Dr. Luca Comai is a distinguished professor of Plant Biology at the Genome Center of the University of California at Davis. He has B.S. equivalent from the Universita' di Bologna, Italy, an M.S. in plant pathology from Washington State University, and a Ph.D. in plant pathology from UC Davis. During his Ph.D. work, he characterized the genetics of IAA biosynthesis in phytopathogenic pseudomonas. During his work Calgene Inc, he discovered that glyphosate resistance could be engineered via alteration of EPSP synthase. At the University of Washington, he pioneered molecular genetic analysis of polyploid formation in arabidopsis. He co-developed TILLING, a method to identify targeted mutations. Since joining UC Davis in 2006, he has focused on function and regulation of chromosomes in polyploid genomes, on haploid induction, and on stress-induced genome instability. Dr. Comai teaches the foundation genetics course at UCD using a flipped approach. He has authored over 150 publications, has an H impact factor of 86, is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He received the Distinguished Research award (2015) and the Distinguished Teaching award (2017) from the UC Davis College of Biological Sciences. He received the 2017 American Society Plant Biology Innovation Prize for Agricultural Technology. He is an elected member of the US National Academy of Sciences since 2023.   

Dr. James Schnable is a Professor in the Department of Agronomy & Horticulture at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln where his work focuses on maize and sorghum genomics, genetics, and genotype by environment interaction. Students in the Schnable Lab collaborate closely with faculty in statistics, computer science, or engineering. Schnable has helped found three startups commercializing bioinformatic, quantitative genetic, or digital agricultural technologies. His research is currently supported by the US Department of Agriculture, the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy, and the Nebraska Corn Growers.

Dr. Gaganpreet Sidhu is the Chief Technology Officer at Meiogenix, an innovative ag biotech startup that envisions to improve crops by unlocking their natural genetic diversity through its proprietary chromosome editing technology. Dr. Sidhu holds a PhD from Cornell University in Plant Breeding and Genetics where she worked on meiotic recombination in maize. She pursued her postdoctoral training at Institute for Cancer Genetics at Columbia University Medical Center where she studied somatic DNA repair and genome stability mechanisms using xenopus cell free extracts and mammalian cells as model systems.Dr. Sidhu is passionate about translating scientific discoveries into practical applications and shaping the future of sustainable agriculture. 

Dr. Rita H. Mumm is an experienced plant breeder and quantitative geneticist, with a long history as an innovator in bringing improved crop varieties to market utilizing technological innovations and genomics-assisted approaches; she holds several US and European patents. She has contributed to agricultural food system advancements through the seed industry (e.g. DEKALB Genetics, Monsanto, Syngenta, and other organizations through her consulting firm, GeneMax Services), academia (University of Illinois / Illinois Plant Breeding Center, University of California - Davis), and international development (e.g. CIMMYT Board member, USAID Soybean Innovation Lab). Dr. Mumm currently serves as Director of Capacity Development and Mobilisation with the AOCC (African Orphan Crops Consortium). She is the founding Director of the African Plant Breeding Academy, a premium continuing education program for African crop improvement scientists, which to date has empowered 183 scientists from 28 African countries to better address food and nutritional security needs across the continent.   

Dr. Kan Wang is a Charles F. Curtiss Distinguished Professor and Global Professor of Biotechnology at Iowa State University, where she co-directs the Crop Bioengineering Center. She earned her B.S. in Biochemistry from Fudan University and completed her Ph.D. at Ghent University, where she studied under Marc Van Montagu and Jeff Schell, pioneering research on Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated plant transformation. After six years as a project leader in corn and soybean genetic transformation at ICI Seeds (now Syngenta), Dr. Wang joined Iowa State University in 1995, establishing the first public crop transformation facility in the U.S. Her research focuses on plant genetic transformation, genome editing, and Agrobacterium biology, expanding tools for both fundamental and applied plant science. She served as a Program Director at the NSF, shaping national plant biotechnology research. Her honors include the 2015 Iowa Women of Innovation Award, the 2017 ISU Award for Achievement in Intellectual Property, and election as a Fellow of AAAS and the Society for In Vitro Biology, receiving the latter's Lifetime Achievement Award for her contributions to plant science and biotechnology. 

Dr. Jon Reinders

I am a Research Scientist within the Biotechnology department at Corteva Agrisciences. My research experiences include studying plant pathology and quantitative genetics at the University of Minnesota and epigenetics at the University of Geneva, Switzerland. My current research efforts focus on aspects of reproductive biology and gene edited breeding. I am passionate about creating innovative solutions that can offer a better future for farmers, consumers, and the Earth. In my free time, I enjoy cooking for my family, travelling, and playing guitar.