I have graduated in Agricultural Science and Technology from the University of Basilicata (Italy) with honors (cum laude) on a 5-years degree. During my PhD at the University of Melbourne (Australia) I have worked on spatially integrating crop simulation model and remote sensing for nitrogen management on wheat. After the PhD I worked at Queensland University of Technology (Institute for Sustainable Resources) on measuring greenhouse gas emissions from cotton and wheat; and as Postdoctoral Associate at the University of Florida (USA) working on the impacts of climate change on agriculture and how to model it, as well as applying crop simulation models in precision agriculture. After this, I was offered a position as Research Scientist (Principal Investigator) at the James Hutton Institute (Dundee, U.K.) working in precision agriculture and modelling the impacts of climate change in agriculture. From Jan 2020 to Jan 2022, I was an Associate Professor in Digital Agriculture at the Department of Agronomy, Purdue University. Now I am a Professor in Environmental Crop Science at Aarhus University, Department of Agroecology.

I have worked with scientists from different disciplines and from institutions over the world on topics like precision agriculture, crop modeling and climate change impacts in agriculture.

From 2009 to 2022 I have been proactive in writing many publications, book chapters, and a book as co-Editor and I am Chief Editor of Precision Agriculture, Associate Editor of Italian Journal of Agronomy and on the Editorial Board of the European Journal of Agronomy and Crop and Pasture Science.

Dr. Manuel Pérez-Ruiz is a full professor at the University of Seville, Spain. Initiating his research journey in 2001, he was an integral part of precision agriculture advancements within the research group at KU Leuven’s Department of Biosystems in Belgium. His collaboration with Professor David C. Slaughter at the University of California at Davis from 2008 to 2014 further solidified his standing in agricultural technology. With a career spanning over two decades dedicated to developing and applying sensors and instrumentation for agricultural machinery, GNSS, variable application techniques, and intelligent systems, his work has been pivotal in revolutionizing weed control and reducing the costs of agricultural operations. He has devoted considerable effort to transferring knowledge and the on-farm demonstration of precision strategies and technologies, ensuring that research outcomes benefit the farming community directly. Since 2019, he has been at the helm of the Smart Biosystems Laboratory at the University of Seville. Under his leadership, this research group of 20 researchers pursues projects with a European scope. This role provides him with a deep understanding of the varied agronomic and technological systems across Europe and insight into the specific needs of the region's agriculture sector.

Elia Scudiero is an Associate Research Agronomist at the Environmental Sciences Department of the University of California in Riverside (UCR) with a joint appointment at the USDA ARS US Salinity Laboratory, also in Riverside. Dr. Scudierois the Interim Director of UCR’s Center for Agriculture, Food, and the Environment. Before moving to Riverside, Dr. Scudiero was awarded a Ph.D. in Crop Science from the University of Padua, Italy, in 2013. Elia’s Digital Agronomy Lab uses high-resolution geospatial sensing to study soil and crop processes across scales. Dr. Scudiero’s research advances sustainable site-specific agriculture management practices in water-scarce and salt-affected farmland in California and globally.

During my 2020-2024 term as ISPA treasurer I researched financial auditors and organized a review of the financial procedures of ISPA by an independent accountancy firm. They made recommendations for improvements in the system of controls. I implemented these recommendations. As a society, we also wanted to provide more financial transparency to the members and so prepared an annual financial report for the last two years.
I investigated the costs we are paying to the company that administers ISPA and did a cost comparison with other similar firms. I found that we are paying less than we would have to pay to other firms. However, I also discovered that we were not covering our costs with membership fees, therefore we saw the need to raise society dues slightly.
The Covid pandemic was hard financially for any society trying to put on conferences and we had a significant loss from the 15th ICPA in 2022 due to travel restrictions and the honoring of contracts that were signed in preparation for the 2020 conference which had to be postponed to 2022. I, and the rest of the board have made several efforts to improve the visibility of the society, increase membership and apply for grants to support the conference in attempts to recover from the financial setbacks of the pandemic. We have taken advantage of higher interest rates to invest generous sponsorship funds from various universities in high interest accounts until the costs of the upcoming conference are paid for. The latest annual financial report showed that the society is in significantly better shape now than it was just a year ago thanks to the ongoing efforts of the current ISPA board.
If re-elected I am committed to continue to keep the financial well being of the society as my top priority and will take every opportunity to promote the society and safely invest funds that are surplus to the day to day needs of the society.

