Past Events
Pamela Ronald, Professor and Chair, Plant Genomics Program, UC Davis (Panel Moderator)
Pam Ronald is Professor and Chair of the Plant Genomics Program at the University of California, Davis, where she studies the role that genes play in a plant's response to its environment. Much of her work has focused on rice, a staple food for 50% of the world's people. Her laboratory genetically engineers rice for resistance to diseases and flooding, both of which are serious problems of rice crops in Asia and Africa. Her work has been published in Science, Nature and other scientific periodicals, and has also been featured in newspapers including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Le Monde.
She has recently written a book with her husband, Raoul Adamchack, entitled "The Future of Food: A Marriage of Genetic Engineering and Organic Farming?" to be published by Oxford University Press in spring 2007.
Neal Van Alfen, Dean, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, UC Davis (Panelist)
Neal Van Alfen is the Dean of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences at UC Davis. His research interests have focused on controlling plant disease using low input, sustainable methods. His current research interests are to develop biological control strategies for fungal diseases. In particular, he studies how viruses of fungi can be used to control plant diseases. He also has extensive experience as a consultant on effects of air pollution on environmental health.
Van Alfen has served on numerous national committees and boards, including a number of National Research Council studies on biological control. He currently serves as Editor of Annual Review of Phytopathology, one of most highly-cited professional publications in the plant sciences, and he recently served as president of the American Phytopathological Society, a 5,000-member international professional society of plant pathologists.
Charlotte Biltekoff, Postdoctoral Fellow, Depts. of American Studies and Food Sciences & Technology, UC Davis (Panelist)
Charlotte Biltekoff is currently a postdoctoral scholar and lecturer at the University of California at Davis with appointments in both American Studies and Food Science and Technology. Her current research investigates the history of dietary advice and focuses on the relationship between dietary ideals and social ideals. Her book project, "Hidden Hunger: Food, Health and Citizenship from the Late Nineteenth Century to the Obesity Epidemic", examines four dietary reform movements; the turn of the century domestic science movement, the World War II National Nutrition Program, the "Delicious Revolution" led by Alice Waters beginning in the 1970s, and the concurrent anti-obesity epidemic. Her goal at UC Davis is to establish a new campus program that brings the critical tools of the humanities and social sciences to bear on questions related to food. She also teaches food studies courses, including Eating in America and Food and Health.
Prior to graduate school she worked as a cook in several Bay Area restaurants, including Greens Restaurant, while also writing a monthly food column and self-publishing a community cookbook.
Mark Van Horn, Director, Plant Science Teaching Center and Student Farm, UC Davis (Panelist)
Mark Van Horn has been in charge of the UC Davis Student Farm, a teaching facility of the Plant Sciences Department, for almost 20 years. The student farm focuses on "informal" education, particularly hands-on, experiential, field-based learning, and its Market Garden has supplied student-grown organic produce to UCD Coffee House and numerous community subscribers for many years. Courses Mark teaches every year include Sustainable Agriculture: Principles and Practices (summer course), Seminar on Alternatives in Agriculture, and Organic Crop Production Practices. He has also been very involved in developing new sustainable agriculture undergraduate major at UC Davis (anticipated to be offered by 2008), and is a strong proponent for the inclusion of social sciences in the major.
Mark works closely with individuals and groups of students focusing on issues related to sustainability, including "Project Compost" and "Students for Sustainable Agriculture." He is also involved in numerous extension and outreach projects, including developing programs for primary and secondary school children, and helping gardeners and farmers use more sustainable practices.
Desmond Jolly (Panelist) directed the UC Davis-based Statewide UC Small Farm Program, a resource and dissemination center for California's 60,000 small farmers, for over a decade before retiring this year. He was in charge of outreach and applied research, coordinating the activities of farm advisors in several counties, and oversaw a workgroup for California Small Farms from 1995 - 98.
A Extension Agricultural Economist in the Department of Agricultural Economics for over 35 years, Desmond conducted research in agricultural marketing, particularly in areas of consumer demand, consumer preference in relation to specialty products, price and demand analysis. He also taught courses in agricultural market and biotechnology applications and policy.
Desmond is founding member of the International Association of Experts in Agricultural and Rural Tourism, and founder of the UC Statewide Agritourism Workgroup.
Karl J. Mogel (Panelist) grew up in the rural area of Petaluma, CA, and after graduating high school, he attended UC Davis to study genetics. While attending college he gained an interest in science journalism and for three years he wrote the first regular science column in the UC Davis student daily paper, the California Aggie. He graduated with a bachelor's in Genetics in June 2004, and has worked in the academic labs during and since being an undergraduate. When the Davis community radio station KDRT started up in 2004, Karl started doing the science news and discussion show, which continues to the present day. The show is accessible at http://www.inoculatedmind.com and in iTunes. Karl is currently applying to go to graduate school to study plant genetics and journalism concurrently.
Karl's 2004 Aggie article, "Toward Sustainability" can be viewed at: http://www.californiaaggie.com/media/storage/paper981/news/2004/04/14/Features/Toward.Sustainability-1317113.shtml?norewrite200610280022&sourcedomain=www.californiaaggie.com
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Kluge: The Haphazard Human Mind
(126 Voorhies, from
Apr 22, 2008 04:10 PM to
Apr 22, 2008 06:00 PM)
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Second Biennial PGP Charley Rick Symposium
(, from
Mar 13, 2008 05:00 PM to
Mar 14, 2008 05:00 PM)
- The second Biennial PGP Charley Rick Symposium (Mar 13-14, 2008) Named in honor of the late Dr. Charley Rick, distinguished plant geneticist and UCD professor. The biennial symposium will bring together scholars from around the world whose research addresses responses to plant biotics and abiotic Stress.
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Writing about Science: A Story in Three Heresies
(126 Voorhies, from
Mar 06, 2008 04:10 PM to
Mar 06, 2008 06:00 PM)
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Science Writing For A General Audience
(126 Voorhies, from
Mar 05, 2008 12:10 PM to
Mar 05, 2008 01:30 PM)
- How do you make your science accessible to the general public? This workshop covers techniques for understanding your audience and for using hooks, narrative, human interest and clear explanations to popularize your science.
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RICE AS A MODEL CROP FOR THE FUTURE
(Upcoming Events, from
Feb 05, 2008 01:30 PM to
Dec 19, 2008 11:10 AM)
- The Plant Genomics Program welcomes Dr. Gynheung An
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PGP Seminar Meeting
(Room 175 - Hutchison Hall, from
Jan 31, 2008 12:00 PM to
Jan 31, 2008 01:10 PM)
- The first PGP Seminar meeting of the New Year is scheduled for January 31, 2008. Doug Cook will be making a presentation on "Genome-enable Studies of the Rhizobium-legume Symbiosis."
Contained Collections:
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2006 PGP Distinguished Speaker - Michael Pollan: The Omnivore's Dilemma - 11/29/06
- The bestselling author explores the ecology of eating to unveil why we consume what we consume in the 21st century, Novemaber 29, 2006.
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First Biennial PGP Charley Rick Symposium March 15, 2006
- Named in honor of the late Dr. Charlie Rick, distinguished plant geneticist and UCD professor, the biennial symposium will bring together scholars from around the world whose research addresses current and future developments in plant genetics, with a particular focus on the wider social impact of these scientific advances. The theme of this year’s symposium will be “Genomics for Agriculture.” Dr. Christopher Somerville of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, Dept. of Biological Sciences at Stanford will be our keynote speaker the evening of Wednesday, March 15th, 2006.
