Hispanic and Latinx Month Honorees

To celebrate various diversity months, the Societies are honoring several of our recent award winners – looking to the future of our sciences. Here we have collected Hispanic and Latinx award honorees, which also ran on our social media accounts.

Ignacio Ciampitti, 2022 ASA Fellow

We are currently working on developing new digital ag solutions to move our research findings more quickly from outcomes to actionable decision support tools to help farmers.

Mentoring younger generations to become future leaders and helping farmers become more profitable and sustainable are the most exciting elements about my career. From the first point, personal connection to the students is vital, and I firmly believe in active “mentoring” through conversations, lab seminars, and having an “open door” policy. From the second point, working side-by-side with farmers and helping to answer their questions via education and implementation of practical research are all key elements of this process.

Jorge Dubcovsky, 2022 Frank N. Meyer Medal for Plant Genetic Resources

I am currently working on genes controlling wheat biomass production and grain number to try to increase simultaneously source and sink traits to increase total grain yield. My career excites me through discovering new things that can be value for the society. A mentor that has helped me in my scientific endeavors is Dr. Jan Dvorak. I did my Postdoc with him at UC-Davis. He introduced me to wheat genetics and genomics.

Tabare Abadie, 2021 CSSA Fellow

I am currently working on several mentoring initiatives by providing support to develop the structure of the programs, and mentoring a group of future scientists and current scientists. Some of these programs are dedicated to advance DEI, and more specifically to provide opportunities for career advancement of underrepresented groups. I am glad my career has been so diverse. I have held several jobs both in the public and private realm and in different countries around the world. I feel I have been able to accomplish my personal goals and achieve a balanced life. I am grateful for the recognitions I have achieved from my peers, and for the success of my students and mentees around the world.

Cleiton Wartha, 2021 Encompass Fellow and 2021 Graduate Student Leadership Conference

My motivation to work with plant breeding stems from my farming background and lifelong passion for agriculture. The 2020s are an inspiring time to start a career in this multidisciplinary field and help solve the grand challenges of our generation. The opportunity to innovate and directly impact farmers and consumers by developing new varieties addressing their needs is what excites me the most about this career path.

Ariana Lazo, 2022 Frank D. Keim Graduate Fellowship

While there are so many incredible things about my career, science communication and sharing my passion are what make my career exciting. Attending conferences such as the ASA-CSSA-SSSA annual meeting is exciting because not only do I get to share my passions with others, but I can observe science communication in its greatest capacity. While doing the science itself is fun, the opportunity to communicate science and share my passion with others makes my career worthwhile.

Uriel Menalled, 2022 Crop Science Graduate Student Scholarship

I study how ecological weed management affects weed communities and how these weed communities compete with crops. I am excited about this research because it sets me up for a career that uses ecology, statistics, and communication skills to promote sustainable food systems. My MS and Ph.D. advisor, Matt Ryan, has helped me become a better researcher by giving me tremendous research, collaboration, and presentation opportunities. 

Edson Costa Filho, 2021 Graduate Student Leadership Conference

Accurate crop evapotranspiration modeling is vital for sustainable irrigation scheduling. At Colorado State University, I'm working on an algorithm to improve crop evapotranspiration mapping at the farm scale using remote sensing imagery, machine learning, and environmental biophysics theory. This project will enable growers to obtain more precise data from satellite and drone images of their cropland fields. It excites me that my current research will help farmers to advance sustainable agriculture in the U.S. 

Fernanda Souza Krupek, 2021 Graduate Student Leadership Conference

I am working on a Ph.D. project focused on the intensification of soil health management systems in Nebraska. I am fortunate to work directly with extension educators, government employees, and farmers. I am personally and professionally inspired by exploring opportunities for advancing knowledge so that together we are equipped to promote resilient food systems. My career has been greatly enhanced by my mentors, in particular Dr. Andrea Basche and Dr. Lincoln Zotarelli, who have changed the way I think about what is possible.

Lígia Souza, 2021 Graduate Student Leadership Conference

I think the most exciting project I’m working on is investigating drivers of SOC depth-distribution across a climatic gradient. This is because I get to work with soils across scales and explore how drivers at the local scale respond to environmental forces for large, regional scale feedbacks. I’m also excited about this project because of its interdisciplinary nature and because I get to work with scientists from different fields and career stages. Being a scientist is such a privilege and is exciting, but having a career where I get to learn about how soils of different ecosystems work and how they interact across different scales to understand their responses to climate change is extremely rewarding. It’s also exciting to build a career working with a diverse group of people that want to change academia to become a more equitable, welcoming space for all.

Yulissa Perez Rojas, 2021 Graduate Student Leadership Conference

Using my voice for change excites me the most as a student and researcher. I am always happy to share my journey with undergraduate students to encourage research involvement and/or considering higher education. As a student, I have learned how to express my concerns and get involved in graduate student government and my department to lead change. Most importantly, my contribution to research has allowed me to bring awareness to important issues such as environmental injustice, climate change, and unsustainable agricultural practices. This is important to me because I am using my voice to communicate real-life stories and case studies to raise awareness among scientists and the public.