 

I have started working on Precision Agriculture in the African context since 2010 and have published many papers allowing stakeholders (mainly farmers) to take the right decision at the right time taking into account the sustainability aspect of its production. As a member of ISPA, I will actively contribute to the advancement of knowledge and approach used by researchers in Africa. We have to consider that the evolution of Precision Agriculture in African context should take into account local context and available resources. I envision supporting initiatives that encourage research and development in areas such as remote sensing, precision nutrients, precision agronomic practices, digital platform and automated systems. By collaborating with researchers in the domain from different horizons we will ensure that professionals have access to the appropriate decision tool. As a proof, I am coordinating the first Intra Africa Mobility on Precision agriculture in Africa which will impact directly 64 people by 2027.

 

Salim LAMINE is a Lecturer in Remote Sensing & GIS and Precision Agriculture at the University of Bouira. He earned his PhD from the University of Sciences and Technology Houari Boumediene (Algeria) in cooperation with Aberystwyth University (UK). With extensive expertise in leadership, training, and report writing, Salim possesses a diverse skill set, including Geospatial Data analysis, strategic communications, and presentation proficiency. His research spans multiple disciplines, covering Remote Sensing, Precision Agriculture, Hyperspectral Imaging, GIS, Field Spectroradiometry, Soil Bio-Geochemistry, Water Sustainable Management, Agricultural Biosystem-Engineering, Climate Change, Forest Fire Management, Aerial and Space Mapping, Heavy Metal Mapping, Hydro-informatics, Geo-Statistics, Soil Moisture, and SVAT Models. Salim has made significant contributions to the field with +20 peer-reviewed papers published in highly respected journals, +100 international conferences, and +5 book chapters. He recently authored a book about Remote Sensing Applications and is currently editing another one with ELSEVIER, titled "Remote Sensing in Precision Agriculture," scheduled for publication early in 2023.Beyond his academic achievements, Salim has excelled as a part-time Geospatial Project Manager at ARCHI-ART Engineering & Technical Studies Ltd (Algeria) since 04/03/2012. In this role, he showcased his adeptness in project coordination, management, and expertise in Remote Sensing, utilizing ERDAS Imagine, ENVI, and ArcGIS. Additionally, since 16/04/2023, he has been serving as a part-time CEO & Business Strategy Consultant at ECOLAND CONSULTING Ltd (Algeria), skillfully combining leadership capabilities with strategic communications to provide comprehensive Geospatial consulting solutions. Salim's profound expertise in Geospatial Data analysis, coupled with strong project management skills, makes him an exceptional contributor in various fields, ensuring accurate reporting and insightful analyses. Salim's unwavering passion for Remote Sensing, GIS, and environmental studies fuels his determination to drive advancements in these fields and create a lasting impact on the scientific and professional community.

 

Siva K Balasundram is Professor of Precision Agriculture at Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) and currently heads the Department of Agriculture Technology, UPM. He is also the Country Representative of the International Society of Precision Agriculture (ISPA), a role he has held since 2011. Recently, Siva led the organizing team of the 10th Asian-Australasian Conference on Precision Agriculture (ACPA10), held on October of 2023 in Putrajaya, Malaysia. Siva focuses on modeling spatio-temporal variability in agricultural land use and cropping systems to develop site- and time-specific strategies for resource use optimization. His toolbox includes geospatial statistics, remote and proximal sensors, geographic information system, global navigation satellite system, artificial intelligence and internet of things. Siva teaches one (1) graduate course (Principles and Applications of Precision Agriculture - TKP5401) and three (3) undergraduate courses (IoT Management - TKP3403, Remote Sensing Project Implementation - TKP3402 and Modern Agriculture Technologies - TKP3001). In terms of research, Siva has brought in research grants in the amount of RM1.7 million (equivalent to USD356,000) from nine (9) different projects over the past 20 years. He has authored/co-authored a total of eighty five (85) journal articles, forty six (46) proceeding papers, seven (7) book chapters and five (5) articles in professional magazines. He currently registers a Scopus h-index of 20. Additionally, he has two (2) copyrights and one (1) patent to his credit. He has also led eighteen (18) consultancies and built several industry linkages as a scientific advisor/resource person. Siva has been frequently featured as a keynote and plenary speaker in many conferences/seminars/workshops internationally and locally. To date, he has delivered more than fifty (50) keynote/plenary/invited talks on Precision Agriculture, Smart Agriculture and Digital Agriculture.

