actively involved in organizing training programs as well.In 2005, he joined at VSI, Pune as Scientist and leaded the genomics & proteomics group for almost 8 years during his stay identified 13 MYB-TFs and three stress-inducible promoters from sugarcane for stress tolerance. In 2012 he was awarded the prestigious CREST fellowship by DBT-GOI to work at JIC, Norwich, UK on metabolic engineering of tomato to produce high levels of important polyphenolic phytonutrients and explore their usefulness for health promoting benefits for preventing many human diseases or disorders, the findings of this work were published in Nature Communication

Agriculture and crop science

Dr. Raveendra H. Patil, also internationally known by the name Dr. Ravi Patil obtained his B.Sc. (Agricultural Sciences; 1990-94), First Rank to the University (Four Gold Medals), M.Sc. (Agronomy; 1994-96), First Rank to the University (Two Gold Medals), and Ph.D (Agroforestry Systems 1997-2000) from the University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, India (www.uasd.edu). As an outstanding student Dr. Patil received University Merit Scholarship for B.Sc. degree program, ICAR Junior and Senior Research Fellowships for M.Sc. and PhD, respectively, and ASPEE R&D, Mumbai research fellowship for M.Sc. degree program. Soon after completing PhD, he joined UAS, Dharwad as Assistant Professor in Feb. 2000. Since then he has carried out teaching, research and extension activities at different campuses of the UAS Dharwad.

Agro-forestry and Sustainable production systems Crop production under changing climate and plant nutrition Soil nutrient cycling and GHG emissions from agro-ecosystems Crop model application to assess climate change impacts and identify adaptation strategies

Byoung Ryong Jeong completed PhD (Nitrogen nutrition in bedding plants) from Colorado State University, USA.Later in 2008 became President of Korean Society Plug Seedling Research and presently Vice President for Publication & Editor-in-chief of the journal, 'Horticulture, Environment, and Biotechnology' Korean Soc. Hort. Sci

Horticultural and medicinal crop production in plant factory systems Organogenic and somatic embryogenic micropropagation Substrate development and hydroponic solution recycling Silicon as a nutrient for horticultural crops Propagation and cultivation of roses Control of stem stretchiness in container-grown plants by genetic and cultural means

Korea Byoung Ryong Jeong completed PhD (Nitrogen nutrition in bedding plants) from Colorado State University, USA.Later in 2008 became President of Korean Society Plug Seedling Research and presently Vice President for Publication & Editor-in-chief of the journal 'Horticulture, Environment, and Biotechnology' Korean Soc. Hort. Sci'

Horticultural and medicinal crop production in plant factory systems Organogenic and somatic embryogenic micropropagation Substrate development and hydroponic solution recycling Silicon as a nutrient for horticultural crops Propagation and cultivation of roses Control of stem stretchiness in container-grown plants by genetic and cultural means

Devi Prasad completed his M.sc in Soil Fertility and Plant Nutrition from American University of Beirut (AUB) in 1977. He also became Director of Agriculture Management Resource Group, Centre for Good Governance, Hyderabad, India from December 2011 - Present

soils and irrigation, underground water utilization, water use efficiency, irrigation, natural resources management, watershed development, organic farming and bio-technology

Prashant Kawar joined ICAR-CPRI, Shimla in 2014 as Sr. Scientist and led the multi-faceted biotechnology project . He has published 23 research papers in peer reviewed journals, 2 books, 2 book chapters, many popular articles in vernacular languages, 1 biology documents, 2 training manual, 4 invited review papers, more than 20 national and international conference papers, 1500 ESTs sequences, 13 MYB genes, 3 promoters. He was organizing committee member of International Conference on potato held at Shimla in 2015 and actively involved in organizing training programs as well.In 2005, he joined at VSI, Pune as Scientist and leaded the genomics & proteomics group for almost 8 years during his stay identified 13 MYB-TFs and three stress-inducible promoters from sugarcane for stress tolerance. In 2012 he was awarded the prestigious CREST fellowship by DBT-GOI to work at JIC, Norwich, UK on metabolic engineering of tomato to produce high levels of important polyphenolic phytonutrients and explore their usefulness for health promoting benefits for preventing many human diseases or disorders, the findings of this work were published in Nature Communication in 2015.

