Kamel AISSAT (Convenor ad interim)

Short CV

Kamel AISSAT studied plant biology, obtained a Magister degree in Microbiology and then a doctorate in Phytopathology at the University of Sétif (Algeria).
Currently a permanent professor in the faculty of Natural and Life Sciences at Batna 2 University (Algeria), he teaches general microbiology, mycology, the universal history of biological sciences, organic agriculture and biological control, at different levels of diploma, from master to doctorate, in the biology departments of Batna 2 and Béjaïa.

His research focuses on plant diseases, biological control and sustainable integrated pest management. His published work concerns research on biological control agents and their introduction into agriculture. His current work focuses on the epidemiology of diseases of vegetable crops (tomato) and the olive tree (Parlatoria oleae).

Kamel AISSAT is also active in the associative movement. He is a member of the network “Biological and integrated control in Algeria” and a member of a local environmental protection association called “TALSA” in the Bejaia region.

He was an expert for the Algerian government’s Ministry of Agriculture in the implementation of a sustainable local development policy. Kamel AISSAT joined IOBC-WPRS in 2019, following the organization of the 1st international conference on biological and integrated pest management in Algeria (CILBIA1). He was co-editor of an issue of the IOBC-WPRS newsletter dedicated to this conference.

Anna MARKHEISER

Short CV

Anna Markheiser is a researcher at the Julius Kühn-Institute (JKI), Institute for Plant Protection in Fruit Crops and Viticulture, Department of Epidemiology, in Germany. Her research interest is targeted on applied and fundamental aspects of plant-insect interactions. Her PhD in Environmental Science at the University Kaiserslautern-Landau (RPTU), Germany, was focused on the study of plant-specific stimuli affecting short-range attraction and oviposition of European grapevine moths in viticulture with the background to develop a novel tool for the integrated control of these pests.

Since 2017, her research focuses on insect vectors of phytoplasma diseases of grapevine and Xylella fastidiosa, their incidence in different landscape structures and epidemiology in vineyards. She has specialized on the vector-host plant interaction and feeding behaviour of spittlebugs and sharpshooters as vectors of the bacterium Xylella fastidiosa in order to understand spreading mechanisms of the disease. Anna is actually working on efficient strategies to support vector monitoring of Flavescence dorée, Xylella fastidiosa (Auchenorrhyncha) and grapevine leafroll-associated viruses (scale insects and mealybugs) in fruit crops and viticulture.

Anna joined the IOBC Working Group of “Integrated Protection in Viticulture” in 2015 in Vienna.

Jorge SOFIA

Short CV

Jorge Sofia earned his PhD in Biosciences while working as an agronomist. Currently working at the Portuguese “National Institute for Agricultural and Veterinary Research –National Wine Station (INIAV/EVN)” as a researcher in grapevine Phytopathology and also as responsible for the grapevine farm where it’s included in the National Ampelographic Collection.
Previously worked as a senior official at the “Center Regional Directorate for Agriculture and Fisheries” of the “Portuguese Ministry of Agriculture and Sea”, in phytopathology related areas, such as responsible for the local agricultural pest warning system for major crops (grapevine, olive, apple, pear, potato, citrus and chestnut); as phytosanitary inspector accompanying EU plant pest quarantine programs (prospection, identification of quarantines and RNQPs, and its report to EUROPHYT); and as responsible for nursery certification (at phytosanitary and quality levels).
Privately, he has pursued a career as a researcher, being an integrated researcher at CERNAS (Research Center for Natural Resources, Environment and Society, at the Polytechnic Institute of Viseu) and collaborator at CEF (Center for Functional Ecology of the University of Coimbra). Grapevine diseases and pests, specifically grapevine trunk diseases, have been the main focus of his research work. Participant in the International Council on Grapevine Trunk Diseases.
As an agronomist, he has been responsible for planning and supporting phytopharmaceutical product field trials, as well as providing advice to wine-growing farms.

My involvement in the IOBC-WPRS began after the meeting in Vila Real, Portugal in 2019.

Patrik KEHRLI

Short CV

Patrik Kehrli got his PhD at the University of Bern (Switzerland) in 2004 and conducted thereafter two postdocs; first at Lincoln University (New Zealand) and then at the University of Fribourg (Switzerland). Since 2007 he works as a scientific entomologist for Agroscope. Since his early studies, Patrik is particularly fascinated by multitrophic interactions between plants, herbivores and their natural enemies. He is thus interested to apply this ecological knowledge for a sustainable pest control by boosting biological control and IPM. Today, he is responsible for developing IPM strategies against viticultural pests in Swiss vineyards, with a special focus on the vector complex of grapevine yellow diseases, Drosophila suzukii, Halyomorpha halys and mating disruption.

Patrik is an experienced coordinator of national and international research projects. He supervised graduate students from different Swiss and European universities. Over his career, he authored or co-authored numerous scientific and technical publications as well as a multitude of scientific, technical and public presentations.

