The International Phytobiomes Conference 2026 will bring together a broad community of U.S. and international scientists from the public and private sector as well as agricultural stakeholders.
The Conference program will cover a wide range of topics related to phytobiomes and the list of speakers & panelists below reflects the interdisciplinarity of phytobiome science.
Plenary Speakers – Invited Speakers – Panelists
Plenary Speakers
Trevor Charles
University of Waterloo, CA
Trevor Charles is Professor of Biology at the University of Waterloo. Trained as a microbiologist and bacterial geneticist, he holds a B.Sc. in Microbiology from the University of British Columbia, a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from McMaster University, and completed postdoctoral training at the University of Washington. He held a faculty position at McGill University before joining the University of Waterloo, where his research group works at the intersection of microbial genomics, plant-microbe interactions, and environmental surveillance.
Current research activity spans beneficial bacteria in field and controlled environment agriculture, functional metagenomics and novel gene discovery, bacterial genome engineering for the conversion of food waste to bioplastics, and wastewater-based pathogen surveillance, all situated within a circular bioeconomy framework.
Trevor has been actively involved in translating research from his lab into commercial products and services, and as Founder and Executive Director of the Lanterna Black Innovation Hub, is deeply committed to increasing the participation of Black youth in STEM, innovation, and entrepreneurship.
Talk Title: From Field to Greenhouse to Barn: Exploring the Phytobiome Potential Across Ontario’s Diverse Agricultural Systems
Kwang-Hyung Kim
Seoul National University, KR
Kwang-Hyung Kim is a Professor at Seoul National University, South Korea, jointly affiliated with the Department of Agricultural Biotechnology and the Interdisciplinary Program in Agricultural and Forest Meteorology. His research focuses on agro-climatic analytics, plant disease epidemiology, and climate-informed decision support systems for agriculture. Kim’s research integrates machine learning, explainable AI, remote sensing, and process-based modeling to improve crop yield prediction, plant disease forecasting, and agricultural risk assessment under changing climate conditions. His work emphasizes bridging advanced analytical approaches with field-level applicability and operational decision-making in real-world agricultural systems.
With over a decade of international consulting experience, he has collaborated with organizations including FAO, UNDP, CIAT, ADB, and KOICA to support the development of national agro-climatic services and digital agriculture systems across developing countries. His broader research vision centers on multidisciplinary and systems-based approaches that connect climate, crops, and agricultural management for resilient and sustainable food production.
Talk Title: Machine Learning Meets the Field: Agro-Climatic Analytics for a Changing Climate
Danica Lombardozzi
Colorado State University & National Center for Atmospheric Research, US
Danica Lombardozzi is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability at Colorado State University and a Project Scientist in the Climate and Global Dynamics Laboratory at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). Her research integrates ecological observations with global-scale modeling to better understand how terrestrial ecosystems respond to and influence environmental change.
Her work has shown how ground-level ozone reduces ecosystem carbon storage, projected future shifts in food availability due to climate change, and evaluated agricultural practices that mitigate climate impacts while supporting food security. Lombardozzi leads the development of the agriculture module in the Community Land Model and co-founded the National Ozone Garden Network, where she directs community science efforts.
She earned a BA in Environmental Science from Colorado College and a PhD in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Cornell University.
Talk Title: Terrestrial Ecosystem Responses and Feedbacks to Changing Climate
Invited Speakers
Bridget Emmett
UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, UK
Bridget Emmett is a Principal Scientist at UKCEH and leads the inter-disciplinary and multi-partner Environment and Rural Affairs Monitoring and Modelling Programme(ERAMMP) funded by the Welsh Government since 2012 and is PI for a other projects which require a inter-disiplinary approach and a focus on policy evaluation and development. Bridget is a Trustee and recent Past President of the British Ecological Society and is a Member of the EU Mission Board for ‘A Soil Deal for Europe’.
Bridget was formerly UKCEH’s Science Area Head for Soils and Land Use (SLU), leading and managing more than 120 research staff and 40 postgraduate students across three UKCEH sites. Her research is often as the lead for projects requiring the coordination of a large number of partners to improve integration across different disciplines and sectors from catchment/landscape to national scale to improve the evidence base and support national policy development and outcome reporting in the areas of e.g. soil health, ecosystem services, agri-environment schemes and natural capital.
Bridget was awarded Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for her Services to Soil and Ecosystem Sciences in 2023 and the Marsh Award for her Climate Change Research by the British Ecological Society in 2016. She has published over 184 ISI articles, has a H index of 66 (Scopus) and has a publication record with over 17,000 citations. She sits on a wide range of number of advisory boards both national and international for governments and research organisations. She served as the Specialist Adviser for the UK Parliamentary Inquiry into Soil Health in 2016.
