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4:30 - 6:00 Networking social with the TALENTS CORNER

RAFFLE: 3 students or postdocs will win a Meal with Industry (TBA).

6:00 - 7:00 
Featured postdoctoral researchers present their research.
Presentations:

• "The Rhythm of Symbiosis: Temporal Transcriptional Changes in Soybean Nodules". (Ryan DelPercio)
• "Improving Nitrogen Fixation in Chickpea" (Laura Perilla Henao)
• "PROMISE II project - Promoting Root Microbes for Integrated Striga Eradication" (Stefan Sanow)
• “Unveiling genetic resistance in grapevines: Case studies on powdery mildew and wildfire smoke exposure" (Manon Paineau)
• "T2T genome assemblies for lettuce disease resistance" (Kuntal Kumar Dey)
• "Decoding Plant-Pathogen Dynamics to Enhance Agricultural Resilience" (Nathalie Aoun)

Ryan DelPercio Postdoctoral Researcher Meyers Lab UC Davis	Laura Perilla Henao Postdoctoral Researcher Cook Lab Dept. of Plant Pathology UC Davis	Stefan Sanow Postdoctoral Researcher Brady Lab UC Davis	Manon Paineau Postdoctoral Researcher Cantu Lab UC Davis	Kuntal Kumar Dey Postdoctoral Researcher Michelmore Lab UC Davis	Nathalie Aoun Postdoctoral Researcher Lowe-Power Lab Dept. of Plant Pathology UC Davis

Location: Buehler Alumni Center, UC Davis

4:30 - 6:00 Networking social with the TALENTS CORNER

RAFFLE: 3 students or postdocs will win a Meal with Industry (TBA).

6:00 - 7:00  Featured speaker

• Britt Koskella
  Associate Professor
  Department of Integrative Biology
  University of California, Berkeley
  
  The future of human health and sustainable agriculture rests on our ability to view microbial evolution as part of the solution rather than the problem. The Koskella lab takes on this challenge by combining discovery-based science on plant microbiomes with hypothesis-driven experimentation. Our research examines host-microbe and microbe-microbe interactions by first identifying patterns in nature and then, in line with current theory where available, generating predictions to explicitly test in the laboratory using a combination of experimental evolution, microbial ecology approaches, and molecular biological techniques.
  
  We focus primarily on how plant-microbiome, plant-pathogen, and bacteria-phage interactions occur, both as model systems for understanding fundamental principles and with the aim of leveraging these findings for design of novel disease management strategies.  

Location: ARC Ballrooms, UC Davis

Seed Central hosts
the California Seed Association's Spring Student Tour
for lunch and a networking career fair
With support from Hartnell College

With some 100 students from UC Davis, Cal-Poly, California State University Chico/Fresno /Monterey Bay, Hartnell College, and Salinas high schools.

• 11:30 - 12:30
  Lunch + Industry Panelists Testimonials: transitioning after graduation, the decision to work in industry, experiences in the first job, career path, advice to new talents.
   
• 12:30 - 1:30
  Networking Career Fair

Location: : Hartnell College, Salinas, California

4:30 - 6:00 Networking social with the TALENTS CORNER

RAFFLE: 3 students or postdocs will win a Meal with Industry (TBA).

6:00 - 7:00  Featured speaker

• Xiaofei Zhang
  Assistant Professor
  Genetics and Breeding of Small Grains Crops
  Department of Plant Sciences, UC Davis
  
  Dr. Zhang's research program aims to address the needs of small grains crop growers and consumers both nationally and internationally. It will be focusing
  on 1) Yield Increase beyond the Green Revolution; 2) Nutrient Use and Environmental Footprint; 3) Nutrition and Health; 4) Breeding Technology and Genetic Gains.

Location: Buehler Alumni Center, UC Davis

4:30 - 6:00 Networking social with the TALENTS CORNER

RAFFLE: 3 students or postdocs will win a Meal with Industry (TBA).