Agriculture and crop science

Dr. Francesco Montemurro is specialized in nitrogen dynamics, efficiency, remobilization and balance in the soil-plant systems of different horticultural, industrial and cereal crops, acquiring a considerable experience either in the determination of plant nitrogen status, or in the study of the application of new organic sources (Municipal Solid Waste compost, Olive Waste Water, Olive pomace compost, on-farm compost, anaerobic digestate) in plant production, as alternative of mineral fertilizers, both in conventional and organic farming

agronomy; nutrient management; nitrogen dynamics, efficiency and balance; organic farming; composting process and compost application; organic fertilization; sustainable development; crop rotations and management; cropping system,

Graziano Ghinassi born in Talla (Arezzo) in 1961 and graduated in Agricultural Science at University of Florence in 1988. He began research with a doctorate in the Department of Agricultural and Forestry Engineering (DIAF) of ?? University of Florence. Since 1997 he is a researcher at the University of Florence ??. Is engaged use of irrigation water, both agricultural and residential. He has participated in national and international research groups and has been scientific coordinator of national research projects. IS member associations and academies, as well as Italian representative at the International Commission working groups Irrigation and Drainage (ICID). He is the author of over 40 publications on the use of water in agriculture, the productive response of crops with different irrigation management,irrigation deficit.He is the author of blackberries than 40 papers on agricultural water use, crop yield response to different irrigation managements, irrigation deficit. He authored the ICID manual on the performance evaluation of sprinkler and drip irrigation systems.

He is interested in the irrigation use of water, both agricultural and residential.

Prashant Kawar joined ICAR-CPRI, Shimla in 2014 as Sr. Scientist and led the multi-faceted biotechnology project . He has published 23 research papers in peer reviewed journals, 2 books, 2 book chapters, many popular articles in vernacular languages, 1 biology documents, 2 training manual, 4 invited review papers, more than 20 national and international conference papers, 1500 ESTs sequences, 13 MYB genes, 3 promoters. He was organizing committee member of International Conference on potato held at Shimla in 2015 and actively involved in organizing training programs as well.In 2005, he joined at VSI, Pune as Scientist and leaded the genomics & proteomics group for almost 8 years during his stay identified 13 MYB-TFs and three stress-inducible promoters from sugarcane for stress tolerance. In 2012 he was awarded the prestigious CREST fellowship by DBT-GOI to work at JIC, Norwich, UK on metabolic engineering of tomato to produce high levels of important polyphenolic phytonutrients and explore their usefulness for health promoting benefits for preventing many human diseases or disorders, the findings of this work were published in Nature Communication

Agriculture and crop science

Prof Fhatuwani Nixwell Mudau completed a B.Sc Agric (Crop Science) at the University of Venda in 1996. He then registered M.Sc. in Horticulture at the University of Stellenbosch where he conducted research on citrus nutrition. He completed a PhD (Horticultural Sciences) at the University of Pretoria and he has done extensive research in herbal medicine. He has completed Masters in Business Leadership (MBL) at UNISA Graduate School of Business Leadership. His previous working experience includes Vista University VUDEC, Campus (Now Incorporated to University of South Africa), University of Venda and University of Limpopo as a Lecturer. In 2006, he was seconded to establish a fully funded Research Centre as an Associate Professor and Centre Manager known as Limpopo Agro Food Technology Station (LATS) by Tshumisano Trust (Now Technology Innovation Agency (TIA). He then joined the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) under Food and Beverages (Now Agro-Industries) Strategic Business Unit (SBU); HealthCare and Education (SBU) as a Specialist

Prof Fhatuwani Nixwell Mudau interests inclide project development and implementation in Agro Industries, Education and Healthcare sectors

R. R. Sharma after post-graduation from IARI, New Delhi, joined as Scientist there in 1997. He is Senior Scientist and associated with release of mango hybrids like Pusa Arunima, Pusa Surya, Pusa Lalima, Pusa Shresth, Pusa Pitamber etc. He has published 40 research articles in International journals, 60 in National journals, and authored 8 books. He is recipient of Dr. R.N. Singh award (twice), Dr Rajinder Prasad award (twice), and Himachal Shri Award. He has also served as International Mango Registrar for about 5 years (1999-2004). He is member, editorial board of Scientia Horticulturae, International Journal of Fruit Science (U.K.), American Journal of Plant Sciences (US), Journal of Food Processing and Technology (US), and Stewart Postharvest Reviews (UK), and Chief Editor of International Journal of Processing and Postharvest Technology, India.