In 2007, Patrik joined the IOBC Working Group of Integrated Protection in Viticulture and was elected as a their deputy convenor in 2023.

César GEMENO

Short CV

Dr. César Gemeno is Associated Professor in the Department of Agricultural and Forest Science and Technology at the University of Lleida in Spain. He obtained his PhD in Entomology at the University of Kentucky and was a postdoctoral fellow at North Carolina State University. Dr. Gemeno specializes on insect chemical ecology, with a focus on how insects detect and respond to chemical stimuli. His current model system are moths in the family Tortricidae, all of them important pests of fruit crops, such as apple, peach and grapevine. His research has resulted in the identification of sex pheromones and plant volatile attractants, and has revealed how these chemicals are detected by the olfactory system. His current focus is on the management of insect pests of grapevines. His approach is to understand the physiology, ecology and behavior of the pest insects.

Dr. Gemeno has helped organize and has participated in several IOBC meetings.

Marco Valerio ROSSI STACCONI

Short CV

Valerio Rossi Stacconi is research entomologist in Plant Protection Unit and responsible for the insect quarantine facility at the Foundation E. Mach (FEM) in S. Michele all’Adige (Italy). He addresses his research activity to the management of economically important pests, particularly invasive alien species, with the aim to provide environmentally sustainable and minimal impact pest management strategies for agriculturalists. His current work focuses on classical and augmentative biological control programs, natural enemy biology, and insect/plant interactions that may govern pest status.

Valerio earned a Ph.D. in Applied Entomology at the University of Perugia (Italy) working on the perception of host plant volatiles in leafhoppers and planthoppers vector of phytoplasma diseases on grapevine. He did international internships at the Instituto Superior de Agronomia (Lisbon, Portugal), the Biozentrum at the University of Wuerzburg (Germany) and the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology (Jena, Germany) specializing in confocal and electron microscopy imaging and electrophysiology techniques. After completing his Ph.D., he has been researcher and extensionist at FEM (2012-2017) and research associate in the Department of Horticulture at the Oregon State University (USA, 2018-2020).

Most of his research has an extension component since he works closely with growers, stakeholders, and extension personnel. Valerio is actively involved in science outreach through participation in several science festivals and teaching activities with high, middle, and primary schools. He holds a joint ownership of intellectual property (US Patent) to a non-pesticidal attract and kill composition for control of the spotted-wing drosophila, Drosophila suzukii.

Tomislav CERNAVA

Short CV

Tomislav Cernava is an associate professor at the University of Southampton. He obtained his PhD at the Institute of Environmental Biotechnology (Graz University of Technology, Austria) in 2015. His research group focuses on the identification of beneficial plant-microbe interactions that can provide the means to reduce agrochemical inputs in agriculture. During the last years he coordinated and supported various research projects aimed at identifying disease-reducing and disease-preventing (soterobionts) microorganisms that naturally occur in the plant microbiota. These microorganisms provide a valuable resource for the development of biological control agents and their discovery is facilitated by the implementation of meta-omics analyses. So far, he has authored more than 100 publications in peer-reviewed journals. His research was supported by Horizon Europe, Horizon 2020, Austrian Science Fund (FWF), The Austrian Research Promotion Agency, and National Natural Science Foundation of China.

He joined the IOBC WPRS WG Biological and Integrated Control of Plant Pathogens at the WG meeting in Wageningen, The Netherlands, in 2023.

Marcel WENNEKER

Short CV

Marcel Wenneker is senior plant pathologist at Wageningen University & Research, Business Unit Field Crops & Fruit Crops, The Netherlands (https://www.wur.nl/en/research-results/research-institutes/plant-research/field-crops.htm).
 
The key research activities of Marcel Wenneker are in epidemiology and control of fruit diseases. Marcel did this PhD thesis on ‘Fungal pathogens in pome fruit orchards and causal agents of postharvest decay’. He is working in the fruit crops area for 20 years, covering a wide range of research including pre- and postharvest diseases, epidemiology, pesticide residues, and application technologies in pome and soft fruit crops. His research has led to improvements in production practices of fruit crops. In summary some of the performed activities: applied research in open field horticulture (fruit and nursery stock); developing IPM systems for fruit orchards; developing non-chemical control methods for replanting diseases; developing innovative spray application systems; lecturer of training courses in fruit cultivation; assessing new and emerging diseases in fruit growing. He is involved in national and international projects on control of fungal pathogens in pome fruit.
 
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Marcel-Wenneker/12
 
https://scholar.google.com.co/citations?user=EDAkSLsAAAAJ&hl=en

Michelle FOUNTAIN

Short CV

Michelle specialises in the minimisation of pesticide use in fruit horticulture, improving pollination in fruit crops and incorporating modern fruit growing practices with Integrated Pest Management. The former includes research on improving pest monitoring by developing semiochemical manipulation of insects, optimising the use of biological control agents and enhancing and fostering local landscape ecology to provide the ecosystem service of pest control.

