Dr Fusuo Zhang is professor of Plant Nutrition at China Agricultural University in Beijing, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering. His group has developed a series of integrated crop and nutrient management technologies to increase crop yield and improve nutrient use efficiency, while reduce environmental pollution. Through the vast network and governmental action the great changes have been made for transformation of agriculture in China. He has published over 400 peer-reviewed papers, including the prestige Science, Nature and PNAS, and received many national awards and international prizes. In 2018, he received honorary doctorate from Wageningen University and Lancaster University.
Member of the communist party of China, senior engineer, bachelor degree, major in chemical engineering, former deputy director of technical supervision department of Chemical Industry Ministry; Deputy director and director of the policy and regulation department of the State Administration of Petroleum and Chemical Industry; Director of quality department ,deputy secretary general and director and secretary general of quality department of science and technology of China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Association. He is currently vice chairman of China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation and chairman of China Phosphate & Compound Fertilizer Industry Association.
GSP Consultant Zineb is a soil scientist and recent graduate from the University of British Columbia (UBC). She completed her M.Sc. in Soil Sciences at UBC with the Sustainable Agricultural Landscapes Laboratory and her BSc. in Applied Biology with a focus in plant and soil sciences. During the past few years, Zineb has worked on different projects with local companies as well as with the Ministry of Agriculture in British Columbia, where she focused on the effects of different soil amendments on crop productivity. She specializes in soil fertility, nutrient cycling and greenhouse gas emissions. Her work at the GSP focuses on Pillars 1 (Soil Management) and 3 (Research), as well as providing technical support on various projects.
Doctor, researcher, currently director and chief expert of National Agricultural Information Engineering Research Center. Experts of National 863 Program and general team leader of National 863 Program major project "Intelligent Agricultural Information Technology Demonstration Project" are mainly engaged in the research and application of artificial intelligence, expert system, data mining, network middleware technology and other fields. He has presided over more than 20 projects including the National 863 Program, the 973 Program, and the National Science and Technology Research Project. He has obtained 11 important scientific research achievements and won 6 provincial and ministerial-level scientific and technological awards. The national 863 program project "China 863 computer agriculture", which he presided over, won the UN world information summit award in 2003. In 2004, it was selected as "Top Ten Outstanding Youth in China's Software Industry", and on November 27, 2017, it was elected as the academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering. On May 30, 2019, Zhao Chunjiang Academician Team and Yuan Longping Academician Team jointly established Academician Workstation in Chengyang District, Qingdao City, to carry out research in the field of combining saline-alkali land transformation with intelligent agriculture in China.
Sun Zhonghua is president of China Society of Cooperative Economics,Long-term engaged in rural policy research and agricultural and rural economic management. He has served as Central Rural Policy Research Office and Deputy Department-level Researcher of Rural Development Research Center under the State Council, Fourth Group Leader of Ministry of Agriculture Rural Economic Research Center, Ministry of Agriculture, Director of the Office of the Minister and Deputy Director of the Office of the General Office of the Ministry of Agriculture, Director of the Office of the Minister of the General Office of the Ministry of Agriculture, Deputy Director of General Office, Secretary, President and Editor-in-Chief of the Party Committee of China Rural Magazine Society, Standing Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of the Ministry of Agriculture, Director of Rural Economic System and Management Department, Ministry of Agriculture, The chief agronomist of the Ministry of Agriculture is also the director of the Office of the Rural Reform Experimental Zone and the director of the Office of the Leading Group for Deepening Rural Reform.