Pre and Post harvest handling of temperate fruits, Food Science

Born in Haifa in 1939, Prof. Ilan Chet completed his doctoral work in microbiology at the Faculty of Agriculture of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He was Dean and Vice President of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Prof. Chet received the Max-Planck Award (1994), the Israel Prize (1996), the Wolf Prize (1998), the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Merit of Germany (2001) and the French “Chevalier” Legion of Honor award (2014). From 2001 to 2006, Prof. Chet was nominated President of the Weizmann Institute of Science. He has been a member of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities since 1998 and of the European Academy of Sciences since 2004. In 2014, he was elected a member of the Academia Europea. Prof. Chet is the Deputy Secretary General for Higher Education and Research in the Secretariat of the Union for the Mediterranean since 2010.

Biological control of plant diseases, Induced resistance, Molecular biology of fungi, Sustainable agriculture, Food security

Upendra M Sainju is currently working on the effects of tillage, crop rotation, crop diversity, cropping intensity, and cultural practices on soil aggregation, organic matter concentration, microbial activities, nitrogen mineralization, and carbon and nitrogen sequestration in dryland areas. He is also engaged in studying the effects of irrigation management, nitrogen fertilization rates, and cultural practices in nitrate-nitrogen movement in soil that affects water quality, soil organic matter level, and nitrogen mineralization in irrigated land. He is also involved in the development of methodology for determination of soil aggregation for dryland and irrigated areas and extraction method for determining ammonium and nitrate-nitrogen concentrations in the soils of various textures amended with or without plant residue.

Upendra M Sainju eight years working on the long-term effects of tillage, cover crops, and nitrogen fertilization on crop production, carbon sequestration in plant and soil, soil nitrogen fertility, microbial activities, and nitrogen leaching at Fort Valley State University, he developed a management practice consisting of conservation tillage, cover cropping, and nitrogen rate that sustains crop production, improves soil and water qualities, and reduces the rate of nitrogen fertilization as compared with the conventional practice.

Dr Johan van Rooyen is currently the director of “The Standard Bank Centre for Agri-leadership & Mentorship Development” and professor in Agricultural Economics at Stellenbosch University. He teaches Agri-business strategy, Agricultural and rural development and Business cases at the University of Stellenbosch and also lectures at the Universities of Free State, Pretoria, Antwerpen and the University of Ghent, Belgium. To-date he published more than 100 peer group refereed scientific papers, five academic books on Agri-business & Agri- development and presented over 100 papers at local and international events. He is a NRF rated scientist. Prof van Rooyen serves on a number of boards of agri-business companies and agencies, is currently a board member of IAMA (the International Agri-business and Food Industry Management Association) and serves on an expert panel of the “World Competitive Report”, University of Laussanne, Switzerland. He served on a number of committees, including the ‘Agricultural Sector Plan’ task team (2000-2001); served as ministerial appointment on the ‘Agri-BEE steering committee (2005-2008); managed the drafting of the ‘S.A. Wine Industry Transformation Charter and BEE Score Card’ (2003-2007); and served full terms on the boards of the S.A. Land and Agricultural Development Bank (2000-2004) and on the S.A. Agricultural Research Council (1996-2000). Previous employment includes: The Development Bank of Southern Africa (1984-1993) - Executive Group Manager, Agriculture and Rural Development; and Director of the Centre for Policy Analysis; Director of the Postgraduate School for Agricultural and Rural Development & Professor in the ABSA Chair of Agribusiness Management, University of Pretoria (1993-2002); CEO, Agri-business Chamber of S.A (1998-2002); CEO of the S.A. Wine Industry Council (2003-2008). His achievements include: Served On A Number Of Boards Of Agri-Business Companies And Agencies ( New Farmers Development Co, Aquaharvest, Sa Brandy Foundation, Winetech, Sawis, Wosa), President Of The Agricultural Economics Association Of South Africa, Chair Of The Agricultural Outlook Conference(Lanvokon) and Elected An Ifama Fellow In 2014, Co-Chair Ifama 2014 World Conference In Cape Town and Operate As Specialist Consultant In Agribusiness – Strategic Planning And Policy Development.