 

For more than 25 years, I have been working on precision agriculture as a research theme, with field producers, private companies, local governments, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, and the National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO). Nowadays, the name "smart agriculture" is being used to describe this research, which is being implemented in society. The theme that I am working on as a tenet of my research is "the establishment of agricultural data sets that have a high affinity with farmers' senses. I am conducting research to analyze data in a way that is easy for farmers to understand by mapping the goodness or badness of work and the environment based on sensor data. I am studying as a community member of OFE within ISPA with the idea of realizing data-driven agriculture through farmers' proactive use of information. As specific research topics, we are developing (1) smart agricultural machinery for rice paddy cultivation and (2) ICT-based cultivation support systems for fruit tree horticulture, with a focus on Asia, and are conducting research with the hope of contributing to the spread of precision agriculture in Asia and Oceania.

 

My academic journey began with basic research in crop physiology and crop-weed competition during my PhD and postdoc. This led to my research on weed sensing and site specific weed management, earning recognition in international weed science and precision agriculture circles. Currently, I focus on crop imaging for phenotyping species and varieties and advancing precision agriculture.

 

Full Professor at Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya and Director of the Research Group of Agricultural Mechanization Unit - UMA, Prof. Gil is Director of the Syngenta-UPC Chair, the first official agreement between university and private company in the area of agriculture at UPC. Member of the coordination board of PhD program on AgroFood Engineering and Biotechnology, academic responsible of Precision Agriculture topic at Master of Tech4Agri+Food (UPC), he is also professor at PhD program in agriculture and forestry at the University of Turin and has been Director of the International Viticulture Master of the UPC, in collaboration with the University of Sassari (Italy). Prof. Gil has been also Professor at Cornell University (20052006), being researcher at CALS – College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Prof. Gil has been vice-Director of organization and economic resources at EEABB (1997-2000), and vice-director of International relationshis (2000-2005) being the first responsible on establishing Erasmuns programs at the EEABB agricultural faculty. His international relationship is wide all around the world. He is expert member of ISO, involved in several working groups linked to agricultural machinery. He is active member also of CEN (Committee Euroepan of Normalization) and member of UNE, the Spanish institution of normalization. Prof. Gil has been nominated expert researcher representative at EIP-FOCUS group for Precision Farming, implmented by the European Commission. He is also coordinator at EUPAF – European Precision Application Task Force.

 

With more than 26 years of experience, Kakha Nadiradze has positioned himself in various management positions with the vision of promoting innovative and scientific development in Climate Change and Biodiversity Conservation, he provides professional advisory/consulting/extension services to Government, Policy Makers, producers and agricultural companies around the world in the implementation of sustainable agricultural systems, comprehensive optimization of Agribusiness and evaluation of market opportunities.
He is focused on promoting sustainable agriculture through soil conservation techniques, the creation and application of bioproducts, efficient Farm management, implementing regenerative agriculture methods, Gene Banking. Management and in general nature-based solutions, among others. He has published extensively in these areas, linking theory and practice to inform policymaking on food, agriculture, the environment, circularity and human well-being.

 

Søren Marcus Pedersen has more than 25 years’ experience with innovation economics, environmental economics and adoption studies in the agricultural sector. Focus has been on sustainable farming systems in arable farming, especially precision farming and autonomous systems and site-specific application of water, nitrogen and other inputs in crop production. Currently he lectures in the following courses: European Food and Farming systems, Business Economics, Natural resources, Economy and Governance and previously Cost benefits analysis and Technology Assessment of farming systems at University of Copenhagen.

 

Dr. Rodrigo Ortega-Blu is an Associate Professor at the University Santa María in Santiago-Chile. He got involved with Precision Agriculture (PA) in the 90’s, while pursuing his PhD at Colorado State University. He has worked in PA from different aspects including research, teaching, extension, and commercial application. His research and extension activities focus on improving soil quality as the basis for a sustainable production, under climate change, using precision agriculture, organic matter, microorganisms, and nitrification inhibitors, among other technologies, particularly in fruit production. Important areas of his work are the conversion of available data into useful information and farmer’s digitalization. He teaches Precision Agriculture at the graduate level and Econometrics at the undergraduate one. He has worked as a national and international consultant in soils and precision agriculture. He participates in various societies at the national, regional, and international levels.