Ms Charlotte Hebebrand serves as the Director General of the International Fertilizer Association (IFA) since January 2013. In this capacity, she leads IFA’s efforts to promote the efficient and responsible production, distribution and use of plant nutrients in support of global food security and sustainable development. Prior to joining IFA, Ms Hebebrand served as Chief Executive of the Washington DC based International Food & Agricultural Trade Policy Council (IPC) from February 2006 until July 2012. She led the efforts of IPC members - a diverse mix of distinguished international agricultural trade experts from around the world - to promote a more open, equitable and sustainable global food system. Ms Hebebrand has also worked with the European Commission, serving as Special Advisor on international development, trade, agriculture and food safety issues in its Washington delegation, and with the Brookings Institution's Foreign Policy Division. She holds a B.A. from Georgetown University and a M.A. in International Relations and Economics from Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies. Ms Hebebrand serves on the board of the International Fertilizer Development Center since 2016 and in 2019 joined the Independent Science Committee of the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Climate Change. She served as a member of Dupont’s Advisory Committee on Agricultural Innovation & Productivity for the 21st Century from 2011-2014
Luc Maene is a Belgian national. He graduated from the University of Gent in 1970. He joined the Belgian Administration for Development Cooperation and was stationed, first in Tunisia, followed by Malaysia. In 1980, he went back to Brussels and was involved in project evaluation. In 1982, he joined the United Nations as the Team Leader of the Fertilizer Advisory, Development and Information Network for Asia and the Pacific, based in Bangkok. In 1987, he joined IFA and retired as its Director General at the end of 2012. Luc Maene has been Vice Chairman of the Board of the International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC). He is past Chairman of the Board of the Fertilizer Industry Round Table (FIRT). He is Past President of the European Society of Association Executives (ESAE). He was awarded a Doctorate honoris causa in Agriculture by the University Putra Malaysia (UPM) in 2006. In 2014, he was a Visiting Professor at the University Putra Malaysia. He is currently Immediate Past President of the International Fertiliser Society. Since 2013, Luc Maene is the Director of the Luxembourg based consultancy company LM Agri Ltd.
Mr. Rakesh Kapur, President of International Fertilizer Association (IFA), is the Joint Managing Director, Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Ltd. (IFFCO), which is the largest fertilizer Cooperative in the World with a turnover of USD 4 Billion (2018-19). Mr. Kapur has been associated with the fertilizer sector for the past 25 years. Mr. Kapur held various senior positions in Government of India in the Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, Municipal Corporation of Delhi and Ministry of Finance (Income Tax Department) prior to his joining IFFCO in the year 2000 as Finance Director. Mr. Kapur serves on the Board of Directors of several Indian and Foreign Companies apart from being the Managing Director of two Indian Companies, Vice-Chairman of one Joint Venture Company and Chairman of another Joint Venture Company. He was the Chairman, Fertilizer Association of India (FAI) during 2015-17 and Oman India Fertilizer Company S.A.O.C. during 2009-10 and 2014-15. He has traveled widely and participated in various national and international Seminars / Conferences, and presented papers on different subjects. Mr. Kapur is a former Indian Revenue Service Officer who holds B. Tech Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), New Delhi with a Post-Graduation in Management.
Mathias Schroeder is head of Marketing and Sales Asia and Pacific – EuroChem Group,Managing Director – EuroChem Agro Asia.Mathias leads EuroChem’s Asia marketing and sales activities, including the development of the Group’s distribution and strategic initiatives. He has been Head of Marketing and Sales Asia and Pacific/ Managing Director since 2012.With more than 14 years of background in the fertiliser industry, Mathias has experiences in sales and marketing of fertilisers across multiple geographies.He started his career with K+S in 2005. Based in Mannheim / Germany, Mathias took the role as Sales Manager for Middle East, Africa and Asia in 2008.He moved to Singapore as Director of K+S’ Nitrogen business in 2011 and joined EuroChem in 2012 after the company acquired K+S Nitrogen.Born in 1985, Mathias is a German citizen and received an MBA from Cooperative State University Mannheim / Germany.
Mr. Yves Caprara joined Prayon in 1989 as Managing Director of its commercial branch Prayon UK Plc in Harpenden. Prior to joining Prayon Yves Caprara served as Marine Distribution Planner and later as Customer Service Manager at Exxon Chemicals Europe from June 1989 until Sept 1994. In 1994 he became General Manager of Europhos SA – a joint venture between Rhodia and Prayon specialized in speciality phosphates before becoming the CFO of the Prayon group in 1998. M. Caprara was apppointed CEO of the Prayon group in 2008 following the retirement of Prayon’s outgoing General Manager Willy Marlier. He holds a Master degree from Solvay Business School – University of Brussels. M. Caprara is the former president of Greenwin – Pole of competitivity of the Walloon region dedicated to green chemistry and environmental technologies and is serving as a member of HEC Liege Supervisory Board and Director of UWE (Union Wallonne des Entreprises).