Agri-business, Agricultural and rural development, Agricultural Extension, Agricultural Economy

Professor Byoung Ryong Jeong has completed his PhD at the age of 31 years from Colorado State University, USA, and postdoctoral studies from University of Missouri-Columbia, USA, and Chiba University, Japan. He is a professor in Department of Horticulture and the Dean of College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Gyeongsang National University, Republic of Korea. He has published more than 250 papers in reputed journals and has been serving as an editor-in-chief of Horticulture, Environment and Biotechnology, and president of the Korean Society for Floricultural Science. (Up to 100 words)

Climate Change, Conservation Biology, Genetics, Climatology, Ornamental Horticulture, Plant Tissue culture and micropropagation

Dr. Ashok K Patra, Director, ICAR-Indian Institute of Soil Science, Bhopal, India. He did his M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Soil Science & Agricultural Chemistry at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi. He was a Post Doctoral Researchers at ICRISAT, India; IGER, UK; INRA, France; and University of Notre Dame, USA. He was a Principal Soil Scientist (2006 to 2014) at IARI, New Delhi. He is a recipient of British Council TCT Award; Royal Society Award; DBT Overseas Associateship Award; Hooker Award of IARI; and he is a Fellow of the Indian Society of Soil Science and National Academy of Agricultural Sciences, India. His research area includes nitrogen cycling, soil biodiversity, carbon sequestration and nanoparticles. With more than 200 publications in his credit he is serving as a member of editorial board of reputed journals.

Nitrogen cycling, soil biodiversity, carbon sequestration and nanoparticle

Victor Afari-Sefa, a citizen of Ghana, is an Agricultural Economist and the Global Theme Leader - Consumption at AVRDC - The World Vegetable Center. He is based at AVRDC’s Regional Office for East and Southern Africa in Arusha, Tanzania. He has extensive experience in performance monitoring and impact assessment of horticultural value chains on smallholder livelihoods. In this present position, Victor leads and coordinates vegetable socioeconomic research in sub-Saharan Africa and globally by assessing opportunities and challenges in production systems, analyzing constraints in the value chain, and analyzing policy in interdisciplinary context. He has multi-country project management experience and coordinates multidisciplinary research in horticultural value chains, in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia where he emphasizes on proactive planning processes to attain set deliverables. He also has international experience in integrated economic-biophysical optimization modeling of agricultural water use. Prior to joining AVRDC in 2010, Victor worked as a Monitoring, Evaluation and Impact Specialist at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and Research Scientist at Center for Development Research (ZEF) in Bonn, Germany. He holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from the Justus-Liebig University Giessen, Giessen, Germany as has 25 peer reviewed publications to his credit.

Monitoring and evaluation, ex-ante and ex-post impact assessment studies of horticultural crops, rural farming systems and livelihoods, socio-economics of vegetables for food and nutrition security, consumer studies on domestic and regional horticultural markets, , economic cost analysis of postharvest losses in horticultural crops and agricultural water use and management.

Francis Lewu obtained BSc Agriculture in Plant Breeding and Seed Technology and MSc Agronomy in Nigeria. He started his career as a Genebank Research Assistant in International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, IITA, Nigeria and later proceeded to study PhD Botany with specialization in plant genetic conservation and propagation. After his postdoctoral study, he joined the Department of Agriculture, University of Zululand, South Africa as a Lecturer in 2008 and was appointed HOD, of the department in January 2009; a position he held till end of May 2011. Francis Lewu joined the Cape Peninsula University of Technology as HOD of Agriculture Department in the Faculty of Applied Sciences. He was appointed Associate Professor in 2014 and became a C Rated National Research Foundation Scholar of South Africa during the same year. He is a qualified Professional Natural Scientist and has supervised and mentored master and doctoral students to completion. Prof Lewu currently concentrates his research effort on the autecology and propagation of screened medicinals and alternative cultivation protocols for field crops and horticultural species. He is editorial member of many journals and serves as reviewer to the NRF, several local and international journals and reviews many masters and doctoral thesis for several universities.

