Dr. Evans Baiya is a sought-after strategy, innovation, and commercialization consultant and speaker. He has experienced the innovation process from all angles as a research chemist, a process development engineer, a global leader of research and development efforts in multiple countries, and an intellectual property portfolio manager at a global corporation. Evans holds a PhD in engineering and technology development, an MBA, and has completed postgraduate studies in business strategy and intellectual property at Harvard Business School.

Public health refers to the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals. Around the world, biocontrols are playing an ever more important role in addressing existing and developing public health issues. This session will have leading experts discuss the opportunities for biocontrols to be used to tackle a variety of global public health issues.

Dr. Krause’s keystone accomplishment is building partnerships among diverse stakeholders to reduce the burden from insect transmitted disease using community-based, sustainable technologies.  He has collaborated with the World Health Organization to bring a new class of bacteria-based insecticides to the global Public Health market, partnered with university, government and private institutions to develop precision-based, aerial pesticide application technology to manage mosquito vectors of West Nile, dengue and Zika.  His global field-based team partners directly with researchers and key stakeholders responsible for public health to customize local vector control solutions and educational outreach programs.  Steve’s training includes a B.S. in Biology from James Madison University, a Ph.D. in Entomology from the University of Wisconsin, and an MBA from Loyola University of Chicago.  He has held numerous positions in research, sales, marketing and business management.

Since 1981, Dr. Becker has been the Scientific Director of the German Mosquito Control Association (KABS) where his responsibilities include research, administrative and technical duties related to the biology and control of mosquitoes with environmentally safe methods and techniques. He supervises more than 40 biologists and more than 300 field workers dealing with the biology and control of mosquitoes. Dr. Becker is also an Associate Professor at the University of Heidelberg and a consultant for the World Health Organization. Since 2000, he has also served as the Executive Director of the European Mosquito Control Association.

Ms. Isabelle Martin has worked as President and CEO of GDG Environment since August 2010. Previously, between 2005 and 2010, she served as Chief Operating Officer and Financial Officer within GDG.  She holds a MBA with an Accounting specialization from the University of Quebec in Montreal. Her leadership and skills in implementing continuous improvement and innovative solutions to better serve the customers have contributed to expand the company into Canada and double the market in ten years. GDG delivers simple and effective solutions to quality of life and public health issues.

Mr. Gray earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Zoology from Clemson University in 1985.  Upon graduation, he began working with Dr. Ray Noblet at Clemson and helped to develop the newly formed Medical and Veterinary Entomology Program. Shortly thereafter, he began graduate studies and in 1990 received his Master’s of Agriculture Degree from Clemson University specializing in Medical and Veterinary Entomology. In 1999, Mr. Gray was instrumental in moving the laboratory to the University of Georgia where he currently serves as a Medical and Veterinary Entomologist with the Department of Entomology. Mr. Gray supervises the operation of the University of Georgia Black Fly Rearing and Bioassay Laboratory. This laboratory maintains the world’s only black fly colony and conducts a variety of research related to larval black fly feeding and Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. israelensis insecticidal protein induced mortality. In addition, he serves as the Public Health Extension Entomologist for Georgia, focusing on mosquito control training, education and outreach.

The biostimulant industry is growing with highly specialized companies and major corporations all developing integrated solutions. There is a real demand around the world for biological products from growers, food companies, and retailers seeking to enhance the efficiency of a variety of crop inputs. Biological products and especially biostimulants have a uniquely vital role to play in the sustainability of agriculture for stakeholders throughout the food, feed, and fiber value chain – from grower to consumer. This session will explore the exciting opportunities in the changing world of biostimulants.

Terry Stone directs regulatory affairs initiatives for Agrinos, working closely with regulatory agencies and other stakeholders on a global level. He also leads the development of Agrinos’ sustainability programs, partnering with customers and other public and private organizations to demonstrate and quantify the value of Agrinos products as an important part of their sustainability initiatives. Terry joined Agrinos as Vice President, Regulatory Affairs and Sustainability Programs in 2015. Prior to joining Agrinos he held leadership roles with Syngenta, The Scotts Company and Monsanto working in global regulatory affairs, sustainability, industry relations and research and development. He has earned Master’s degrees in International Business and Entomology.

Kater Hake is the Vice President of Agricultural and Environmental Research at Cotton Incorporated where he is responsible for the cotton production research program. Kater leads a team of 6 project managers who develop and support innovative problem-solving research with a network of 300 public sector scientists to increase the profitability and sustainability of cotton farming in the U.S. Kater came to Cotton Incorporated from a long career in cotton research and management. Most recently he was the Vice President of Technology Development at Delta & Pine Land Company. He has also held positions at Texas A&M University, The National Cotton Council, and the University of California. He holds 3 degrees from the University of California at Davis and at Riverside.

