Presenters
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Michael Acton, CFA Managing Director, Director of AEW Research, AEW Capital Management Read Bio |
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Adam Anders Managing Director, Rabo Ventures Read Bio |
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Renatto Barbieri Portfolio Manager, Global Agribusiness Fund, Galtere Read Bio |
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Wade Barnes Chief Executive Officer, Farmers Edge Read Bio |
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Brian Baumhover Associate, Private Markets, Teacher Retirement System of Texas Read Bio |
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Rajesh Behal Chief Investment Officer, Global Agribusiness, International Finance Corporation (IFC) Read Bio |
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Alan Boyce Executive Chairman, Materra Read Bio |
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William S. Brennan Portfolio Manager and Principal, Summit Global Management Read Bio |
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Marcus Coester Chief Executive Officer, Rio Grande do Sul Development Agency Read Bio |
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Billy Cook Senior Vice President and Division Director, Agricultural Division, The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation Read Bio |
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Michael C. Cremer Global Director for Aquaculture, U.S. Soybean Export Council Read Bio |
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Disque Deane, Jr. CIO and Co-Founder of WAM, President of WPI Read Bio |
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Philippe de Laperouse Managing Director, HighQuest Partners Read Bio |
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Grahame Dixie Agribusiness Unit Team Leader, Agriculture and Rural Development, World Bank Read Bio |
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Dan Dougherty Manager, Business Development, John Deere & Company Read Bio |
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Paul Erickson Senior Vice President & Managing Director, Agri-Access Read Bio |
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David Fassnacht Partner and Portfolio Manager, Global Agriculture, Wellington Management Read Bio |
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Benjamin Fishman Managing Principal, Arlon Group Read Bio |
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Tomas Franzen Chief Investment Strategist, AP Fonden 2 Read Bio |
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Jamie Garrett Managing Director, HighQuest Partners Read Bio |
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Bill Goodbar Managing Director, INTL Provident Group Read Bio |
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Alyssa Grikscheit Partner, Sidley Austin Read Bio |
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Kirk Haney Chief Executive Officer, SG Biofuels Read Bio |
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Eric Haskel Managing Director, Perella Weinberg Partners Read Bio |
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David Henderson Managing Director, XPV Capital Read Bio |
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Judson Hill Managing Director, NGP Global Adaptation Partners Read Bio |
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Andrew Hoffmann Investment Solutions - Alternative Investments, PIMCO Read Bio |
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Joshua Hofheimer Counsel, Sidley Austin Read Bio |
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Simon Hopkins CEO, Milltrust International Group Read Bio |
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Tim Hornibrook Co-Head, Macquarie Agricultural Funds Management Read Bio |
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Joe Hudson Co-Founder & Managing Director, One Earth Capital Read Bio |
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Jens Henrik Staugaard Johansen Managing Partner, Pensionskassernes Administration (PKA) Read Bio |
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Amaury Junior Founding Partner & CIO, Vision Brazil Investments Read Bio |
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Bruce Kahn Director, Senior Investment Analyst, Deutsche Asset Management Read Bio |
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William J. Kiernan Director, Global AgInvesting Research & Insight, HighQuest Partners Read Bio |
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Ejnar Knudsen Portfolio Manager and Principal, Craton Capital Management Read Bio |
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Shane R. Knutson Director of International Sales, Ag Growth International (AGI) Read Bio |
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Arama Kukutai Managing Director, Finistere Ventures Read Bio |
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Maria Lettini Global Outreach Manager, United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI) Read Bio |
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Joshua Levin Senior Program Officer, Finance & Commodities, WWF Read Bio |
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Francisco Lobo de Vasconcellos Investment Director, Agribusiness, Norfund Read Bio |
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Prem Maan Managing Director, Southern Pastures Management Limited Read Bio |
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William Malarkey Managing Director, Boenning & Scattergood Read Bio |
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Francesca McCann Managing Director, Global Water Strategies Read Bio |
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Charlie McNairy CEO & Managing Partner, International Farming Corporation Read Bio |
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Ronald Meeusen Founding Partner, Cultivian Ventures Read Bio |
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Jose Minaya Managing Director, Head of Natural Resources and Infrastructure Investments, TIAA-CREF Read Bio |
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Ricardo Mussa Chief Executive Officer, RADAR (Brazil) Read Bio |
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Adam Oliver Director, Brown & Co. Read Bio |
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Devon Olson Director, Real Estate, Utah State Retirement Systems Read Bio |
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W. Dexter Paine, III Partner, Paine + Partners Read Bio |
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Joseph Pescatore Head of Business Development, Financial Services Group, Bunge Global Agribusiness Read Bio |
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Gary Pike CEO, Broadacre Agriculture Read Bio |
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Berry Polmann Executive Director, Adveq Read Bio |
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Sebastian Popik Managing Partner, Aqua Capital Partners Read Bio |
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Cherae Robinson Director, Partnerships, CYMMIT Read Bio |
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Michael Rubino Director, Aquaculture Office, National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Read Bio |
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Dmitry Rylko General Director, Institute for Agricultural Market Studies (IKAR) Read Bio |
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Kevin Schwartz Partner, Paine + Partners Read Bio |
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Angus Selby Senior Principal (Agriculture), Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Read Bio |
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Desmond Sheehy Chief Investment Officer, Duxton Asset Management Read Bio |
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John Shmorhun President, Harmelia Holdings Read Bio |
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Jason Silm Head of Agriculture Fund Management, VTB Capital Read Bio |
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Dave Smardon Managing Partner, Bioenterprise Capital Read Bio |
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Hunt Stookey Director, Agricultural Investments, AEW Capital Management Read Bio |