Autecology, Propagation of screened medicinals, Crop Science, Horticulture

Halos-Kim, is a Registered Professional Agricultural Engineer in the Philippines and has over 30 years’ experience working on crop processing, postharvest and food engineering research, development, and most recent, on Extension, in Asia and Africa. She was the Former Head of the Postharvest Engineering Unit, IITA in Nigeria & a Researcher with the Agricultural Engineering Department of IRRI in Philippines. From 2009, Engr. Leony is the Thematic Director of the Postharvest and Agro processing (PHAP) Extension of the Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA) and is based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Halos-Kim leads a team of specialists (agricultural engineers, food technologist, rural development experts and economists) in Ethiopia, Mali, Nigeria and Uganda to promote the use of appropriate technologies to reduce losses, improve quality and food safety, and enhance food security and income of smallholder farmers in SAA focus countries, and in Africa in general.

Agricultural Engineering, Agro-processing, Crop Processing, Farm Power and Machinery, Postharvest Technology, Food Process Engineering, Agricultural Extension, Rural Development Works

Shashi Sharma is Professor and Chair in Biosecurity and Food Security, and Centre Director of Australia-China Centre for Abiotic and Biotic Stress Management in Agriculture, Horticulture and Forestry at Murdoch University in Western Australia. Until his appointment at Murdoch University, Professor Sharma was Director of Plant Biosecurity at the Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia from where he is on secondment. He has had a long career in food and agriculture spanning over 35 years and it includes working in several countries in different spheres of agriculture -- on-farm, post-harvest, trade, quarantine and biosecurity policy and planning, regulation, legislation and science. He studied for his MSc and PhD degrees at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) New Delhi and later returned to IARI as Professor and Head of the Division of Nematology. He worked well over a decade as a Scientist at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), spent his sabbatical at the Delta Centre of the University of Missouri, USA and International Fellowship at the Rothamsted International, UK. He is recipient of several awards in recognition of his contributions to agriculture including Excellence in Science Award of the Consultative Group on International Agriculture Research. Professor Sharma is a strong advocate of biosecurity as an integral component of global food security strategy and has been internationally speaking on biosecurity and food security issues for a number of years.

Food sustainably, Bio-security and policy, Food safety and Food security, Post-harvest food loss and food waste management, Managing chemical contaminants, and Innovative technologies for improved market access and trade.

A. Gattinger is agronomist and soil ecologist and coordinates climate-related research at FiBL Switzerland and Germany (www.fibl.org). He studied agriculture at the universities in Kassel/ Germany and Aberdeen/UK and got his PhD at TU München/Germany. He has international scientific expertise in the field of soil ecology and climate impact of farming systems. A. Gattinger is author/co-author of currently 47 peer-reviewed papers and teaches soil ecology at the universities Basel/CH and Giessen/Germany. He chairs the International Round Table of Organic Agriculture and Climate Change, an international, multi-stakeholder association. Furthermore, he is a member in the German organic grower association Naturland and runs an organic farm in Selters, Germany.

Climate impact of farming systems, Greenhouse gas fluxes in soil-plant systems, Structure and function of soil microbial communities as influenced by agricultural management, Adaptive capacity of soils and farming systems to climate change, Soil and water conservation including water and nutrient use efficiency.

