Future Leaders Forum 2006
Participants
Herman Pascal Andriamanambina
Cornell University
Mr. Andriamanambina is a graduate student at Cornell University in the field of Natural Resources Policy and Management and Environmental Information Systems. In 2005-06, he received an Institute for African Development Fellowship and an International Hunger Grant. He has experience as an information management specialist with the World Wildlife Fund and has worked for an agricultural development bank in Madagascar. His career goals include working with an organization where he can apply his technical skills and share his experiences to guarantee sustainable development in the developing world.
John Boateng
Penn State University
Mr. Boateng holds an MS in Agriculture, and an MS in Land and Water Management and in Horticulture and is currently a PhD student in Agricultural and Extension Education/Demography at Penn State University. He has sixteen years experience in the international arena.
Alecsandro Dos Santos
Mississippi State University
Mr. Dos Santos is a PhD student in Animal Science and Agricultural Economics at Mississippi State University. He has received scholarships at Mississippi State and the University of Mexico. He was also the recipient of a fellowship from the Stockmen's Foundation and a grant from the University of Mexico. His experience includes rural development work in Brazil and Mexico primarily in the livestock sector. He intends to make a career of international agricultural development work.
Driss Ennaanay
University of Minnesota
Mr. Ennaanay holds an MS in Agricultural Engineering and is currently a PhD student in Water Resources at the University of Minnesota. He has experience in water management, agriculture, sustainable development and rural development. His career goals include to begin working for a reputable development agency and to eventually form his own NGO for rural development to help communities and countries to alleviate poverty.
Alexis Jones
UC Davis
Ms. Jones is a graduate student at UC Davis in the area of human ecology. She is a recipient of a Graduate Scholars Fellowship, UCD and Humanities Graduate Research Fellowship and was an agriculture volunteer with the Peace Corps in Honduras in 2000-02. Her long-term goals include project management with a development agency, primarily in Latin America. She is also interested in the development and evaluation of the strategies that influence which projects are selected, where and to whom they are directed and how they are implemented.
Kenya Konno
Cornell UniversityMr. Konno's field is International Agriculture and Rural Development at Cornell University. He was a selected lecturer of "Seminar for Sustainable Development" by CIIFAD and he has served a six month volunteer internship at FAO with the Special Programme for Food Security (SPFS) in Indonesia. He has also been an observer on development programs in India and Kenya. He would like to continue his work with the SPFS and continue to work toward developing strategies to implement more effective self-reliant development.
Kraig Kraft
UC Davis
Mr. Kraft is a PhD student in Agroecology at UC Davis with a concentration in the study of crop genetic resources. He has received fellowships through the Department of Plant Sciences, Herbert Kraft, Ben A. Madson, and an Ecology Graduate Group Block Grant. He co-authored "The Global Horticulture Assessment" report for USAID in 2005 and co-taught a field course in agricultural development in Panama for three years.
He has been involved in other projects throughout the world, including a T.J. Watson Fellowship which allowed him to work with various entities of the CGIAR, the FAO and other international development organizations. He intends to continue to work in the field and eventually to start his own NGO that will focus on scientific and health care capacity building in underserved rural communities.
Todd Rosenstock
UC Davis
Mr. Rosenstock is a PhD student of Agroecology with an emphasis on tropical horticulture and ecosystem services and International Agricultural Development (extension methodologies) at UC Davis. He is a member of Phi Sigma Biological Honor Society and is a Presidential Scholar. His experience includes horticultural capacity building in Asia and the Near East and he has designed programs in Afghanistan and Egypt. He also co-authored an assessment of global horticulture for USAID. As he continues his career path in international development, Mr. Rosenstock hopes to make valuable contacts through the Future Leaders Forum and find an avenue to exchange ideas among other aspiring development professionals.