 

Rouverson Pereira da Silva is an Agricultural Engineer from the Federal University of Lavras (1990), with a Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Federal University of Uberlândia (1995), a Ph.D. in Agronomy (Plant Production) from the São Paulo State University (2002), and a postdoctoral degree from the University of Georgia (2017). He currently serves as an Adjunct Professor III at São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal Campus, and holds the position of Executive Director of the Latin American and Caribbean Association of Agricultural Engineering, as well as the Director of International Relations at the Brazilian Association of Agricultural Engineers, and is a Board Member of the Brazilian Association of Agricultural Engineering. Throughout his career, he has authored 206 papers in scientific journals, 10 books, and 38 book chapters. He has also presented more than 600 communications in conference proceedings and technical journals and has actively participated in numerous scientific events both in Brazil and abroad. His supervision includes 6 post-doctorate supervisions, 27 doctoral theses, 34 master's dissertations, and over 160 scientific initiation and course completion works in the fields of Agricultural Engineering and Agronomy. Rouverson Pereira da Silva is an ad hoc consultant for several scientific journals and specializes in Agricultural Engineering, particularly in Agricultural Machinery and Mechanization, as well as Digital and Precision Agriculture. His research focuses on various topics, including Mechanized Harvest Systems (coffee, sugarcane, peanuts, and cereals), Digital Agriculture, Precision Agriculture, and Quality Control in Mechanized Agricultural Operations. He is recognized as one of the pioneers in peanut harvesting research in Brazil. Furthermore, he is a member of the Brazilian Committees for Precision and Digital Agriculture, Evaluation of the Award Tractor of the Year, and Evaluation of the Award Machine of the Year. Overall, Rouverson Pereira da Silva has made significant contributions to the field of Agricultural Engineering, with a wealth of publications, supervisory roles, and active participation in scientific communities both nationally and internationally.

 

Research Expertise includes Digital and precision agriculture, Digital soil mapping, Proximal soil sensing, Remote sensing, Sustainable soil management, Soil spatial variability and Spatial statistics, Spatial model building, Soil-landscape scaling analysis, Quantitative land evaluation, Soil pedology and Pedometrics, Soil physics and Vadose-zone hydrology, Transport of water, nutrients, chemicals, and pollutants through soil,
Agricultural water and nutrient management, Carbon fractionation and sequestration.

 

Dr. Cambouris is currently responsible for numerous national research projects dealing with variable rate N management using soil and crop sensor systems, remote sensing, geomatics and geostatistics at the Quebec research and Development Centre of AAFC. She conducts research on the delineation of management zones based on the multifusion data encompassing soil and crop sensor systems for potato, corn, switchgrass and forage productions. Her expertise with sensors to study the spatial variability of soil properties is also well known. Dr. Cambouris is an adjunct professor at Laval University and at the Institut National de recherche – Eau – terre – Environnement de Québec. She has supervised or co-supervised eight M.Sc., four Ph.D. students and one postdoc. She currently manages in her laboratory three research assistants, two M.Sc. and two Ph.D. students.
Dr. Cambouris was the main investigator of the Potato Cluster project entitled “Enhancement of Canadian Potato Industry through Smart Farming” involving all Eastern Canada provinces (2018-2023). She is actively involved in the (2019-2027) Livinlab Initiatives program of AAFC in two Eastern Canada provinces where she implemented precise N management using the approach of PA (management zone, variable rate applications and UAV imagery) under potato production and studied the spatial-temporal variability of the health soil properties under corn production with intercropping and cover crops. Since 2007, Dr. Cambouris is President of the Commission de géomatique agricole et agriculture de précision (GAAP) which is the official expert committee for Precision Agriculture in the province of Quebec, Canada. Dr. Cambouris is one of the instigators within the GAAP Commission of a 3-day training in Precision agriculture and geomatics in the province of Quebec. This 3-day training is offered periodically all year round since 2018. Dr. Cambouris has organized and chaired four Conferences on Precision Agriculture for the GAAP Commission. She is also a member of the: American Society of Agronomy, Soil Science Society of America, and the Association Québécoise des Spécialistes en Sciences du Sol.