6:00 - 7:00  Featured speakers

• Barbara Blanco-Ulate, Associate Professor,
  and Irwin Donis-Gonzalez, Associate Professor of Cooperative Extension
  Co-Directors of the UC Davis Postharvest Technology Center
  
  Topic: The UC Davis Postharvest Technology Center

Location: ARC Ballrooms, UC Davis

Special event

at the USDA/ARS Sam Farr United States
Crop Improvement and Protection Research Center
in Salinas, California.

Research & breeding updates.

Photo taken at the June 2024 meeting:

4:30 - 6:00 Networking social with the TALENTS CORNER

RAFFLE: 3 students or postdocs will win a Meal with Industry (TBA).

6:00 - 7:00  Featured speaker

Location: Buehler Alumni Center, UC Davis

4:30 - 6:00 Networking social with the TALENTS CORNER

RAFFLE: 3 students or postdocs will win a Meal with Industry (TBA).

6:00 - 7:00 
Special brainstorming session on future funding of graduate students
UC Davis Professor Charlie Brummer dscribes this long-term and crucial issue that can only be resolved by having all parties collaborating on solutions:
"Costs are rising for all aspects of research, from land rent on research stations, to equipment, to personnel. While all personnel salaries continue to rise, often substantially, the cost of graduate students has dramatically increased following the strike several years ago. Although some graduate student projects can be transferred to postdocs or to research staff as a way to hold some costs in check, graduate education is a key component of the university and having a critical mass of graduate students in plant breeding is essential to be able to offer a compelling curriculum and to foster an environment of learning among a cohort of students. Further, because graduate students are engaged in research programs for 2+ years (MS) or 4-5 years (PhD), the likelihood of having projects completed by a graduate student is often greater than with a postdoc, who may leave for a full-time position after one or two years. A continual need for new plant breeding talent exists in the private and, to a lesser extent. the public sectors, and training graduate students is essential to keeping this pipeline full. Importantly, many students are hired directly into industry without doing a postdoc, further emphasizing the importance of graduate education as opposed to postdoc mentoring. Because many graduate students from UC Davis end up employed in industry positions, keeping this pipeline flowing is important to the continued strength and innovation of the seed and nursery industries.”

Location: Buehler Alumni Center, UC Davis

Open to all

Seed Central hosts
the California Seed Association's
Fall Student Tour
for lunch and a n

With some 100 students from UC Davis, Cal-Poly, California State University Chico / Fresno / Monterey Bay, Woodland Community College, and Woodland high schools.

• 11:30 - 12:30
  Lunch + Industry Panelists Testimonials: transitioning after graduation, the decision to work in industry, experiences in the first job, career path, advice to new talents.
   
• 12:30 - 1:30
  Networking Career Fair

Location: : Woodland Community College, Woodland, California

Focus on artificial intelligence and recent research at the AI Institute for Next Generation Food Systems (AIFS) @ UC Davis

4:30 - 6:00 Networking social with the TALENTS CORNER

RAFFLE: 3 students or postdocs will win a Meal with Industry (TBA).

6:00 - 7:00  Featured speakers

• (TBA)

Location: Buehler Alumni Center, UC Davis

Special joint Seed Central / Protein Central event
Launched by the Integrative Center for Alternative Meat and Protein, the quarterly ‘Protein Central’ event includes a seminar and time for networking/discussion, often with alternative meat/protein products available for tasting.
The Integrative Center for Alternative Meat and Protein (iCAMP) leads the way in developing transformative knowledge & innovation to accelerate the commercialization of alternative proteins and sustainably fulfill all global need predicted by 2050.

4:30 - 6:00 Networking social with the TALENTS CORNER

RAFFLE: 3 students or postdocs will win a Meal with Industry (TBA).

6:00 - 7:00  Featured speaker

• (TBA)

Location: , UC Davis

At the Conference Center, UC Davis

12:00 to 12:45 PM - Exhibits set up
1:00 to 3:15 PM - Pitch session
3:30 to 6:00 PM - Networking exhibits