2005 Speakers

Allen | Bennink | Bertini | Bobo | Borlaug | Bouis | Demment | Dietz | Diop Fraley | Fyrwald | Giyose | Hansen | Huckabee | Ireson | Iverson | Jallow | Levine | Lewis | Ludwig | McPherson | Milligan | Misra | Natsios | Nelson | Neufville | Phillips | Pinstrup-Andersen | Sanchez | Scrimshaw | Shawa | Sserunjogi | Staley | Webb | Willett | Woteki

 

 

Lindsay Allen is the Director of the USDA-ARS Western Human Nutrition Research Center at the University of California - Davis. She has conducted several nutrition intervention studies in developing countries, as well as in the United States, to assess the efficacy of micronutrient supplements and food-based approaches to improve nutritional status, pregnancy outcome and child development. Her current research is focused on the global prevalence of vitamin B-12 deficiency, and its effects on metabolism and human function.

 

Beyond serving on the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Academy of Sciences, she has advised several bilateral and international agencies, including: WHO, UNICEF, Asian Development Bank, World Bank, PAHO and FAO. Dr. Allen is the principal author of the new WHO Guidelines on Food Fortification with Micronutrients. She received a B.Sc. in Agriculture and Nutrition from the University of Nottingham and a Ph.D. in Nutrition and Physiology at the University of California - Davis.

 

 

 

Dr. Maurice Bennink is a Professor of Food Science and Human Nutrition at Michigan State University. He divides his time at Michigan State University between teaching and research on the topics of diet and cancer, legume starch, protein digestion, lipid metabolism, nutritional biochemistry, microbiology and the gastrointestinal tract. Dr. Bennink received his B.S. in dairy science from Michigan State University in 1966, his M.S. in animal nutrition from Colorado State University in 1968 and his Ph.D. in nutritional science from University of Illinois in 1973.

 

Prior to his position at Michigan State University, Dr. Bennink worked at Blodgett Memorial Hospital where he served as a clinical biochemist, MSU as an associate professor of food science and human nutrition and a U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) consultant to India. Dr. Bennink has been published in referred journals and books numerous times and presented on health and nutrition topics such as the role of soy in preventing colon cancer and cardiovascular disease.

 

 

 

Catherine Bertini, former Under-Secretary General for Management at the United Nations, is the Chair of the UN Standing Committee on Nutrition and a faculty member in the Department of Public Administration in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University.  Bertini is a Central New York native and the former head of the UN World Food Program.

 

As Under-secretary-General for Management, Bertini was responsible for the United Nation's $3 billion biennial budget as well as human resources and security for 9,000 staff members. As the executive director of the UN's World Food Program, Bertini oversaw the largest humanitarian agency in the world.

 

She was named 2003 World Food Prize Laureate in recognition of her leadership role in assisting hundreds of millions of victims of wars and natural disasters throughout the world. The Republic of Italy honored Bertini with its Order of Merit, and the Association of African Journalists awarded her its Prize of Excellence. In 1996, The Times of London named her one of "The World's Most Powerful Women." The American Public Welfare Association recognized Bertini as one who "epitomizes the very best in public service." In her most recent position, Bertini was a member of the Secretary-General's cabinet, participated in the UN system-wide Chief Executives Board, and chaired the Management Committee. She was the senior American official in the UN Secretariat. 

 

 

 

Jack Bobo is the Deputy Chief of the Biotechnology and Textile Trade Policy Division in the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs at the U.S. Department of State. Mr. Bobo works on trade policy, food security, and development issues related to agricultural biotechnology with a regional focus on Africa and Europe. Recently, Mr. Bobo served as the State Department representative to World Trade Organization hearings in a case brought by the United States and others against the European Union related to the EU's moratorium on reviewing biotechnology applications.

 

Previously a research fellow at Cambridge University, Mr. Bobo practiced law at the Washington, D.C. firm of Crowell & Moring, LLP, served as an advisor to the U.S. President’s Information Technology Advisory Committee, and has taught physical and natural sciences to students in Gabon. Mr. Bobo earned a M.S. and a J.D in Environmental Science at Indiana University. 