Talk Title: Soil Health, Agri-environment Schemes and Policy Evaluation and Development
Adrien Frémont
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, US
Adrien Frémont is a postdoctoral researcher at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (California) in the Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology division.
His research focuses on characterizing the chemical diversity of plant root exudates and their impact on soil microbial communities to develop strategies for climate-resilient agriculture. Adrien completed his PhD in 2024 at the University of Montreal (Canada), where he worked at the Montreal Botanical Garden investigating plant root exudation responses to soil contamination. He earned his Master’s degree in Plant Physiology in 2016 from the University of Rennes 1 (France), during which he studied root exudation adaptations of native Australian plant species at the University of Western Australia in Perth.
In his current work employs advanced rhizosphere meta-omic approaches to unravel the intricate biochemical cross-talk between plants and microorganisms in the soil environment, with particular emphasis on cover crops as a natural solution to restore soil health and enhance agricultural sustainability.
Talk Title: Cover Crop Exudate Metabolomes Drive Rhizosphere Microbiome Assembly and Function
Julia Kelliher
Michigan State University, US
Julia Kelliher obtained her bachelor’s degree in Neuroscience from Skidmore College and her MS in Biotechnology from Johns Hopkins University. She has worked in microbiology and microbiome science for ten years and is currently at Michigan State University in the Department of Microbiology, Genetics, & Immunology. Her current research focuses on bacterial-fungal interactions and mycoviruses, as well as soil and plant-associated microbiomes. She also works to develop tools, resources, and educational materials for microbiome research and data management. Towards these goals, she recently led the effort to develop the Standards for Technical Reporting in Environmental and host-Associated Microbiome Studies (STREAMS) guidelines.
Talk Title: STREAM-lining Phytobiome Research: Community-driven Guidelines for Data Management and Reuse
Van Schepler-Luu
IRRI (International Rice Research Institute), PH
Van Schepler-Luu leads the Plant Pathology and Host Plant Resistance Group. Her group works on multiple bacterial, fungal, and viral diseases of rice and aims to discover new resistance genes for improving the rice plant’s ability to withstand devastating diseases.
Before joining IRRI, she led the Rice Team Group at the University of Düsseldorf where she focused on the interaction between rice and the bacterial blight pathogen and developing advanced genome editing platforms for rice. Van earned her PhD from the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Germany where she studied different layers of plant defense against fungal pathogens ranging from defensive genes to phytohormone signaling, the production of antifungal secondary metabolites, and the association of beneficial microbes.
Van also has a master’s degree in molecular bioscience from the University of Heidelberg in Germany and a diploma in biotechnology from Vietnam National University of Agriculture.
Talk Title: Linkages Between Methane Emissions, Rhizosphere Microbiome and Bacterial Blight Resistance
David Sherman
Inria (National Institute for Research in Digital Science and Technology), FR
David James Sherman is a research director with Inria, the French National Institute for Computer Science and Technology, where he leads a multidisciplinary Inria-INRAE team that builds computational tools for digital microbial ecology. He is scientific lead of the MISTIC flagship project of the French PEPR Agroecology and ICT program. Educated at the University of Chicago (SB’86 Mathematics, SM’89 PhD’94 Computer Science) in compilation and logic, he developed formal methods for industrial systems reliability before turning in 1999 to modeling complex biological systems and conducting large-scale comparative genomics. His personal focus is reasoning over large knowledge bases to support biological decision making. Sherman was an Associate Professor at Bordeaux INP from 1996-2007 before joining Inria.
Talk Title: Computational Microbial Ecology in Aid of Agricultural Transition and Adaptation to Climate Risks
Shengjing Shi
Bioeconomy Science Institute, NZ
Shengjing Shi is a Senior Scientist in the Resilient Agriculture Group at the Bioeconomy Science Institute, New Zealand. Her work focuses on soil microbiome function, plant-microbe interactions and their responses to climate change, with a strong emphasis on translating microbiome science into sustainable agricultural solutions.
Shi is dedicated to advancing beneficial microorganisms to improve plant performance and agricultural resilience. Working closely with industry partners and farmers, she has led multidisciplinary, multi-institutional research programs that bring together research institutes, universities, and industry to address key challenges in sustainable food production. She currently co-leads the multi-year program Plants and Microbiomes of the Future, which aims to strengthen the resilience of forage-based agricultural systems under climate change through the development and deployment of novel forage cultivars and their associated beneficial microbiomes. Within this program, her team integrates microbiome science, plant genetics, systems biology, and phenomics to better understand and optimize plant–microbe partnerships under environmental stress.
