Plantae Presents: World Policies in Plant Science

In this webinar, renowned experts from various fields of plant science will highlight information on current and relevant plant policies related to plant diversity, plant protection and health, and genetically modified organisms (GMOs). This webinar would most importantly help students, apart from early career researchers and scientists, who wish to know more about regulatory policies straight from experts who have delivered brilliant talks on these topics and have been working on these policies.

Hosted by the 2024 Plantae Fellows.

SPEAKERS

Susana Perera-Valderrama

Ms. Susana Perera Valderrama has been a Marine Biodiversity Programme Officer at the Secretariat of the Cartagena Convention, since June 2023, where she coordinates the implementation of the Protocol on Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife (SPAW) in the wider Caribbean region. Ms. Perera Valderrama is a Cuban national with 20 years of experience in national and regional projects to conserve and monitor marine species and ecosystems and design and implement marine protected areas.

Before joining the Secretariat, Ms. Perera Valderrama worked as a marine protected areas (MPAs) specialist at the National Centre for Protected Areas of Cuba. There, she supported the design and implementation of Cuba’s MPAs and was Cuba’s technical focal point for the SPAW Protocol during this time. She also worked as a marine biodiversity monitoring specialist at CONABIO in Mexico, coordinating marine biodiversity monitoring programmes in Mexico’s MPAs.

Felix Moronta Barrios

Felix Moronta Barrios is a Venezuelan biologist committed to facilitating the adoption of agricultural products enhanced by modern biotechnologies. As a Senior Programme Specialist in the Regulatory Science Group at the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB, Trieste, Italy), he supports projects to energize and strengthen biotechnology regulatory offices in the Global South. Felix works closely with national and international authorities for ensuring regulatory effectiveness in the changing landscape of evolving biotechnologies.

Prof. K.C. Bansal

Prof. K.C. Bansal is an Adjunct Professor at the Centre for Crop and Food Innovation, Murdoch University, Perth, Australia. He previously served as Secretary of the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences, India (2021-2023) and Director of the National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi (2010-2016).

Prof. Bansal was Vice-Chair for Asia at the 15th Regular Session of the UN’s Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (2013-2015). He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Global Plant Council and the Board of Trustees of the MS Swaminathan Research Foundation.

Prof. Bansal’s research focuses on functional genomics and transgenic development for abiotic stress tolerance in plants. He developed India’s first transgenic crops with improved tolerance to drought and salt stress. His lab identified and cloned the first ABA receptor gene OsPYL10 from an Indian drought-tolerant rice landrace. He evaluated the entire wheat germplasm collection (~22,000 accessions) in the Indian National Genebank and identified trait-specific reference sets for heat tolerance and disease resistance.

With over 40 years of research experience, Prof. Bansal has been pivotal in research management, human resource development, and policy formulation for promoting GM crops and genome editing for climate-resilient agriculture.

MODERATORS

Alicia Quinn

Alicia is currently working on her PhD in plant molecular biology at Monash University, Australia. Her project aims to understand the regulation of a toxic compound produced in Sorghum. When she’s not at work, Alicia loves hiking and exploring local wineries. X: @AliciaQuinnSci.

Gillian Rowe

Gillian is doctoral researcher at the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad and a research scientist at the Scientific Research Council (SRC), Jamaica. Her scientific interests are microbiology, molecular plant-pathogen interactions, the soil microbiome and bioinformatics. Her current research focus is on the development of novel biocontrol agents for plant biodiversity conservation, reducing environmental pollution to enhance human health. Community outreach, nature and the outdoors, running and watching soccer are just a few of her interests. X: @RoweGill.

Indrani Kakati Baruah

Indrani K.B, an ASPB 2023 Plantae fellow is an ORISE post-doctoral fellow (2019-2024)
who finished her tenure this February at the USDA-ARS Beltsville Agricultural Research Centre (BARC) in Maryland, USA and currently on a self-imposed sabbatical visiting family in India. Her research interests include focusing on functional and comparative genomics studies related to phytopathology, pathogen genomics, plant-microbial/ plant-insect interaction and plant epigenetics. Apart from being a first-generation researcher mother from her family, she likes to involve herself in easy scientific communication and voluntary activities related to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). She wishes to be an inspiration for young women to choose STEM fields and never give up. X: @Indranik333.

Isabel Pochet Pimentel

Isabel is a Venezuelan Biologist with a Master’s in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology. She is currently a PhD candidate at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. Her work focused on the characterization of important genes related to plant associations with nitrogen-fixing bacteria, using physiological and transcriptomic approaches. As a researcher, she wants to understand how plants communicate and interact with other living beings. Outside the lab, she enjoys food, TV shows, and fluffy cats. X: @isabelpochet.