 

 

 

In 1970 Norman E. Borlaug was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for a lifetime of work to feed a hungry world. Although a scientist with outstanding contributions, perhaps Dr. Borlaug's greatest achievement has been his unending struggle to integrate the various streams of agricultural research into viable technologies and to convince political leaders to bring these advances to fruition. ...more

 

 

 

Howarth Bouis is the Director of HarvestPlus, where he coordinates an interdisciplinary, global alliance of research centers and implementing agencies to biofortify and disseminate micronutrient-dense staple food crops and to measure their impact in improving nutrition. Since 1993, he has sought to promote biofortification activities both within the Future Harvest Centers, including their NARES partners, and in the human nutrition community -- through publications, seminars, workshops, symposiums, and fund-raising.

 

As Director of HarvestPlus, Dr. Bouis holds a joint appointment at the International Food Policy Research institute (Washington, D.C.) and the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (Cali, Colombia). His past research has concentrated on understanding how economic factors affect food demand and nutrition outcomes, particularly in Asia. Howarth Bouis received his B.A. in Economics from Stanford University and his M.A. and Ph.D. from Stanford University's Food Research Institute. 

 

 

 

Tag Demment is the Director of the Global Livestock Collaborative Research Support Program (GL-CRSP) and a Professor of Ecology in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences at the University of California-Davis. As the Director of GL-CRSP, Dr. Demment works to address issues of food security, trade, environment and policy related to the livestock sector in developing countries.

 

Dr. Demment is the past President of the Association for Agriculture and Rural Development (AIARD) and chairs the International Agriculture Coordinating Committee of the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges (NASULGC).

 

Focusing his research on the nutritional ecology of herbivores, Dr. Demment has worked extensively in West Africa, Central Asia, South East Asia, sub Saharan Africa and the Middle East. Before receiving an NIH post-doctoral fellowship to study animal nutrition at Cornell University, Dr. Demment earned his B.A. in Architectural Sciences from Harvard University, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Zoology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

 

 

 

William Dietz is the Director of the Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity in the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Prior to his appointment to the CDC, he was a Professor of Pediatrics at the Tuft's University School of Medicine, and Director of Clinical Nutrition at the Floating Hospital of New England Medical Center Hospitals. Dr. Dietz was previously the Associate Director of the Clinical Research Center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Director of the Boston Obesity/Nutrition Research Center.

 

His research has focused on the epidemiology of childhood obesity, the clinical consequences of childhood and adolescent obesity, optimal dietary therapy for overweight children and adolescents, and the implications of reduced energy expenditure for the development of overweight in children and adolescents.

 

Dr. Dietz is the author of more than 150 publications and editor of three books, including A Guide to Your Child's Nutrition. He received his BA from Wesleyan University in 1966, an MD from the University of Pennsylvania in 1970 and a Ph.D. in Nutritional Biochemistry from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 

 

 

 

Abdoulaye Diop is the Ambassador of Mali to the United States. Prior to this post, Amb. Diop was the Diplomatic Adviser to President Alpha Oumar Konaré and President Amadou Toumani Touré. He oversaw Mali’s participation in the Security Council of the United Nations in 2000 and 2001, and was responsible for monitoring the initiatives taken for the creation of the African Union. Additionally, Amb. Diop has participated in several national delegations to regional and international conferences to address regional integration, economic development, peace and security issues.

 

Amb. Diop earned a B.A. in Diplomacy from the National School of Administration of Algeria, a M.A. in International Relations at the Paris International Institute of Public Administration, and a M.A. in Diplomacy and Management of International Organizations from the University of Paris XI.

 

 

 

Dr. Robert Fraley is the Executive Vice President and Chief Training Officer at Monsanto. In this role he oversees Monsanto’s integrated crop and seed agribusiness technology and research facilities in nearly every area in the world. He has previously held several different positions at Monsanto, including Co-President of Monsanto’s Agricultural Sector.

 

Dr. Fraley has authored more than 100 publications and patent applications technical advances in agricultural biotechnology, and in 1999 was awarded the National Medal of Technology from President Clinton. Dr. Fraley received his PhD in microbiology/biochemistry from the University of Illinois

 

 

 

J. Erik Fyrwald is group Vice President of DuPont Agriculture & Nutrition, one of five DuPont growth platforms. This group includes Pioneer Hi-Bred International, DuPont Crop Protection, and Nutrition and Health businesses. Under Fyrwald's direction the over $6 billion platform has focused on helping customers increase the quantity, quality and safety of the global food supply.