Sarah M. Walker
Virginia Tech
Ms. Walker is a Biological Systems Engineering student at Virginia Tech. She plans a minor in Crop and Soil Environmental Sciences. She is currently participating in a year long study abroad program in Agricultural and Food Engineering at the University College Dublin, Ireland. Her main interest is in sustainable and low-input agriculture and she seeks exposure to a variety of different management practices and would like to gain hands-on experience. She would like to be involved in agricultural extension.
Lydia Pettit Young
University of Georgia
Ms. Young is an Animal Science/Animal Health student at the University of Georgia. She has lived in several countries throughout her life, including Japan, Italy and Thailand. She will be attending Veterinary School, but has worked in Asia doing research and language study. Her studies in Asia included improving dairy nutrition programs using only locally available feed resources and establishing cooperative systems of community support. Upon completion of vet school, she plans to return to work overseas.
Cody Zilverberg
Texas A&M University
Mr. Zilverberg is an Agricultural Economics graduate student at Texas A&M University. As an undergraduate student at St. John's University he received departmental distinction and as a graduate student at Texas A&M, he has a Merit Fellowship. He is a National Merit Scholar. His interest is in Agricultural Development and Conflict. He has served in Guatemala for two years and evaluated mission sites in Eastern Africa. His thesis topic is "The Role of Agricultural Technology in Conflict" and he and his wife plan to return to the developing world to work in development and public health upon her completion of medical school.
Heather Zornetzer
UC Davis
Ms. Zornetzer is an MS student at UC Davis studying Rural Community Health and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases. She is a member of Phi Sigma Biological Science Honor Society and is a recipient of the Western Institute for Food Safety and Security Research Fellowship and the UC Davis J. D. Carr Fellowship. Her experiences include capacity building and outreach for rural healthcare networks, sanitation and infectious disease prevention and teaching in Central and South America. She has been involved in projects with Volunteer Optometric Services for Humanity, the New England College of Optometry, and USAID, among others. Her future goals include applying and refining models of scientific capacity building for emerging infectious disease detection, control and prevention in agricultural communities in the developing world. She eventually aspires to form an NGO or consulting agency that links health and agricultural community development, largely based around capacity building models.
Cornell University
Mr. Andriamanambina is a graduate student at Cornell University in the field of Natural Resources Policy and Management and Environmental Information Systems. In 2005-06, he received an Institute for African Development Fellowship and an International Hunger Grant. He has experience as an information management specialist with the World Wildlife Fund and has worked for an agricultural development bank in Madagascar. His career goals include working with an organization where he can apply his technical skills and share his experiences to guarantee sustainable development in the developing world.
John Boateng
Penn State University
Mr. Boateng holds an MS in Agriculture, and an MS in Land and Water Management and in Horticulture and is currently a PhD student in Agricultural and Extension Education/Demography at Penn State University. He has sixteen years experience in the international arena.
Alecsandro Dos Santos
Mississippi State University
Mr. Dos Santos is a PhD student in Animal Science and Agricultural Economics at Mississippi State University. He has received scholarships at Mississippi State and the University of Mexico. He was also the recipient of a fellowship from the Stockmen's Foundation and a grant from the University of Mexico. His experience includes rural development work in Brazil and Mexico primarily in the livestock sector. He intends to make a career of international agricultural development work.
Driss Ennaanay
University of Minnesota
Mr. Ennaanay holds an MS in Agricultural Engineering and is currently a PhD student in Water Resources at the University of Minnesota. He has experience in water management, agriculture, sustainable development and rural development. His career goals include to begin working for a reputable development agency and to eventually form his own NGO for rural development to help communities and countries to alleviate poverty.
Alexis Jones
UC Davis
Ms. Jones is a graduate student at UC Davis in the area of human ecology. She is a recipient of a Graduate Scholars Fellowship, UCD and Humanities Graduate Research Fellowship and was an agriculture volunteer with the Peace Corps in Honduras in 2000-02. Her long-term goals include project management with a development agency, primarily in Latin America. She is also interested in the development and evaluation of the strategies that influence which projects are selected, where and to whom they are directed and how they are implemented.