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Alison Sunstrum Co-CEO, GrowSafe Systems Read Bio |
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Thor Arne Talseth Head of Seafood, Corporate Finance Read Bio |
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Craig Tashjian Principal & Founding Partner, AMERRA Capital Read Bio |
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Warren Taylor Agribusiness Director, Greenfield Capital Advisors Read Bio |
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Marshall Thomas President, F&W; Director, Farm & Forestry Management Services Read Bio |
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Peter Thomson Deputy CEO, Ukrainian Agrarian Investments Read Bio |
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David Tze Managing Director, Oceanis, Aquacopia Read Bio |
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Paul Ulanch Director, Biotechnology Crops Development, North Carolina Biotechnology Center Read Bio |
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Antonio ValleNeto US/CA Manager, Bunge Emissions Group Read Bio |
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Heinrich von Pezold Executive Director, Rift Valley Holdings Read Bio |
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Bradley Wheaton Agricultural Product Specialist, Associate Director, Macquarie Agricultural Funds Management (MAFM) Read Bio |
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Geoffrey White Director & Chief Executive Officer, Lonrho Plc Read Bio |
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Mark White Head of Real Assets, Albourne Partners |
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Stephen Williams Senior Researcher, Mercer Read Bio |
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Oliver Williams, CFA President, Hancock Agricultural Investment Group Read Bio |
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William Wilson Professor of Agribusiness & Economics, North Dakota State University Read Bio |
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Mark Zenuk Managing Director, NGP Global Adaptation Partners Read Bio |
2012 Speaking Faculty
Michael Acton, CFA, Managing Director, Director of AEW Research, AEW Capital Management
Mr. Acton is a Managing Director and Director of Research at AEW with responsibility for overseeing the activities of AEW Research, the firm’s highly regarded in-house research group. Mr. Acton joined the firm in 1990 and has over 25 years of experience as an economic analyst and forecaster. He is a standing member of the firm’s Investment Committee, Management Committee and Risk Management Committee. The resources of AEW Research are an integral part of AEW’s investment process and Mr. Acton works closely with senior professionals in all areas of the firm to develop investment strategies that match clients’ risk/reward objectives with market opportunities. Prior to joining AEW, he was with DRI/McGraw-Hill where he managed the Metropolitan Area Forecasting Service. He is a graduate of Bates College (B.A.) and holds the designation of Chartered Financial Analyst.
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Adam Anders, Managing Director, Rabo Ventures
Rabo Ventures is a venture capital fund dedicated to investing in innovative, growth companies across the food and agriculture value chain. Rabo Ventures is funded by Rabobank and looks to support its portfolio companies by leveraging the contacts, knowledge and financial strength of the bank. Rabobank, a EUR600 bln+ bank, is the leading international bank to the food and agriculture sectors serving over 10 million customers across 48 countries. Adam has over 14 years private equity and venture capital experience, having entered the profession first as a senior operational executive for several private equity funded businesses. Adam is passionate about building great businesses, supporting leading management teams and making the food and agriculture sector more sustainable. Prior to working for Rabo Ventures, Adam was with Ironbridge Capital, a Private Equity house in Sydney, Australia. Earlier in his career Adam worked as a management consultant with Bain & Co and as a commercial lawyer. Adam holds an MBA degree from Cambridge University in England and a Bachelors Degree in Law and a Bachelors Degree in Commerce, both from the University of Adelaide, Australia.
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Renatto Barbieri, Portfolio Manager, Global Agribusiness Fund, Galtere
Mr. Renatto Barbieri is the Portfolio Manager of the Galtere Global Agribusiness Fund. An agronomist by training, Mr. Barbieri has 20 years extensive experience in commodity trading, structuring, financing, investment, and business development. Mr. Barbieri’s experience spans all five continents as well as a variety of commodities and capital markets. He has made significant commercial and bottom-line contributions to Cargill, Standard Chartered Bank (Asia), Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank. Most recently, Mr. Barbieri was the Head of Natural Resources Principal Finance at Deutsche Bank Global Markets, where he successfully initiated and built their natural resource private equity business. Mr. Barbieri spent his early career as at Cargill Australia where he built the company’s international fish meal and other soft commodities businesses. Mr. Barbieri holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Agronomic Engineering from the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul.
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Wade Barnes, Chief Executive Officer, Farmers Edge
Mr. Barnes has been providing crop production consulting services to large farm clients in Western Canada for more than 15 years. In 2005, he founded Farmers Edge, now the largest agricultural consulting firm in Canada, which specializes in precision agriculture, remote sensing and high production agriculture techniques in Canada, United States, Russia and Australia. Farmers Edge also provides land management services to off farm investors such as in-depth land assessments using remote sensing. In 2010, Farmers Edge in co-operation with Dow Agro Sciences created the largest identity preserved production system in Eastern Europe. Using Farmers Edge technology, the project is focused on allowing large food companies to monitor their contracted crops remotely from their off site locations anywhere in the world. Farmers Edge is currently developing systems that will allow investors, farm management and end users to have more access to information on a real time basis.
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Brian Baumhover, Associate, Private Markets, Teacher Retirement System of Texas
Brian’s responsibilities include assisting the Private Markets directors in managing, monitoring, and performing due diligence underwriting and co-investment analysis in Real Return Portfolios. He supports communication of all aspects of the Private Markets Portfolio (strategy, performance, new opportunities, etc.) with TRS senior management and Board of Trustees. Post-college, Brian was commissioned in the United States Navy. He few F/A-18C’s for eleven years on multiple carrier based deployments and was selected to attend TOGUN. Upon completion, as an east coast Weapons and Tactics Instructor, Brian led pre-deployment workup training for multiple Carrier Airwings. Brian then returned to graduate school for a career in Real Assets Finance, and is intregral in developing and building out TRS’ $3.7B Other Real Assets program. Brian holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering from Iowa State University, and a MBA from McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin.
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Rajesh Behal, Chief Investment Officer, Global Agribusiness, International Finance Corporation (IFC)
Rajesh Behal is a Chief Investment Officer in the Global Agribusiness Department of IFC and leads equity investments and debt financings globally in the sector. He has led and overseen several IFC investments in the beverage sector, PE agribusiness funds, farming/primary production and consumer foods across East and SE Asia, Latin America and Africa. He has spent 10 years working with the IFC. He holds an MBA from Stanford University, Business School.