 

Prior to this assignment, Mr. Fyrwald was Vice President and General Manager of the Nutrition and Health businesses. In that role, he strengthened the DuPont position as a global leader in the production and marketing of soy protein products through strategic joint ventures. He joined DuPont in 1981 as a production engineer, and was named to his current position in June 2003. Mr. Fyrwald earned his B.S. in chemical engineering from the University of Delaware in 1981 and attended the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program in 1998.

 

 

 

Boitshepo Giyose is the Senior Nutrition Advisor for the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) in Midrand, South Africa. She has worked extensively on nutrition issues in Africa, with particular experience in food security and HIV/AIDS targeted nutrition programming. She worked in the Food and Nutrition Unit of the Government of Botswana’s Ministry of Health and in the private sector as a Senior Manager of a sorghum and millet processing plant. Prior to joining NEPAD, Giyose worked for the Commonwealth Regional Health Community Secretariat for East, Central and Southern Africa (CRHCS-ECSA) as the Regional Coordinator of the Food and Nutrition Program. She received her B.S. in Nutrition and Dietetics from Appalachian State University and her M.S. in International Nutrition at Cornell University.

 

 

 

Mary Mincer Hansen joined the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) in 2000 as a Research Fellow on the CDC-supported patient safety research program and became the first nurse selected as Director of the IDPH in 2003.

 

Dr. Hansen has extensive experience as a health care professional as well as an educator, researcher, and policy advisor at the state and national levels in the fields of nursing and public health administration, improving patient outcomes, promoting patient safety, and creating effective health care coalitions.

 

Dr. Hansen serves in numerous leadership roles including as a member of U.S. Senator Tom Harkin's Health Advisory Committee, a charter member of the National Health Policy Council, and Chair of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) Prevention Policy.

 

Dr. Hansen earned her B.S. in Nursing from Creighton University, and completed her M.S. in Nursing at Texas Women's University.  She earned a Ph.D. in Higher Education from Iowa State University.  She has also earned a Certificate from the Harvard University Executive Program in Health Policy and Management, and a Certificate from the George Mason University Health Policy Institute Health Policy Workshop.

 

 

 

Mike Huckabee became Governor of Arkansas July 15, 1996 at the resignation of his predecessor. Huckabee was later elected as Arkansas' 44th governor after winning the 1998 election with the highest percentage of the vote ever received by a Republican gubernatorial nominee in Arkansas. In November 2002, he was elected to a second four-year term.

 

Gov. Huckabee is recognized as a national leader in the areas of education and health care reform.  He is the Chairman of the Education Commission of the States, a highly respected education policy organization, and created the ARKids First program, a nationally recognized initiative that provides health insurance to tens of thousands of children previously uninsured. 

 

As the newly appointed Chairman of the National Governors Association (NGA), Gov. Huckabee created the initiative, Healthy America: Wellness Where We Live, Work and Learn.  Huckabee is the acting Co-chair of the bipartisan Healthy America Task Force which includes Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack.  The task force will raise national awareness while highlighting simple yet specific behavioral and lifestyle changes necessary for sustainable long-term health for children, teenagers, adults and seniors.  Huckabee is also a distinguished speaker, author, and a regular guest on national television and radio shows.

 

Gov. Huckabee attended Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and graduated from Ouachita Baptist University in 1977.

 

 

 

Randall Ireson coordinates the American Friends Service Committee (Quaker) agricultural development program in North Korea. Since 1998 he has designed and implemented a program which attempts to resolve some of the fundamental obstacles to improved food production in the DPRK – namely poor soil fertility, uneven water supply, overly simple cropping patterns, and high post-harvest losses. Working closely with four large cooperative farms and two North Korean research institutes, Dr. Ireson has coordinated visits to DPRK by experts in the fields of soil science, irrigation, animal husbandry and farm mechanics, and has led ten technical study tours by North Korean specialists to other countries in Asia and North America.