Dr. Raveendra H Patil completed his PhD from Copenhagen University, Denmark and has worked as Post-Doctoral Researcher at Yangzhou University, China, University of Nottingham, UK, Aarhus University, Denmark, and University of Florida, USA. Now Dr. Patil is based in India at UAS, Dharwad involved in teaching and supervision of Graduate students, undertaking research on climate change impact and adaptation studies in agriculture, precision agriculture, and sustainable production systems, among others. He is a recipient of Young Scientist award from the Indian Government (ICAR, New Delhi) and ISCA, Kolkata, India for his work on agro-forestry, and over the years he has received number of national and international fellowships. For instance, ICAR Junior & Senior Fellowship, Chinese Govt. Fellowship, The Royal Society, London, UK Fellowship, The Danish Government Post-Doc Fellowship and NSF, USA Post-Doc Research Associate Fellowship. He has published more than 50 papers in reputed journals and has been serving as an editorial board member and reviewer to number of reputed journals.

Agro-forestry and Sustainable production systems Crop production under changing climate and plant nutrition Soil nutrient cycling and GHG emissions from agro-ecosystems Crop model application to assess climate change impacts and identify adaptation strategies

Dr. Mannava Sivakumar was the former Director, Climate Prediction and Adaptation Branch (CLPA) in the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and is currently the Editor-in-Chief of the Weather and Climate Extremes Journal published by Elsevier and a senior Consultant with World Bank and WMO. He obtained his M.Sc (Agronomy) from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi, India, in 1972; and Ph.D in Agricultural Climatology from the Iowa State University (USA) in 1977. From 1977 to 1996, Dr Sivakumar worked at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) in India (1977-83) and in West Africa (1984-96) occupying the positions successively of Agroclimatologist, Principal Agroclimatologist, Team Leader, Resource Management Programme and Director, Soils and Agroclimatology Division. In July 1996, Dr Sivakumar joined the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and served as the Chief of the Agricultural Meteorology Division until 2008 when he was appointed as the Director of the Climate Prediction and Adaptation Branch (CLPA). Dr Sivakumar has over 300 publications to his credit, including 53 books and 85 articles in various international journals. Dr. Sivakumar received the "Young Scientist Award' and the Science Academy Medal from the Indian National Science Academy of India in 1983. He is a Fellow of seven international scientific societies including the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences of India, the Indian Meteorological Society, the National Environmental Science Academy, the American Society of Agronomy, the Royal Academy of Overseas Sciences of Belgium, the Academy of Georgofili of Italy and Fellow of the Association for the Advancement of Biodiversity Science. Dr Sivakumar received the 2007 International Service in Agronomy Award from the American Society of Agronomy, the Award of Excellence for exceptional and outstanding contributions in the field of Science from the Telugu Association of North America (TANA) in 2009 and the Bharat Jyoti Award from the India International Friendship Society in 2012.

Agricultural Climatology, Agronomy

Dr. Mohammad Reza Alizadeh has completed his PhD. in the field of Agricultural Machinery Engineering from Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, I.R. Iran in 2007. He works as Associate Professor and head of Agricultural Engineering Department, the Rice Research Institute of Iran (RRII) with nearly 25 years active research experiences in the area of mechanization of agricultural crop production and post-production. He has authored and co-authored more than 80 original and review papers in the national and international peer-reviewed journals. He joined as a member of the editorial board and reviewer of many international reputed journals related to agricultural engineering and post-harvest technology.

Field and post-harvest machinery management, Design and development of agricultural machinery, Engineering Properties of Agricultural Products, Precision Farming in plant Production and Post-Production.

Dr. Kazi Kamrul Islam has completed his MSc from Wageningen University, the Netherlands and PhD from Kyushu University, Japan. Dr. K.K. Islam has also completed his postdoctoral studies from Kyushu University in 2015. Currently he is the head and Associate Professor at the Department of Agroforestry, Bangladesh Agricultural University (a renounced and famous agricultural university in Asia). He has published more than 40 papers in reputed journals and has been serving as an editorial board member of number of Journals.

Agroforestry, Agroecology, Forest Conservation, Forest Management, Forest Economics, Natural Resource Management

Dr Sani Yusuf Ahmad is an Associate Professor in Agronomy with specialization in Horticultural Production. He obtained his B. Agriculture, MSc. and Ph.D degrees from the famous Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, Nigeria in 1995, 2003 and 2010, respectively. He is a member of several professional bodies and has several publications in reputable national, International journals and numerous research/technical reports to his credit. He is currently a lecturer/researcher at the Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, Nigeria where he is actively involved in teaching, training, research and extension services. He attended several International Conferences and trainings across the globe.