Her pollination research is on the identification and enhancement of key insect pollinators of a range of fruit crops including blackcurrant, apple, pear and strawberry. She leads research into invasive pest species, such as, Drosophila suzukii and Anthonomus sp. and is a taxonomic specialist of Collembola, Araneae and fruit crop fauna.

She communicates research to growers and agronomists and presents papers at national and international conferences. She also authors best practice guidelines and factsheets for pest control in fruit crops and edits books and papers in specialist areas of fruit entomology.

In 2022 Michelle has been elected as convenor of the IOBC-WPRS Working Group “Integrated Protection of Fruit Crops”.

Louis SUTTER

Graham BEGG

Short CV

Graham Begg is a researcher and Head of the Agroecology Group at the James Hutton Institute in Dundee, Scotland. As an ecologist, Graham began his research career working on marine systems with a PhD and post-doctoral research focussed on the environmental impact of pollution on populations of seabirds and fish. With a growing interest in spatial ecology, Graham moved to work on terrestrial systems, firstly studying mammal distribution and then the landscape ecology in agroecosystems.  As an agroecologist, Graham has explored a range of issues including plant population dynamics and population genetics of weed species and GM ‘volunteer’ populations, the landscape scale management of natural enemies, and collective, landscape scale approaches to agrobiodiversity management. Graham has enjoyed many international collaborations, working on a range of projects across Europe, including coordination of the Europe H2020 project FRAMEwork (2020-2025), and more recently on the potential of agroecology systems in East Africa and Small Island States.

Graham has been a member of the IOBC-WPRS Working Group “Landscape Management for Functional Biodiversity” for several years and chaired the 7th meeting of the working group that was held in Dundee in 2017.

Daniela LUPI

Short CV

Daniela Lupi is an Associate Professor in Applied entomology at the Department of food environmental and nutritional sciences of the university of Milan (Italy). She has completed her Phd at Alma Mater studiorum of Bologna (Italy) on the biology of a potential control agent of scale insects. After that she was a post doc fellow at the university of Milan where for 2005 she continued her work as a researcher. In the same period, having the task of giving courses, she was also awarded of the title of Aggregate professor of the same university. She, then became Associate professor in 2019.

Her research activities are mainly focused on the study of the biology and application of several interesting potential control agents for the control of invasive exotic species. Other key research topics are related to the effect of different anthropogenic factors (including phytosanitary products) on beneficial insects, and in particular on honeybees and wild bees.

Since 2019 she is section editor in “Insect ecology” of the Journal of Entomological and Acarological Research and since 2022 Subject editor in “Pollinator Ecology and Management” of the journal Environmental entomology.

Daniela Lupi first joined the IOBC-WPRS Working Group “Landscape Management for Functional Biodiversity” in its first meeting in Bologna (Italy) in 2003 and since 2014 she has been actively involved in the group. Recently she has been the local organizer 9th Meeting of the group at Milan (Italy), 7-10 June, 2022.

Tirtza ZAHAVI

Short CV

Tirtza Zahavi studied horticulture and phytopathology in the Hebrew university of Jerusalem, in the faculty of agriculture. Her Ph.D. was on “the use of native yeast for the suppression of grape rots”. She works in the extension service of the Israeli ministry of Agriculture, in charge of grape growing in the north part of Israel and plant protection in viticulture all over the country. Beside that she is involved in research in both fields in collaboration with researchers from ARO and from Northern R&D and teaches viticulture in Tel-Hai academic college.

Joined the Viticulture group of IOBC in 1999 and became a sub-group (IPM) convenor in 2007.

Ute VOGLER

Short CV

Ute Vogler is Head of the Institute of the Institute of Plant Protection in Horticulture and Forests at the Julius Kuehn-Institute, the Federal Research Centre for Cultivated Plants in Germany. She studied Horticultural Sciences at the Technical University Munich in Weihenstephan and conducted her PhD at ETH Zurich in Applied Entomology. Afterwards, she worked as entomologist at Agroscope in Switzerland and focussed on applied research in integrated protection in field vegetables, and was lecturer at ETHZ.

Her research focusses on applied and basic research in integrated protection of horticultural crops and forests. She works mainly with insect pests in vegetable crops like vegetable root flies, carrot psyllid, and white flies to develop controlling strategies for integrated and organic vegetable production.

Ute Vogler is active in the IOBC-WPRS Working Group Integrated Protection in Field Vegetables since 2011 and attended the meetings regularly. In 2017 she organized the meeting of the Working Group in Switzerland, and in 2019 she was elected as Convenor of the Working Group Integrated Protection in Field Vegetables.

Denis THIÉRY

Short CV

Dr Denis Thiéry is senior scientist, head of the lab INRA (Unité de Recherches en Santé Végétale) of Bordeaux. His field of research concerns chemical ecology, insect behaviour, reproductive strategies in insects applied to grape insects (grape moths and leafhoppers). He also developed significant research in biological control of grape pests.

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