 

Prior to his work in North Korea, Randall directed or worked on numerous other development projects in Asia, including seven years in Laos spanning the period from 1967 through 1984. He established the Community Aid Abroad (Australian Oxfam) program in Laos in 1988. He has coordinated the formation of water users’ groups in Pakistani and Lao irrigation projects, and assisted in program design and evaluation for several NGOs, bilateral and UN assistance agencies.

 

Dr. Ireson has taught Sociology at Willamette University and the University of Albuquerque, and directed the Research and Evaluation Unit of the Oregon Department of Corrections. He holds a Ph.D. in Development Sociology from Cornell University.

 

 

 

Stewart Iverson is a state senator for Iowa, representing the 5th District. A farmer in Wright County, Iowa, he has served for fifteen years on the Dows Community School Board.  In 1989, Mr. Iverson was elected to the Iowa House of Representatives, and in 1994, elected to the Iowa Senate. Two years later, Mr. Iverson was elected by his fellow senators to serve as the Senate Majority Leader. He attended Ellsworth Junior College and graduated with a B.A. in Accounting from Buena Vista College. 

 

 

 

Dr. Isatou Jallow is a nutritionist with eighteen years of professional experience from working in nutrition in The Gambia.  She has succeeded during this period to move nutrition high on the development agenda of the country.  Currently, she serves as Executive Director of the Ministry of Health to a National Nutrition Agency under the Office of the Vice President where she has coordinated the transformation of a nutrition unit.  She is also responsible for adapting the global UNICEF/WHO Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative into a Gambian Baby Friendly Community Initiative. What started as a pilot project in 12 rural Gambian communities has now been scaled up to almost 300 communities (50% of all primary health care villages in The Gambia) with plans to eventually cover all rural communities in The Gambia. 

 

Jallow is currently a member of the International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN), Africa Advisory Committee and the Sub-Saharan Africa regional Design Team for the International Assessment of Agricultural Science and Technology (IAASTD).  She is a former member of the 2020 Africa Conference Advisory Committee on “Assuring Food and Nutrition Security in Africa by 2020” coordinated by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and hosted by the Government of Uganda. Dr. Jallow holds a MSc. in Nutrition from the University of Oslo, Norway.

 

 

 

James A. Levine is a Professor of Medicine at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Rochester, MN. Dr. Levine’s professional interests include Anorexia Nervosa, congenital leanness and obesity. His current research involves the study of calories expended through non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT). He received his Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge in England, and preformed his residencies at Royal Free Hospital in London, England and in internal medicine at the Mayo Graduate School of Medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN.

 

 

 

Dr. Lewis has led USAID's agricultural biotechnology effort and served as a technical advisor to USAID on issues and policies pertaining to biotechnology for the past seven years. She oversees USAID activities globally, with a significant emphasis on Africa, including support for research and technology development with public and private sector partnerships, technology transfer, intellectual property rights, biosafety regulatory development, and public outreach. Dr. Lewis first served as an AAAS Science, Technology and Diplomacy Fellow working on farmer-participatory sustainable agriculture research. After her fellowship, she managed an Israeli-Arab collaborative research grants program. Dr. Josette Lewis received her B.S. in Genetics from University of California - Davis and her Ph.D. in Molecular Biology for University of California - Los Angeles.

 

 

 

David Ludwig developed the Children's Optimal Weight for Life (OWL) Program --a multi-disciplinary care clinic dedicated to the evaluation and treatment of children who are overweight/obese. Not only does the program provide state-of-the-art care for overweight children, it also serves as a setting for clinical research to develop innovative treatments for pediatric obesity. He has also been the a principal or co-investigator of several epidemiological and clinical studies to identify dietary factors that contribute to obesity.

 

David Ludwig received a PhD and an MD from Stanford University School of Medicine. He completed an internship and residency in pediatrics and a fellowship in pediatric endocrinology at Children's Hospital Boston.

 

 

 

Michigan State University President Peter McPherson is a Michigan State alumnus with a B.A. in political science. He later received his M.B.A. from Western Michigan University, and his J.D. from American University Law School. While as President of Michigan State University, McPherson has worked with the Board of Trustees, faculty, staff, and students of the university to ensure that it remains affordable and accessible to students from all walks of life.