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Alan Boyce, Executive Chairman, Materra
Alan Boyce is co-founder and Chairman of Materra, LLC, an agricultural production company based in California and Arizona. He is co-founder and Director of Agrica Ltd, which has become largest rice grower and miller in Tanzania. Agrica continues to develop sustainable agribusiness in Africa, currently focusing on South Sudan. Alan is co-founder and Director of Adecoagro (NYSE:AGRO), a food and renewable energy-producing company that owns and operates highly productive land throughout Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay.
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William S. Brennan, Portfolio Manager and Principal, Summit Global Management
William S. Brennan is a Portfolio Manager and Principal with Summit, participating in the development and management of water equity strategies. Mr. Brennan was previously the Founding Partner of Brennan Investment Partners, which served as portfolio manager and sub-advisor to the Kinetics Water Infrastructure Fund (KWINX) since its inception in June 2007. Prior, he was Portfolio Manager of the Praetor Global Water Equities Fund in Luxemburg, and was also responsible for portfolio selection for the Claymore Global and Domestic Water UITs — the first retail water investment products launched in the U.S. Mr. Brennan served as an advisor to Summit Global Management from the inception of its first water-specific investment vehicle in 1999 through 2005. He began his investment career with Pacific Growth Equities, where he ran the Environmental Services, Aviation Security, and Special Situation groups for six years. Mr. Brennan has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering/Biology from Lehigh University (distinguished Air Force ROTC), an M.S. in Biomedical Engineering from Colorado State University, and an MBA from Villanova University, where he has also been an adjunct professor in the graduate MBA program for the past 12 years.
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Marcus Coester, Chief Executive Officer, Rio Grande do Sul Development Agency
Graduated in Computer Science at the Pontifical University of Rio Grande do Sul State – PUC-RS, Master Degree in Computer Science at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS. Large experience in the industrial field and company leadership, at the Federation of Industries of Rio Grande do Sul State - FIERGS, Brazilian Association of Machinery Industry - ABIMAQ, Brazilian Association of the Electric-Electronic Industry - ABINEE, Union of the Metallurgical, Mechanic and Electric Materials Industries – SINDIMETAL, the International Society of Automation – ISA. Presently he is the CEO of Rio Grande do Sul Development Agency.
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Billy Cook, Senior Vice President and Division Director, Agricultural Division, The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation
Billy Cook, Ph.D., currently serves as a Senior Vice President and the Director of the Agricultural Division for The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, an independent, nonprofit research institution that is focused on supporting agriculture producers. Prior to Noble Foundation, Cook served as general manager of the Beef Development and Research Center of Texas, focusing his interests on leveraging technologies to add efficiency to beef cattle production. He joined the Noble Foundation in 1999 and assumed the role of research program manager in 2004. In that role, Cook planned, coordinated and implemented the Agricultural Division's research and demonstration efforts and managed the institution's 12,000 acres of farm and ranch resources. Cook holds a bachelor’s degree in animal health management from Sul Ross State University, a master’s degree in beef cattle production and a doctorate in beef cattle production and meat science, both from Texas A&M University.
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Michael C. Cremer, Global Director for Aquaculture, U.S. Soybean Export Council
Dr. Cremer has 42 years of experience in domestic and international fisheries and aquaculture in the United States, Asia, Latin America, Middle East, Europe and Africa. Currently Global Aquaculture Utilization Director for the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC), leading international marketing and research activities of the U.S. Soybean Industry to increase demand and consumption of U.S. soy products by the global aquaculture industry. These programs focus on research, development and demonstration of feed-based aquaculture technologies and the use of soy products in aquafeeds for freshwater and marine fish and shrimp. USSEC currently operates aquaculture research and international marketing activities in China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia, Myanmar, India, Turkey, Egypt, Greece, Spain, Mexico, Panama, Honduras, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, and the Caribbean. Dr. Cremer holds a Bachelor of Science in Marine Fisheries from Humboldt State University, a Masters Degree in Aquaculture and a PhD in Fisheries Economics from Auburn University.
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Disque D. Deane, Jr., CIO and Co-Founder, WAM; President, WPI
Mr. Deane has spent the past two decades in the water industry with a focus on water resources, infrastructure development and general water investing. Prior to co-founding Water Asset Management LLC, he founded and held senior management positions as the President of Layne Water Development & Storage (a joint venture with Layne Christensen Company: LAYN:NASD) and as Senior Vice President of Vidler Water Company (a subsidiary of Pico Holdings: PICO:NASD). In 2011, Mr. Deane joined the Board of Advisors of the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions at Duke University. Mr. Deane began his professional career with Lazard in Paris and London. Mr. Deane graduated from Duke University in 1982 and from I.N.S.E.A.D in 1985.
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Philippe de Laperouse, Managing Director, HighQuest Partners
Philippe de Lapérouse is Managing Director at HighQuest Partners. He has more than 20 years experience in senior leadership positions with global companies in the agro-industrial and value-added food chain as well as in private equity investing. Previously, as director of business development for Bunge North America Inc., he was responsible for the company’s efforts to expand its industrial operations into Mexico and the Caribbean Basin, biotech and e-commerce initiatives and public relations/corporate communications (before and after Bunge’s successful IPO in 2001). Mr. de Lapérouse is a director of Sodrugestvo, the largest independent soybean crusher in Europe with its head office and main production facility in the Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia. Mr. de Lapérouse received an MBA from The Darden School of Business at The University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia and a BA from Trinity College, in Hartford, Connecticut.
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Grahame Dixie, Agribusiness Unit Team Leader, Agriculture and Rural Development, World Bank
Grahame Dixie has over 30 years of experience as a practitioner in agricultural development, with a primary focus on the interface between the private sector and international aid. He has worked in over 70 countries and at various times worked for most of the major development agencies, some NGO's and directly with the private sector including private farmers, companies and investment institutions. During the last 5 years he has been the Senior Agribusiness Specialist at the World Bank, operating first in the South Asia region, and most recently has been appointed as the Agribusiness Unit Team Leader, within the central Agriculture and Rural Development Department.