Giuseppe Natale holds the position of Chief Executive Officer at Valagro SpA. In 1980 he founded Farmer Italia s.n.c., today known as Valagro SpA, a multinational leader in the production and marketing of environmentally-friendly fertilizers for agricultural production, lawns, gardening and various industrial applications. In the Nineties, he led the company towards internationalization, initially on the European market and thereafter in the rest of the world. Today Valagro has 12 branch offices in 3 continents and, through its distributors, covers more than 80 countries all over the world.

Christy Melhart Slay directs the research and partnership activities for The Sustainability Consortium (TSC) to develop a global, transparent, scientifically-based measurement and reporting system for product sustainability. She leads efforts with strategic partners to ensure TSC’s metrics, tools, and reporting systems are harmonized and interoperable with existing initiatives.  She also leads TSC’s Commodity Mapping Program to develop spatial models for identification of agricultural and wood fiber commodity source regions and works with companies to map their commodity supply chains and related environmental and social risks. Christy develops and leads hands-on training and field courses as well as other projects to implement TSC tools within businesses.  Christy has been with TSC since its inception in 2009.  She received her doctorate in biology from the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville.

Mark Trimmer has more than 29 years in research, product development, registration, technical service, and technology licensing in the crop protection industry. Mark led international product development at American Cyanamid and successfully delivered numerous new product registrations. At BASF, he led new technology acquisition for the agriculture division and successfully negotiated development agreements on several new products. Most recently, Mark led R&D efforts at a biological start-up company, NutraPark, and successfully developed novel biological PGR’s for enhancing fresh market fruits and vegetables. In 2006, Mark founded Trimmer Consulting, LLC and has been providing new technology assessment, R&D strategy, regulatory, and product development services to clients in the agricultural chemical and biological markets on a global basis. In 2011, Mark co-founded DunhamTrimmer LLC with William Dunham. The premier market research firm focused exclusively on the global biological and natural product plant protection and plant health market sectors.

“Globalization” is broadly defined as a process of interaction and integration among the people, companies, and governments of different nations, a process driven by international trade and investment and aided by information technology. What does that mean for biological products such as biocontrols and biostimulants? It probably means different things depending on where in the world you are working. This session will have speakers from Africa, Europe, North and South America share their perspective on globalization and what it means for the biological products industry.

Maggie Rodriguez graduated with a BSc in Environmental Toxicology from UC Davis and has been involved with biocontrols for over 7 years with experience in Research & Development and Regulatory Affairs at Marrone Bio Innovations. Ms. Rodriguez has developed a deep understanding for the work and effort involved in taking biologicals from discovery to commercialization scale which have allowed her to thrive in the regulatory realm on a national and international level. She has been working with regulatory agencies in the US, Canada, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and Africa to engage and educate regulators about the advances and importance of biocontrols which has become a real passion and drive to register more products in efforts to provide innovative and responsible tools for agricultural practices on a global scale.

Jóse has five years of experience as a crop protection specialist and twelve years as a commercial manager involving spraying machinery, biocontrols, and fertilizers. He has expertise in business and project development and has established a network of dealers in numerous countries across four continents. For several years, Jóse has led sales teams with a focus on technology and product reliability. His “philosophy” is always to know, believe and explain the product as no one does while increasing the confidence of the market, customers, and users.

Nicolás is President of Ecoflora Agro. He is an entrepreneur, innovator, and leader who has participated in the creation of various companies, organizations, programs, and products related to biodiversity, biocontrol, life sciences, and green businesses. Amongst the innovations he has lead from Colombia, his home country, are several plant extract-based biocontrols which are currently being exported through a partnership with the Gowan Company to the United States, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Germany, and Morocco.

Sarah Reiter has over twenty years of experience in agriculture with a strong focus on biocontrols. Starting in February 2016, Sarah became USA Country Head for Stockton, the global leader in plant-based biocontrols, which is currently rolling out its products into U.S. markets. Prior to Stockton, Sarah served as Bayer CropScience’s Global Product Manager for Biologics. Preceding Bayer, Sarah was Vice President of Marketing & Communications for AgraQuest, a $10 million biocontrols producer when she began, whose successful marketing strategy and programs she drove, until that company was acquired by Bayer for nearly $500 million in 2012. Prior to AgraQuest, Sarah worked for Syngenta USA. Sarah holds a Degree in English from the University of California, Davis, and an MBA from Villanova School of Business. Sarah is a frequently requested speaker at international agriculture conferences on the topic of biocontrols as an integral part of conventional agriculture.

Mr. Thomas is a veteran private-sector economist having served as a strategist for several of the world’s largest banks and investment firms. Aside from his work specializing in regional economics, Mr. Thomas also authored the seminal treatise on the global economy as a social biosphere titled “The Econosphere” (Financial Times Press). Mr. Thomas describes our economy as a social environment, analogous in every way to our physical environment. It is a self-sustaining system that if left reasonably unfettered provides us with the signals and incentives that allows our planet to support its billions of inhabitants.  Unfortunately, there is pollution in our Econosphere, and it typically comes in the form of wrong-headed public policy. He earned his M.S. in Agriculture and Resource Economics from the University of Maine. Mr. Thomas calls the Washington DC area home.