 

McPherson’s positions before Michigan State University include: Group Executive Vice President, Investment Management Group Bank of America; Group Executive Vice President, Latin America and Canada Division, CEO; Executive Vice President, Global Debt Restructuring Administration; Deputy Secretary of Treasury Department; Administrator, Agency for International Development; Chairman of the Board, Overseas Private Investment Corporation; Vorys, Sater, Seymour & Pease; The White House, Special Assistant to President Ford and Deputy Director, Presidential Personnel Office; and the Internal Revenue Service.

 

Additionally, McPherson serves as one of 25 members of a Kellogg Commission national committee devoted to studying the future of higher education.

 

 

 

Cynthia Milligan is the eighth Dean of the College of Business Administration at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She is a Member of the Board of Directors of Wells Fargo, The Gallup Organization and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and is Chair of the Bryan LGH Health Center Foundation. 

 

Mrs. Milligan holds a J.D. with honors from George Washington University National Law Center, and a B.A. with honors from the University of Kansas. She has been an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University Law College and the University of Nebraska College of Law, and is the former Director of Banking and Finance for the State of Nebraska. 

 

 

 

Manjit Misra is a Professor of Agricultural & Biosystems Engineering and the Director of the Seed Science Center at Iowa State University. He is a member of the Scientific Advisory Council of the American Seed Research Foundation, as well as a member of the Board of Directors of the Iowa Seed Association and the Iowa Crop Improvement Association.

 

His current work focuses on risk and benefit analysis for genetically modified agricultural products and non-food crops. Additionally, Dr. Misra serves as a UNDP Consultant to China on seed improvement technical assistance, a World Bank consultant on designing seed processing plants in Ethiopia and Ukraine, and a seed improvement program consultant for FAO in India.

 

Dr. Misra earned a B.Sc. in Agricultural Engineering at Orissa University of Agriculture & Technology in India, a M.S. in Agricultural Engineering (Soil & Water) and a Ph.D. in Agricultural Engineering (Food & Processing) at the University of Missouri-Columbia.

 

 

 

Andrew Natsios is the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), responsible for administering economic and humanitarian assistance worldwide since 2001.  By Presidential appointment, Mr. Natsios is also the Special Coordinator for International Disaster Assistance and the Special Humanitarian Coordinator for the Sudan.

 

Mr. Natsios held previous positions within USAID as the Director of the Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance and Assistant Administrator for the Bureau for Food and Humanitarian Assistance. Prior to joining USAID, Mr. Natsios was Chairman and CEO of the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, the former Secretary for Administration and Finance for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and Vice President for World Vision U.S.A.

 

He served in the U.S. Army Reserves for twenty-two years and the Massachusetts House of Representatives for twelve years. Mr. Natsios attended Georgetown University and earned his MPA in the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

 

 

 

Chris Nelson has served since 1993 as President of Kemin Industries, a global nutritional ingredient company specializing in improving human and animal health through molecular innovations.  The company operates manufacturing facilities on six continents and has more than 45 offices worldwide, touching over 900 million people daily with health and nutrition products. Distinguished among the company’s many commercial and scientific advances is the fact that Kemin pioneered the process of isolating and purifying the antioxidant molecule lutein for human consumption in supplements and fortified foods.

 

Chris received his undergraduate degree from Northwestern University and his Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Biophysics from Washington State University.  He is the holder of 15 patents and has authored numerous peer-reviewed, published research studies. He serves on the board of the National Institutes of Health Technical Advisory Committee, the National Forum for Agricultural Executives Council, Drake University College of Business Administration National Advisory Board and The Greater Des Moines Partnership Executive Committee. 

 

 

 

Mort Neufville assumed the position of Executive Vice President of the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges (NASULGC) in 2000. At NASULGC, Mort coordinates the programming in food, agriculture, natural resources, environmental affairs, human sciences, forestry and international affairs for the Land-Grant and affiliate member institutions. He is currently the Chair of the CGIAR/IITA Board of Trustees and a member of the Board of ACDI/VOCA.