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Dan Dougherty, Manager, Business Development, John Deere & Company
Dan Dougherty is a business development manager for John Deere’s Ag & Turf Division. In this role, Dan has responsibility for identifying emerging agriculture trends and leading cooperative industry projects focused on sustainably increasing global agriculture output. His team works closely with Deere’s product lines and marketing groups to develop integrated solutions that are aligned with industry efforts to feed, fuel, and clothe the world’s rapidly growing population. Dan’s professional career began at John Deere in 1999. He has held various positions in supply chain management, manufacturing, quality, and new product development. A native of Gate City, Virginia, Dan has an undergraduate degree from Virginia Tech and an MBA from the University of Tennessee.
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Paul Erickson, Senior Vice President & Managing Director, Agri-Access
Paul currently serves as Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Agri-Access and is responsible for managing the Agri-Access Business Unit. Presently, Paul is a member of the Senior Management Team. Prior to creating Agri-Access in 2003, he served as Vice President of Business Development. Prior to Agri-Access, Paul was the Director of Business Development in the U.S. and Canada for DuPont’s Biotechnology Business unit. He previously served as the National Sales Manager for DuPont Optimum Quality Grains. Paul has an AAS degree in Agribusiness Management from Des Moines Area Community College, a BS degree in Animal Science from Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. He continued his education pursuing an MBA at Iowa State University.
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David Fassnacht, Partner and Portfolio Manager, Global Agriculture, Wellington Management
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Benjamin Fishman, Managing Principal, Arlon Group
Benjamin Fishman is a Managing Principal of Arlon Group, the investment arm of Continental Grain Company. Mr. Fishman began his career at Continental Grain Company in 1998. Mr. Fishman left Continental Grain Company to co-found The Grow Network in 2000, which was sold to the McGraw-Hill Companies in 2004. In 2005, Mr. Fishman was a National Finalist for the White House Fellowship, and currently, Mr. Fishman is a Board Member of Excelline Food Products, LLC, Grandpoint Capital, Inc., and K-Mac Holdings Corp. Mr. Fishman received his Bachelor of Arts degree, Cum Laude, from Princeton University.
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Tomas Franzén, Chief Investment Strategist, AP Fonden 2
Tomas Franzén currently holds a position as Chief Investment Strategist and Executive Committee Member at the Second Swedish National Pension Fund – AP2, in Gothenburg. AP2 is one of four buffer-funds within the recently reformed Swedish national pay-as-you-go pension system. Tomas is responsible for issues related to Investment Policy and Strategic Asset Allocation. AP2 has USD 30 bn plus in assets under management invested in a broad-based global portfolio of public and private assets. Before joining AP2 in 2001, Tomas held positions as Chief Strategist at both Swedbank Markets and Den Norske Bank, and served as a senior economist at Svenska Handelsbanken in Stockholm. Tomas holds a B.A. in Economics from the University of Stockholm. He is also a holder of CEFA (Certified EFFAS Financial Analyst). Tomas is an Editorial Advisory Board member of the Journal of Pension Management at ICPM in Toronto and a member of the International Advisory Board of EdHec Risk Institute. He also serves as a Board member of KF Invest, Stockholm and is a member of the Investment Committee at The Foundation of Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg.
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Jamie Garrett, Managing Director, HighQuest Partners
Prior to joining HighQuest Partners, Garrett oversaw strategy, corporate development and merger and acquisition functions for Bunge Limited’s Food & Ingredients segment at the headquarters in White Plains, NY. In addition to her executive experience, Garrett also worked in Bunge’s Global Markets and Financial Risk Management departments. Before her years at Bunge, Garrett was a vice president at Louis Dreyfus Commodities in Wilton, Conn., where she was responsible for its agricultural financial risk management function. She also worked for Enron Corporation, working on business development in various capacities for its natural gas business and as a product manager for its energy consulting services business. Garrett received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Tufts University and earned her MBA from The Wharton School of Business, as well as a Masters of Art from the University of Pennsylvania. She is fluent in Portuguese and Spanish.
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Bill Goodbar, Managing Director, INTL Provident Group
Mr. Goodbar is currently employed as a Managing Director with INTL Provident Group USA, the investment banking division of INTL Trading, Inc. His primary focus is on providing investment banking services to companies involved in agribusiness. Mr. Goodbar’s career spans 26 years, with a 21-year focus in agribusiness. He joined INTL Provident Group USA in 2011, following 13 years with AgriCapital Corporation, and 7 years with Big Stone Partners. Mr. Goodbar holds a B.A. in economics, and an M.B.A. with an emphasis in finance, from the University of Colorado-Boulder.
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Alyssa Grikscheit, Partner, Sidley Austin
Alysssa A. Grikscheit, a partner in the New York office, has a diverse corporate practice that currently emphasizes complex transactions and alternative investment funds. Her experience also includes private equity and hedge funds, mergers and acquisitions, strategic alliances and restructurings. Ms. Grikscheit is fluent in Spanish and French and has extensive experience in international transactions, particularly those involving Latin America and other emerging markets such as China and India. In addition, Ms. Grikscheit represents sponsors of alternative investment funds in fund formation and other aspects of their operations, including distressed debt, energy, real estate opportunity, agribusiness, microfinance and emerging market funds. Ms. Grikscheit is ranked in Chambers Global, Chambers USA and Chambers Latin America. Ms. Grikscheit actively represents a nonprofit organization in establishing and capitalizing microfinance institutions in underserved emerging markets on a pro bono basis.
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Kirk Haney, Chief Executive Officer, SG Biofuels
Kirk Haney is president and CEO of SG Biofuels, Inc. (SGB), a bioenergy crop company using molecular breeding and biotechnology to produce elite hybrid seeds of Jatropha as a low-cost source for diesel, bio jet fuel and specialty chemicals. Prior to SGB, he held executive management positions for 3Com Corporation, ArrowPoint Communications, Cisco Systems and Green Millennium, Ltd. As founder and president of Green Millennium, Haney raised more than $100 million in private equity and successfully scaled the largest sustainable teak forestry project in the Americas. At ArrowPoint, Haney built and led an organization that grew revenue from $0 to an $80 million run-rate, critical for ArrowPoint's ability to go public in March of 2000 and Cisco's $5.9 billion acquisition. Haney holds an MBA from Pepperdine University and is fluent in Spanish and German.