Agronomy, Agriculture Extension, Horticulture

Dr. Sunday Yiseyon Hosu was born in Ogun State Nigeria. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Economics and Farm Management from the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria in 2004. He obtained Masters Degree from Nigeria’s premier university: the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, in 2007 and PhD in Agricultural/Environmental Economics from the University of Fort Hare in 2013. His PhD thesis is a holistic attempt to know the determinants of food system among the poor households in the semi-arid region; the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. He focused on modeling small farms’ optimal productivity under stressed environmental conditions, resource utilization and effective institutional services provision. His study made insight on the necessary conditions to boost smallholder productivity and food security among the small-holder farmers in the Eastern Cape Province. His research interest focuses on optimal resource utilization for sustainable livelihood, food security and food systems as well as rural poverty analysis. He has authored and co-authored manuscripts and proposal with others. He has read papers on food issues at several local and international conferences. Dr Hosu is the Lead Researcher and Consultant, Sunclare Consults Limited, a-one- stop research outfit for solutions to agriculture and agribusinesses issues based in Nigeria. He is currently a Research Fellow at Walter Sisulu University, Mthatha, Eastern Cape.

Optimal resource utilization for sustainable livelihood, food security and food systems as well as rural poverty analysis

Dr Olayinka Ayobami AIYEGORO obtained a doctoral degree in Microbiology (Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology) from the renowned University of Fort Hare in South Africa. He has a versatile research career in applied microbiology- his research emphases include: Public Health Microbiology, Phytomedicine, Probiotics and Prebiotics Research. He has published above 40 research articles in international peer reviewed ISI rated journals and also has 2 book chapters in his archives. Dr Aiyegoro is a rated researcher by the National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africa and also a registered professional member of South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions. He has worked as a University lecturer, research scientist and currently he is a Senior Researcher/Project Manager in GI Microbiology and Biotechnology Unit of Agricultural research Council- Animal Production Institute, South Africa. His daily activities include: researching students supervision, project and financial management, office administration and other Ad hoc duties.

Public Health Microbiology, Phytomedicine, Probiotics and Prebiotics Research

Dr. Justin K. Urassa holds a PhD (Developme Studies) and an M.Sc. Social research Methods (Development Studies) from the university of Sussex (United Kingdom), A Post-graduate Diploma in Poverty Analysis for Socioeconomic Security and Development from the Institute of Social Studies-The Hague, Holland in collaboration with the Economic and Social Research Foundation (ESRF)-Tanzania and Research on Poverty Alleviation (REPOA)-Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, an MSc. and B.Sc. (Agriculture) from Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA) and a Diploma in Dairy Husbandry from Livestock Training Institute (LITI) Tengeru, Tanzania. In addition to his regular academic activities at the university he also acted as Associate Director for the Development Studies Institute, SUA from July 2004 to October 2005. Before Joining SUA in December 1999 he worked as a Livestock Tutor at the Ministry of Agriculture Training Institute (MATI) Mlingano, Tanga.

Rural livelihoods and well-being, Poverty analysis, Food Security, Agricultural and rural development, Policy analysis, Social development and gender and development.

Dr. (Mrs.) Angela M. Lamptey is a Lecturer at the Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences, University of Ghana, Legon. She has a Ph.D in Fisheries Science from the University of Ghana. Her research interests include Aquaculture, Fisheries Ecology, Fish feeding habits, Biodiversity studies (Seabirds and sea turtles), aquatic biotopes studies and water quality studies. She is a reviewer to a number of International Peer-reviewed Journals and has over seven (7) publications in top peer-reviewed journals. She is a motivational speaker to various youth groups and a role model for young ladies.

Aquaculture, Seabird-fisheries interactions, Seabirds ecology, Fisheries ecology, Water quality studies, Fish feeding habits, Biodiversity studies (Seabirds and sea turtles), Aquatic biotopes studies.