 

Prior to joining NASULGC, he held a number of positions at the University of Maryland, including: Vice President for Academic Affairs, Associate Director of the Maryland Agricultural Experiment Station, and Dean of Agricultural Sciences. During his tenure, Mort was the project manager for the Cameroon Root and Tuber Food Crops Research Project. He received his B.S. from Tuskegee University and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Animal Science from the University of Florida.

 

Before joining the University of Maryland Eastern Shore Dr. Neufville was Associate Dean, College of Applied Science and Technology and the Cooperative Research and Extension Programs at Lincoln University, Missouri (1978-83).  He also served as a faculty member and head of the Animal Science Program at Prairie View A & M University (1974-78).

 

He is currently the Chair of the CGIAR/IITA Board of Trustees and a member of the Board of ACDI/VOCA.

 

Mort, as he prefers to be called, received his B.S. degree from Tuskegee University and his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Animal Science from the University of Florida, Gainesville.  He was awarded the Honorary Doctor of Science degree by Tuskegee University on February 4, 2001 and the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Florida on December 15, 2001.  

 

 

 

Timothy Phillips is the Director of the Center for Food Safety and a Professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine, the Faculty of Toxicology and the Faculty of Food Science and Technology at Texas A&M University. Dr. Phillips’ research focus is molecular toxicology with an emphasis on food-borne and environmental contaminants. 

 

He is a Fellow of the Academy of Toxicological Sciences and the Co-Editor of Food Additives & Contaminants. Dr. Phillips is a member of the Committee on Science Reports and Emerging Issues for the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) and has served on the USDA National Research Initiative Study Panel in Animal Health, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) in Canada and the Board of Scientific Advisors for the American Council on Science and Health. Dr. Phillips earned a B.S. in General Science from Mississippi State University, an M.S. in Science Education and Chemistry and a Ph.D. in Chemistry at the University of Southern Mississippi.

 

 

 

Dr. Per Pinstrup-Andersen, a native of Denmark, earned a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Economics from the Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University in Denmark, and received his M.S. and Ph.D. from Oklahoma University. 

 

Currently, Dr. Pinstrup-Andersen serves as a Senior Research Fellow in the Director General’s office of the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).   From 1992-2002 Pinstrup-Andersen acted as Director General of IFPRI.  Prior to this, he was Director of the Cornell Food and Nutrition Policy Program, Professor of Food Economics at Cornell University, a member of the Technical Advisory Committee to the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), research fellow and Director of the Food Consumption and Nutrition Policy Program at IFPRI, an Agricultural Economist at the International Center for Tropical Agriculture,  Director of the Agro-Economic Division at the International Fertilizer Development Center in the United States, and an Associate Professor of the Danish Veterinary and Agricultural University in Copenhagen.

 

Dr. Pinstrup-Andersen has written more than 300 books, articles, and papers.  He is a fellow of the American Agricultural Economics Association and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.  Additionally, he is the recipient of the 2001 World Food Prize for initiating the research effort which enabled several governments to reform their food subsidy programs, which dramatically increased food availability to the most poor in each country. 

 

 

 

Pedro Sanchez is the Director of Tropical Agriculture at the Columbia University Earth Institute and Professor Emeritus of Soil Science and Forestry at North Carolina State University. He is the winner of the 2002 World Food Prize and a pioneer in the field of tropical soils and agroforestry. Previously Prof. Sanchez served as director general of the International Center for Research in Agroforestry in Kenya where he spearheaded innovative programs that helped small farmers utilize inexpensive, natural resources instead of very costly fertilizers to return nutrients to depleted soil. These have dramatically increased crop yields for hundreds of thousands of small farmers.

 

As part of an international team of scientists Prof. Sanchez helped turn the acidic, tropical soils of the Cerrado region of Brazil into 30 million hectares of productive, arable land. He has also lived in the Philippines (working at the International Rice Research Institute and the University of the Philippines at Los Baños), Peru (working with the Ministry of Agriculture), and Colombia (working at the Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical). He is author of "Properties and management of soils of the tropics" and of over 200 scientific publications.