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Eric Haskel, Managing Director, Perella Weinberg Partners
Mr. Haskel is a member of the firm's Agility platform, and leads the real return investment efforts. He is also the portfolio manager for the Agility Real Return Fund and manages the full relationship with Agility's private clients. Prior to joining Perella Weinberg Partners, Mr. Haskel was a Senior Partner and Head of Real Estate at Greycourt & Co. Prior to Greycourt, Mr. Haskel was a Portfolio Manager at Avalon Capital Group, a California-based family office where he oversaw the firm's alternative investments. Prior to Avalon, Mr. Haskel was the Director of financial planning for Newland Capital Advisors, a national CalPERS real estate advisor. Mr. Haskel earned a Bachelor of Science in Aeronautical Engineering from Arizona State University and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of San Diego.
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David Henderson, Managing Director, XPV Capital
David is the founder and Managing Director of XPV Capital Corporation, one of the largest venture and growth equity firms in the world solely dedicated to investing in high growth water companies. At XPV, David focuses on identifying and investing in companies capitalizing on the significant opportunities created by the ‘new water economy’ – a concept he developed. His experience includes negotiating partnerships with leading water multi-nationals, helping portfolio companies complete strategic acquisitions and advising governments and regulators on water technology adoption strategies. David is an Advisor to Imagine H2O, a member of the Water Environment Federation’s Global Water Strategies Council, and is one of the recipients of the 2009 Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 Award. He is past Chairman and Director of Advancing Canadian Entrepreneurship where he received the Global Champion and Distinguished Service Award. David is also a founding member of the National Angel Capital Organization.
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Judson Hill, Managing Director, NGP Global Adaptation Partners
Mr. Hill joined NGP in 2010 and serves as a Managing Director of the NGP funds. He is an industry leader in the water and environmental services sector. He has over 30 years of experience in both water and environmental service company operations as well as over a decade of private equity experience in the water industry. He leads NGP's efforts in sourcing, execution and monitoring of opportunities in the water and environmental services sectors. Prior to joining NGP, Mr. Hill was a Managing Partner with Summit Global Management, Inc. where he was responsible for all private equity investments in the water sector. From 1999 to 2008, he served as a Managing Director of Aqua International Partners and then The Halifax Group, both affiliates of the Texas Pacific Group. Mr. Hill received a Bachelor of Science in Biology / Chemistry in 1977 from Edinboro State University and a Bachelor and Masters of Science in Environmental Engineering in 1979 from the University of Pittsburgh. He serves as a Trustee of the Water Keeper Alliance.
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Andrew Hoffmann, Investment Solutions - Alternative Investments, PIMCO
Mr. Hoffmann is a senior vice president and product manager of alternatives within the Investment Solutions Group, based in the Newport Beach office. Prior to joining PIMCO in 2010, he was with the private equity funds group at Brookfield Asset Management, where he helped launch private equity offerings in real estate, infrastructure, and Brazilian farmland. Mr. Hoffmann was previously the portfolio manager for real assets at an ultra-high net worth investment firm in Palo Alto, California. He has also worked in investment banking in the power, utilities, energy, and infrastructure sectors with JP Morgan, Merrill Lynch and Salomon Brothers and has been based in New York, Hong Kong, Singapore, and London at various points in his career. He has 22 years of investment experience and holds a bachelor of science degree in economics and political science from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
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Joshua Hofheimer, Counsel, Sidley Austin
Joshua T. Hofheimer’s practice focuses on representing clients in agriculture, life sciences and information technology sectors. Notably, he represented Monsanto Company in the groundbreaking 2007 Yield and Stress Collaboration Agreement with BASF Plant Sciences LLC to develop high yield and stress tolerant transgenic plant products. From 2008-2010, Mr. Hofheimer was the CEO/Managing Director of Australia’s first publicly listed ag-biotech company, Hexima Limited (HXL:ASX). While at Hexima, Mr. Hofheimer led the company’s successful effort to forge a commercial path for its disease control platform, establishing relationships with Pioneer Hi-Bred, Monsanto, Bayer CropScience, and Australian research centers. Mr. Hofheimer also currently serves on the board of directors of the Australian Center for Plant Functional Genomics, advising on international commercial and strategic development.
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Simon Hopkins, Chief Executive Officer, Milltrust International Group
Simon Hopkins has been at the forefront of international finance and asset management for more than two decades. In December 2010, Mr Hopkins founded Milltrust International Group, a global investment group of leading industry professionals focusing exclusively on providing investment management expertise on both traditional and alternative investments across the Emerging Markets. After a decade in investment banking at UBS, HSBC and Nomura, Mr Hopkins founded Fortune Group, playing a pioneering role in the seeding of many new hedge funds. Fortune became one of the UK's preeminent investment advisory firms with a focus on pension funds, charities as well as a number of the world's leading family offices. The firm was successfully sold to UK-listed financial services group, Close Brothers, in 2006.
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Tim Hornibrook, Co-Head, Macquarie Agricultural Funds Management
Tim Hornibrook has worked for Macquarie for the past 7 years and has been focused on agribusiness initiatives for the past five. He is a member of the management committee of Macquarie Agricultural Funds Management (MAFM). MAFM encompasses over 3.2M hectares of land purchased, developed and managed by Macquarie for agribusiness investments across sheep and cattle production, dairy, horticulture, viticulture, forestry, grains and oilseeds. Mr. Hornibrook has been a member of the team responsible for the formulation of the Macquarie Pastoral Fund (MPF) and is Director of Macquarie Pastoral Services. His previous role with Macquarie was as Head, Macquarie Private Portfolio Management (MPPM), at the time of his departure overseeing $AU1.5bn in FUM. Prior to Macquarie, Mr. Hornibrook was responsible for the sales and marketing of BNP Paribas managed account business in Australia.
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Joe Hudson, Co-Founder & Managing Director, One Earth Capital
Joe Hudson is a Managing Director of One Earth Capital, a venture firm that specializes in Agriculture. He has more than 20 years of corporate and philanthropic experience in financial services, wireless technologies and environmental industries. He has advised companies in strategic visioning, operational efficiencies, funding, and growth opportunities. Joe has worked with companies such as Barclays Global Investors, Sprint, Wells Fargo Bank, Environmental Defense Fund and the Bureau of Reclamation. He has also worked with numerous Fortune 500 leadership teams, venture capitalists, and smaller entrepreneurial companies across six continents.