Kenya Konno
Cornell UniversityMr. Konno's field is International Agriculture and Rural Development at Cornell University. He was a selected lecturer of "Seminar for Sustainable Development" by CIIFAD and he has served a six month volunteer internship at FAO with the Special Programme for Food Security (SPFS) in Indonesia. He has also been an observer on development programs in India and Kenya. He would like to continue his work with the SPFS and continue to work toward developing strategies to implement more effective self-reliant development.
Kraig Kraft
UC Davis
Mr. Kraft is a PhD student in Agroecology at UC Davis with a concentration in the study of crop genetic resources. He has received fellowships through the Department of Plant Sciences, Herbert Kraft, Ben A. Madson, and an Ecology Graduate Group Block Grant. He co-authored "The Global Horticulture Assessment" report for USAID in 2005 and co-taught a field course in agricultural development in Panama for three years.
He has been involved in other projects throughout the world, including a T.J. Watson Fellowship which allowed him to work with various entities of the CGIAR, the FAO and other international development organizations. He intends to continue to work in the field and eventually to start his own NGO that will focus on scientific and health care capacity building in underserved rural communities.
Todd Rosenstock
UC Davis
Mr. Rosenstock is a PhD student of Agroecology with an emphasis on tropical horticulture and ecosystem services and International Agricultural Development (extension methodologies) at UC Davis. He is a member of Phi Sigma Biological Honor Society and is a Presidential Scholar. His experience includes horticultural capacity building in Asia and the Near East and he has designed programs in Afghanistan and Egypt. He also co-authored an assessment of global horticulture for USAID. As he continues his career path in international development, Mr. Rosenstock hopes to make valuable contacts through the Future Leaders Forum and find an avenue to exchange ideas among other aspiring development professionals.
Sarah M. Walker
Virginia Tech
Ms. Walker is a Biological Systems Engineering student at Virginia Tech. She plans a minor in Crop and Soil Environmental Sciences. She is currently participating in a year long study abroad program in Agricultural and Food Engineering at the University College Dublin, Ireland. Her main interest is in sustainable and low-input agriculture and she seeks exposure to a variety of different management practices and would like to gain hands-on experience. She would like to be involved in agricultural extension.
Lydia Pettit Young
University of Georgia
Ms. Young is an Animal Science/Animal Health student at the University of Georgia. She has lived in several countries throughout her life, including Japan, Italy and Thailand. She will be attending Veterinary School, but has worked in Asia doing research and language study. Her studies in Asia included improving dairy nutrition programs using only locally available feed resources and establishing cooperative systems of community support. Upon completion of vet school, she plans to return to work overseas.
Cody Zilverberg
Texas A&M University
Mr. Zilverberg is an Agricultural Economics graduate student at Texas A&M University. As an undergraduate student at St. John's University he received departmental distinction and as a graduate student at Texas A&M, he has a Merit Fellowship. He is a National Merit Scholar. His interest is in Agricultural Development and Conflict. He has served in Guatemala for two years and evaluated mission sites in Eastern Africa. His thesis topic is "The Role of Agricultural Technology in Conflict" and he and his wife plan to return to the developing world to work in development and public health upon her completion of medical school.
Heather Zornetzer
UC Davis
Ms. Zornetzer is an MS student at UC Davis studying Rural Community Health and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases. She is a member of Phi Sigma Biological Science Honor Society and is a recipient of the Western Institute for Food Safety and Security Research Fellowship and the UC Davis J. D. Carr Fellowship. Her experiences include capacity building and outreach for rural healthcare networks, sanitation and infectious disease prevention and teaching in Central and South America. She has been involved in projects with Volunteer Optometric Services for Humanity, the New England College of Optometry, and USAID, among others. Her future goals include applying and refining models of scientific capacity building for emerging infectious disease detection, control and prevention in agricultural communities in the developing world. She eventually aspires to form an NGO or consulting agency that links health and agricultural community development, largely based around capacity building models.