 

Prof. Sanchez holds numerous honors that include recipient of the International Soil Science Award by the Soil Science Society of America, the International Service in Agronomy Award by the American Society of Agronomy and an honorary doctorate from the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium. One of the honors he treasures most is being named a Luo Elder in 2001 by the Luo community of Western Kenya in recognition of his work eliminating hunger from many villages in the region. A native of Cuba, Prof. Sanchez earned his Ph.D. in soil science from Cornell. He joined the Columbia Earth Institute as Director of Tropical Agriculture in January 2003.

 

 

 

Dr. Nevin Scrimshaw, is Professor and Head Emeritus of the Department of Nutrition and Food Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and is a Senior Advisor to the United Nations.

 

Dr. Scrimshaw received his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1941, M.D. from the University of Rochester in 1945, and MPH from Harvard University in 1959.Dr. Scrimshaw is the author of over 650 publications and an author or editor of more than 20 books.

 

In 1975, he organized the World Hunger Programme for the United Nations University, Tokyo and directed its food and nutrition activities until December 31, 1997.  He received the 2002 Society for International Nutrition Research/Kellogg Award in International Nutrition and was the 1991 World Food Prize Laureate.

 

He is the founder and President of the International Nutrition Foundation. He is also the Senior Advisor for the UNU Food and Nutrition Programme. His current interests relate to the functional consequences of iron deficiency, the effects of chronic energy deficiency on developing country populations, rapid assessment procedures for the evaluation and improvement of programs of nutrition and primary health and nutrition and health issues associated with demographic transition in developing countries.

 

 

 

Dr. Mary Shawa is the Principal Secretary for Nutrition and HIV/AIDS for the Ministry of Health in Malawi. Prior to her current position she served as Deputy Director for the Ministry of Gender, Youth & Community Services.

 

 

 

Louise Sserunjogi is a Nutritionist and Dietitian at the Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, Faculty of Medicine, Makerere University and the Nutrition Coordinator at the Child Health and Development Centre, at the same University.  Ms. Sserunjogi coordinates the management of malnourished children in the hospital and supervises the general feeding of all pediatric patients. 

 

Previously a Lecturer in nutrition, catering and food hygiene in the Department of Hotels and Institutional Management at Uganda College of Commerce, she was also a Lecturer in dietetics for the candidates of the diploma in Nursing Administration at Kampala and a locum dietitian at St. George’s Hospital, London.

 

Ms. Sserunjogi has conducted research on childcare needs, nutrition and early childhood development, and the assessment of nutritional status and micronutrient deficiencies among young children in several African countries. Her recent works include Early Stunting in a Cohort of HIV-1 Infected Children in Uganda, a Rapid Assessment of Infant Growth Faltering and the Capacity for Community-based Reponses in Uganda, and a Uganda Breastfeeding Situation Analysis.  She received a M.Sc. in Mother and Child Health from the Institute of Child Health at the University College-London, and a M.Sc. in the Human Nutrition Program from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, University of London.

 

 

 

Warren Staley is the Chairman of the Board and CEO of Cargill. Mr. Staley joined Cargill as a trainee in 1969, holding various merchandising and administrative positions in corn milling in the United States and in Europe.  He headed Cargill’s operations in Argentina, was the President of Worldwide Feed, as well as the President of North America and Latin America geography. He was President and Chief Operating Officer from 1998 to 2000, and has been a member of the Board of Directors since 1995.

 

Additionally, Mr. Staley is a member of the Board of Directors of U.S. Bancorp, Target Corporation, and Chairman of the Board of the Greater Twin Cities United Way. He serves as a member of the President’s Export Council, The Business Council and the Strategic Board of Governors of the University of St. Thomas College of Business. Mr. Staley received a B.S. in electrical engineering from Kansas State University and a Masters in business administration from Cornell University.

 

 

 

Tom Vilsack was elected mayor of Mt. Pleasant, Iowa in 1987, and was elected to the Iowa Senate in 1992.  In 1998 he became Iowa’s first Democratic governor in more than 30 years.

 

Governor Vilsack has worked to make Iowa a national leader in children’s health care coverage, with 94% of all Iowa children having health insurance.  He has helped continue Iowa’s tradition of excellence in education by reducing class sizes in the early grades of elementary school for three years in a row.  Governor Vilsack has also worked to make Iowa a national leader in life sciences and value-added agriculture, boosting Iowa’s economy with $265 million in value-added agricultural investment.