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Jens Henrik Staugaard Johansen, Managing Partner, Pensionskassernes Administration (PKA)
Jens Henrik Staugaard Johansen is the Managing Partner and CEO for PKA AIP, a newly established Danish fund manager, which manages the alternative fund investment mandate on behalf of the five pension funds associated with PKA A/S including allocations to private equity, infrastructure, timber, and agriculture funds. The current portfolio of USD ~2bn is invested across 76 funds and 50 managers, predominantly US and European mid market funds. Furthermore, USD 2bn is allocated for new commitments during 2012-2014 of which USD 600m is allocated to agriculture funds. Jens Henrik began his career during funds investments for Vaekstfonden and has since worked for The European Investment Fund and Bain & Company before joining PKA in 2010. He holds an MBA from INSEAD and a MS in Economics and Finance from the University of Copenhagen.
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Amaury Junior, Founding Partner & CIO, Vision Brazil Investments
Amaury holds a PhD from MIT in Engineering and Applied Mathematics and an MSc and BSc from PUC Rio. Prior to Vision Brazil Investments, his professional experience included senior positions at Capitania Asset & Risk Management, Bank of America Brazil, JP Morgan in Brazil and New York and Thinking Machines Corporation, a US supercomputer manufacturer, as well as several large US oil and gas companies. Amaury holds patents in the field of financial data visualization, and has published articles in international journals and financial magazines. He is also a member of the TCX Pricing Committee, a global partnership of international development finance institutions and commercial banks, led by the Dutch development bank FMO. Amaury currently serves as an officer of over 50 companies on behalf of investors, and holds seat in the Board of Directors of four companies.
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Bruce Kahn, Director, Senior Investment Analyst, Deutsche Asset Management
In his role as investment analyst, Bruce conducts and publishes white papers on key industry, policy and strategic topics, advises investment managers on sustainability based strategies, educates clients and develops new investment products across the asset management platform. Bruce joined the Company in 2008 with 20 years of experience in environmental research, most recently as it relates to investments. Bruce served in the US Peace Corps for four years as an agricultural extension agent in Cameroon, subsequently working on agribusiness projects across the globe. Bruce is a recipient of both a J. William Fulbright Scholarship and a National Science Foundation Fellowship in ecological economics. BA in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology from the University of Connecticut; MS in Fisheries and Allied Aquacultures from Auburn University; PhD in Land Resources from University of Wisconsin, Madison. Bruce currently serves as a Trustee and member of the Finance Committee of the Jesse Smith Noyes Foundation.
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Ejnar Knudsen, Portfolio Manager and Principal, Craton Capital Management
Ejnar is a portfolio manager and principal with Craton Capital, which he co-founded in 1998. Craton focuses on public and private investments in the food and agriculture industries. From 2009 thru 2011 Mr. Knudsen was co-portfolio manager of Passport Capital's Agriculture Fund. From 2001 to 2007 Ejnar served as Executive Vice President of Western Milling, a startup feed milling company that grew to over $800 million in sales. From 1991 to 2001 Ejnar served as Vice President for Rabobank in New York managing a loan portfolio, venture capital investments and corporate advisory services in the food, agriculture and commodities sectors. Ejnar received a BS from Cornell University and is a CFA charter holder. He is a member of the Farm Foundation, serves on the Dean's Advisory Council of Cornell's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and is on the board of directors for the California Ag Leadership Foundation and Materra, a special situations farming company.
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Shane R. Knutson, Director of International Sales, Ag Growth International (AGI)
Shane Knutson is the Director of International Sales for Ag Growth International (AGI), a leading manufacturer of grain handling, storage, conditioning, processing and filtration equipment. AGI owns and operates eleven manufacturing divisions with a total of 1300 employees and annual sales over $300 million USD. AGI’s marketing and distribution system includes more than 1,400 dealers and distributors in forty-eight states, nine provinces and more than 50 countries around the globe. AGI’s International Department includes engineering, product support and on-site management capable of assisting with both design and construction of turnkey storage facilities. Over the last 15 years, Shane has worked with farmers, dealers and distributors around the world to assist with modernizing and mechanizing their operations. He has spent more than 30 percent of this time traveling internationally to visit customers on location. Shane grew up on a family farm in Dauphin, Manitoba, Canada and holds both a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration (BBA) and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of North Dakota.
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Arama Kukutai, Managing Director, Finistere Ventures
Arama Kukutai joined Finistere Ventures in 2005 as a Managing Director focusing on Agricultural Innovation. Mr. Kukutai has had a successful career in sectors spanning agribusiness investing, corporate banking and international trade. Mr. Kukutai serves on the boards of Hawaii BioEnergy LLC, and Somark Innovations, Inc., and is a Board Observer with SG Biofuels. He has been actively involved in developing early stage technology networks for Agricultural technology through work with the USDA Commercialization program for SBIR grantee companies and as an initiator of the annual Ag Innovation Showcase in St Louis, MO. Mr. Kukutai is also active in advising on new Agricultural technology innovation in Australia and his native New Zealand. Finistere has been a pioneering venture fund in the Agriculture sector, with successful exits such as Athenix, Inc.
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Maria Lettini, Global Outreach Manager, United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI)
Maria joined PRI in September of 2011 as a Global Outreach Manager and is responsible for the recruitment of new PRI signatories worldwide. She has over 15 years of experience in business and finance. Maria spent eight years working in Institutional Equity Sales at J.P. Morgan and Deutsche Bank, based in both the U.S. and Europe. Subsequent to her experience in financial services, Maria decided to devote her attention to becoming an entrepreneur, and started a restaurant concept in Madrid, Spain, where she was both founder and manager, for four years. Maria has a MA in Environment, Politics and Globalization from King’s College London and a BA in International Business and Latin American Studies from San Diego State University.