Talk Title: A Roadmap for Plant-microbiome Breeding to Enhance Plant Stress Tolerance
Panelists
Ground Truths Conversation
What Production Agriculture Needs from Phytobiomes Science
Jeff Barlow is a 6th generation grain and oilseeds farmer on a family farm near Binbrook, Ontario, currently raising corn, soft red winter wheat, and both GMO and non-GMO food grade tofu soybeans. He farms alongside his parents, wife, and 3 sons.
Jeff is also heavily involved in both provincial and national grain associations. He is currently a provincial director with the Grain Farmers of Ontario, where he chairs the Government Relations and Communications Committees, and serves as Vice Chair of the Grain Financial Protection Board. He is also the current Chairman of the Board of Soy Canada, a national value chain organization that works closely with the Federal Government on market access and policy frameworks.
Jeff is always running on-farm research plots at his farm, constantly honing his skills as a farmer and learning how products and varieties behave on his soils. He also employs some of the latest technology in his equipment fleet, including GPS assisted implement guidance, plant population by zone, and variable rate fertility by zone/soil type.
Industry Roundtable Discussion
Vera Bonardi is the Microbial Discovery Portfolio Leader at Corteva. With over 20 years of experience in plant biology, microbiology, and agricultural biologicals, she leads multidisciplinary programs focused on driving innovation in microbial discovery for crop protection and manages Corteva’s biologicals discovery portfolio. Vera works at the intersection of scientific discovery and product development, collaborating across research, regulatory, and commercial teams to advance next-generation biological technologies for agriculture. Prior to her current role, Vera led the Application R&D team at Novozymes BioAg, leading efforts to test, validate, and advance microbial technologies for improved crop yield and protection. She earned her Ph.D. in Biology from Ludwig Maximilians University in Munich together with the Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research in Cologne and later completed postdoctoral training in plant-microbe interactions at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Natalie Breakfield, the Chief Science Officer at NewLeaf Symbiotics, Inc, specializes in PPFM bacteria research for agricultural innovation. Her expertise includes strain identification, plant-microbe interactions, and understanding the biological mechanisms that support crop performance. Natalie advances biotechnology development by combining molecular biology with genomics to support sustainable crop protection. Her expertise in strain identification, functional genomics, and the commercial translation of PPFM technology helps deliver resilient farming solutions and environmentally responsible agricultural practices.
Natalie is a member of the Board of Directors of the Phytobiomes Alliance.
Danielle Rose is the General Manager at Enoda, Mastronardi Produce’s plant disease testing laboratory, where she specializes in the hydroponic plant microbiome and plant disease testing. Her work focuses on understanding and applying beneficial microbial communities to support plant health and disease management in controlled-environment agriculture. Prior to her current role, she spent five years founding and leading Ceragen, a startup dedicated to developing plant growth-promoting microbial inoculants and disease testing tailored specifically to the greenhouse fruit and vegetable industry. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Microbiology from the University of Guelph.
Danielle was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 in Science list for her work with Ceragen, and was recognized as one of Greenhouse Canada’s Top 4 Under 40 in 2025.
“Navigating the Changing Workforce Landscape” Roundtable Discussion
Kari Dunfield is a professor in the School of Environmental Sciences at the University of Guelph. Working at the intersection of microbiology, ecology, and soil science, her research investigates the microbial communities and processes that support life on Earth, with a focus on climate change, soil conservation, and food security.
Kari is also the Executive of Soils@Guelph, a knowledge mobilization program, and the North American Representative for the UN-FAO Global Soil Partnership.
Nichole Ginnan is an Assistant Project Scientist in the Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology at the University of California, Riverside. Her research examines how environmental history shapes microbial traits to community functions, and how host genotype and environmental context influence plant responses to microbiota.
She has also helped develop interdisciplinary training programs, including Penn State’s Dual-Title Ph.D. in Microbiome Sciences and an NIH-funded T32 training grant, and is especially interested in how higher education can prepare trainees for diverse careers that advance sustainable agriculture and address real-world challenges.
Anastassia Khrouchtchova trained as a biologist, with a PhD in plant molecular biology, and worked in both academic research and technology transfer before moving into R&D at a brewing company (Carlsberg). Since joining the Novo Nordisk Foundation (NNF) in 2019, she has focused on developing research-based initiatives that support one of NNF’s priorities: enabling sustainable, nutritious food production, currently with a particular focus on environmental microbiology.