 

Governor Vilsack is the immediate past chair of the Democratic Governors’ Association and a member of the National Governors’ Association Executive Committee. He is the former Chair of the national Jobs for America's Graduates (JAG) program, a founding member and former Chair of the Governors Biotechnology Partnership, the former Chair of the Ethanol Coalition, and the former Chair of the Midwest Governor's Conference.  He received a bachelor’s degree from Hamilton College in Clinton, New York, and a J.D. from Albany Law School. 

 

 

 

Florence Wambugu is the Director of Africa Harvest Biotech Foundation International. An agricultural plant pathologist, Dr. Wambugu specializes in virology and genetic engineering for viral disease crop protection. Under her leadership, the Biotech Tissue Banana Project – which has positively impacted over 500,000 small-scale farmers in Kenya – won the World Bank Global Development Network Award.

 

She is a member of the Private Sector Committee of the CGIAR, DuPont Biotech Advisory Panel-USA, Board of Trustees of IPGRI and is the Vice-chair of the African Biotechnology Stakeholders Forum (ABSF). She also participates in the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as well as the United Nations Hunger Task Force. As a post-doctoral fellow, Dr. Wambugu was involved in the initial development work on the genetically modified sweet potato. Producing the transgenic virus resistant sweet potato currently being tested in Kenya, this work paved the way for the training of several African scientists in gene-technology.

 

Dr. Wambugu received a B.Sc. in Botany at the University of Nairobi, a M.Sc. in Pathology at North Dakota State University and a Ph.D. in Virology and Biotechnology at the University of Bath in England. 

 

 

 

Patrick Webb is currently Dean of Academic Affairs at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University in Boston, MA.  He is also director of the school's Food Policy and Applied Nutrition program, Adjunct Professor in the Fletcher School of International Law and Diplomacy, and honorary professor at the University of Hohenheim (Stuttgart, Germany).

 

He recently left the United Nations system, where had been working for several years as Chief of Nutrition for the World Food Programme (WFP). While at WFP, Dr. Webb was responsible for setting up a new nutrition department with global activities including emergency nutrition interventions (including response to the Asian tsunami), overseeing maternal and child programs in 30 developing countries, and elaborating policies and procedures for the micronutrient fortification of food aid. He also worked on inter-agency program coordination and policy harmonization, including developing deeper operational collaborations with UNICEF, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and other agencies. 

 

Earlier, he spent 9 years with the International Food Policy Research Institute, stationed for most of that time in Ethiopia, Niger, and The Gambia working with national government officials on food and agricultural policy and famine relief interventions.

 

 

 

Walter Willett is Professor of Epidemiology and Nutrition and Chair of the Department of Nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health and Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.  He has focused much of his work over the last 25 years on the development of methods to study the effects of diet on the occurrence of major diseases. He has applied these methods starting in 1980 in the Nurses’ Health Studies I and II and the Health Professionals’ Follow-up Study. Together, these include nearly 300,000 men and women who are providing the most detailed information on the long-term health consequences of food choices through repeated dietary assessments.

 

Dr. Willett has published more than 900 articles and has written the textbook, Nutritional Epidemiology. His recent book for the general public, Eat, Drink and Be Healthy: The Harvard Medical School Guide to Healthy Eating, has appeared on most major bestseller lists.  Dr. Willett is the most cited nutritionist internationally, and is among the 25 most cited persons in all fields of science.  He is a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences. Dr. Willett studied food science at Michigan State University, and graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School before obtaining his Ph.D. in Public Health from Harvard School of Public Health.

 

 

 

Catherine Woteki is the Global Director of Scientific Affairs for Mars, Incorporated, in McLean, Virginia. Woteki had been the dean of the Iowa State University College of Agriculture and was the first woman ever to hold that position.

 

Previously, she had been a researcher with the University of Maryland and a professor of nutrition and food safety with the University of Nebraska. Woteki was also the first undersecretary for food safety in the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

 

Much of Woteki's career has focused on how diet affects health. She is a registered dietitian and a nutritional epidemiologist. She has conducted research in food safety and nutrition policy, chronic disease prevention and population health surveillance and monitoring.