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Joshua Levin, Senior Program Officer, Finance & Commodities, WWF
Joshua Levin is a Senior Program Officer at the World Wildlife Fund, specializing in finance and agricultural commodities. His work is in finance for international sustainable agriculture, and he is passionate about the potential for ecological agriculture as a transformational development approach. Joshua has worked in the past with Root Capital, the Rainforest Alliance, EcoAgriculture Partners, and Conservation International. He holds an MBA from the NYU Stern School of Business, where he was a Catherine B. Reynolds Fellow in Social Entrepreneurship, and a BA from Harvard University.
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Francisco Lobo de Vasconcellos, Investment Director, Agribusiness, Norfund
Francisco Lobo is an Investment Director Agribusiness at Norfund. He has been in several board positions representing Norfund and other funds in the Southern Region of Africa. He was responsible for setting up the first private equity fund for Angola, Fundo de Investimento Privado de Angola (FIPA). Prior to joining Norfund, Francisco was an Investment Manager at Aureos Capital with Aureos Southern Africa Fund (Southern Africa Regional Private Equity Fund), and an Investment Manager at Mozambique Capital Partners Limited (MCPL) that managed Mozambique Investment Fund (MINCO), a private equity fund for Mozambique.
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Prem Maan, Managing Director, Southern Pastures Management Limited
Prem Maan is a founder of Southern Pastures LP (SPLP), a specialist pure institutional fund investing in free-range pastoral dairy farms and associated investments in New Zealand. Mr. Maan is responsible for managing the overall portfolio, governance, risk management and portfolio construction. At a farm level he is focused on the benefits that pasture renewal and soil improvements deliver. Mr. Maan founded the Foundation Securities Group in 2004, the forerunner to Southern Pastures, and has held various senior positions in the investment banking industry with Citibank (Australia and New Zealand), Deutsche Bank (New Zealand), Credit Agricole (Hong Kong and Singapore) and Banque Indosuez (New Zealand). An economist by training, he has also worked for AMP, The Rural Bank of New Zealand, and agriculture focused Lincoln University.
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William Malarkey, Managing Director, Boenning & Scattergood?
Mr. Malarkey heads Boenning & Scattergood's investment banking activities in the rapidly expanding water and infrastructure sectors. With two decades of experience in international utilities and infrastructure markets, his experience in the areas of strategy development, mergers and acquisitions, and project finance has made him a valuable strategic advisor to the firm's privately held and publicly traded clients across various segments of the industry, including investor-owned water utilities, equipment and technology companies, water rights developers and water services providers. Prior to joining Boenning & Scattergood, Mr. Malarkey headed business development efforts for an affiliate of Wexford Capital LLC in the water and environmental sector. He also served as vice president of business development at American Water, the largest investor-owned water utility in the U.S. Prior to that, he held senior merger and acquisitions, and corporate development roles with the German utility groups RWE and E.ON. He also has worked as a management consultant and attorney in the utilities and infrastructure sectors. He earned his BS and JD degrees at Georgetown University, and holds an LL.M. degree from the University of Heidelberg in Germany. He holds the Series 7 and 63 licenses.
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Francesca McCann, Managing Director, Global Water Strategies
Ms. McCann is an accomplished global water analyst, and has been at the forefront of research, strategy and advisory work in the water sector for over a decade. In 2009, she founded Global Water Strategies, an investment, strategy and policy advisory firm focusing on corporate water strategy, water investments, water in agriculture, water reuse/recycling and the water-energy-food nexus. Prior to founding Global Water Strategies, Ms. McCann covered the water sector for Wall Street for seven years. Ms. McCann has been featured in print and on television and radio, including the New York Times, Business Week, Barron’s, Bloomberg, CNBC and NPR to discuss industry trends. Ms. McCann speaks four languages and has lived in Asia, Latin America, and Europe. Ms. McCann received her MBA from the UCLA Anderson School with a concentration in International Finance.
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Charlie McNairy, CEO & Managing Partner, International Farming Corporation
Charlie McNairy is the CEO of International Farming Corporation, an investment manager focused on the agricultural sector. Since 1871, the firm and its affiliates have expanded into activities throughout the agribusiness value chain, including financial services for farmers. The firm’s principals have farming experience in the Americas, Europe, and Africa and are among the leading experts in maximizing farmer productivity through the application of technology. Mr. McNairy began his career in Morgan Stanley’s New York City real estate division where he focused on real estate-oriented principal investments and REIT advisory work. Mr. McNairy was a Morehead Scholar, Phi Beta Kappa and Academic-All ACC at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he played basketball for Hall of Fame coach Dean Smith. Mr. McNairy received his MBA from Harvard University.
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Ronald Meeusen, PhD, Founding Partner, Cultivian Ventures
Ron has 30 years experience bringing new technologies and products to market. He has led R&D for major corporations in agricultural chemicals, field crop and vegetable genetics and breeding, animal health, novel foods and industrial materials. Ron has been a consultant to Federal and state policy on biotechnology regulatory issues, and active in industry trade groups on key issues such as European acceptance of new food technologies. Prior to forming Cultivian Ron spent two years as an executive-on-loan writing an economic development plan for the State of Indiana’s food and ag sectors. Ron holds a Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley in plant cell biology, and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee in plant physiology. Ron represents Cultivian on the Boards of Directors of Allylix, Aratana, and Rivertop Renewables.
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Jose Minaya, Managing Director, Head of Natural Resources and Infrastructure Investments, TIAA-CREF
Mr. Minaya's responsibilities include building and managing the Agriculture, Timber, Energy, and Infrastructure investment origination programs, and overseeing TIAA-CREF’s relationships with various investor and strategic partners. Most recently, he was Head of Natural Resources Portfolio Management where he was responsible for the organization’s agriculture and timberland portfolios. He joined the TIAA-CREF organization in 2004. Mr. Minaya has 17 years of investment experience including positions at AIG Global Investment Group where he was involved in emerging markets equity transactions and the investment banking group at Merrill Lynch where his responsibilities included mergers and acquisitions and private equity transactions. Mr. Minaya holds a B.S. in finance from Manhattan College, where he was a member of Omicron Delta Epsilon, an international economics honor society, and an MBA from Dartmouth College, Amos Tuck School of Business where he was a Robert Toigo Fellow.
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Ricardo Dell Aquila Mussa, Chief Executive Officer, RADAR (Brazil)
Mr. Mussa has a degree in production engineering from Escola Politécnica da Universidade de São Paulo in 1998. He has over ten years of agriculture experience and has held several positions in supply chain management at multinational companies such as Unilever and Danone, mainly in the agricultural commodities procurement area. He was national logistics manager for Danone in 2007 and manufacturing manager for Unilever's main cosmetics plant in Latin America from 2006 to 2007. He worked as global procurement officer for oils and fats at Unilever from 2003 to 2006 and was responsible for the acquisition of agricultural commodities in over 25 countries on four continents worth US$500 million a year. Att Unilever USA Mr. Mussa held positions in strategic procurement, strategic planning area and was responsible for the acquisition of chemical products for Latin America. Mr. Mussa joined RADAR at its inception in 2007 and was responsible for starting up the company. Since then, Mr. Mussa has lead the acquisition of more than 180 properties across the country totaling 210,000 acres.
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Adam Oliver, Partner, Brown & Co.
Adam Oliver is a Partner at Brown & Co and leads their Central and Eastern European practice. With 15 years experience of large scale ag in Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Hungary, Serbia, Romania and Bulgaria, Adam has developed the Partnership's investment consulting practice to include a range of Due Diligence and Valuation services. Working with institutional investors and private offices, advice is provided on diversified investment strategies followed by taking responsibility for execution and performance on the ground. Adam provides senior level strategic and operational advice to a number of large scale farming companies across the region and took part as a senior executive in the largest primary ag IPO to date. Adam holds a BSc in Agriculture from Wye College, London University.
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Devon Olson, Director, Real Estate, Utah State Retirement Systems
Devon Olson is the Director of the Utah Retirement Systems real estate portfolio. He is responsible for overseeing the acquisition, asset management, disposition and strategic planning of the portfolio. The Utah Retirement Systems is a $20 billion state pension fund, with real estate representing approximately 9% of the Systems’ total equity. The gross value of the real estate portfolio (before debt) is approximately $3.7 billion. He has more than thirty-seven years’ experience in real estate valuation, management, investment and financing, has written numerous articles for industry publications, and is currently an Adjunct Professor of Finance at Brigham Young University. Mr. Olson is a graduate of the University of Utah with B.S. degrees in both Finance and Manage¬ment. He graduated with an MBA from Westminster College in Salt Lake City, Utah, and holds the MAI designation from the Appraisal Institute.
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W. Dexter Paine, III, Partner, Paine + Partners
Mr. Paine is a founding Partner of Paine & Partners. Mr. Paine is a graduate of Williams College (B.A., Economics). He began his professional career at Bankers Trust Company in Los Angeles. In 1987, Mr. Paine joined Robertson Stephens & Company to establish a leveraged buyout group for the firm. In 1994, Mr. Paine joined Kohlberg & Company to establish and head the firm's West Coast office. In 1997, he co-founded the Predecessor Firm, Fox Paine & Company, where he served as president from its inception until 2008. Mr. Paine serves as a member of the Boards of Directors of WireCo World Group, Cevian Capital and SM Group and as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association. Mr. Paine is a former member of the International Board of Directors of Right to Play and past Chairman of the Board and Emeritus Trustee of Holderness School and the Nueva School.
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Joseph Pescatore, Head of Business Development, Financial Services Group, Bunge Global Agribusiness
Joseph Pescatore is Head of Business Development for the Financial Services Group at Bunge. From 2005 until 2010, he was Managing Partner of Mirasol Advisers, Inc. based in New York. At Mirasol, he led placement for several large private equity funds including $2.25B Energy Capital Partners, a Goldman Sachs partner-created new private equity firm. Mr. Pescatore is the architect and former Global Head of both UBS’ and Lehman Brothers’ Hedge Fund capital introductions groups. Previously he was Director of Global Business Development at the New York Mercantile Exchange, leading the development and launch of the world's first 24-hour electronic trading system for natural gas and crude oil futures and options. A graduate of Montclair State University and Fordham University, he has published several articles on hedge fund performance including the book, The Handbook of Alternative Investment Strategies, an Investor’s Guide.
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Gary Pike, Chief Executive Officer, Broadacre Agriculture
Gary’s mandate and prime focus is staying ahead of the rapid changes in agricultural practices and global economics. Gary is the driving force behind the development of proprietary economic verification software that shows producers accurate cost of production data and profitability. As well, he’s developed the AgCoach peer-to-peer mentoring system, and AgStream, the first company to offer an opportunity for external investment in primary agriculture. In addition, he’s been instrumental in launching one of the largest hail insurance agencies in western Canada, and a land management investor services unit. Gary holds a B.Sc. in Agriculture from the University of Alberta and has participated in the John Deere Global Ventures Group, Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association (Director), the Canadian Wheat Board Advisory Committee, and the Alberta Conservation Tillage Society (Director).
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Berry Polmann, Executive Director, Adveq
Berry Polmann leads Adveq's global real assets initiative. Prior to joining Adveq in 2007, Berry worked as a manager at PricewaterhouseCoopers where he served Switzerland based private equity funds, hedge funds, and real estate funds with audit, fund structuring, and tax related services. He was also a member of PricewaterhouseCoopers' European team for pan-European asset pooling for pension funds. Berry has a master's degree in economics and a bachelor's degree in government politics from the Erasmus University in Rotterdam.
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Sebastian Popik, Managing Partner, Aqua Capital Partners
Sebastian Popik is the founder and Managing Partner of Sao Paulo and Buenos Aires-based Aqua Capital Partners, a private equity buyout firm that manages a fund investing in companies operating in middle-market agribusiness and food. Mr. Popik has nearly a decade of agribusiness private equity investing experience including Aqua Capital and formerly as Managing Director of Pampa Capital, a $365 million South American agribusiness private equity fund. Previously, he consulted for Booz & Co in Latin America with a focus on agribusiness. Mr Popik is tri-lingual in English, Spanish and Portuguese and earned a Masters in Public Policy from Harvard University (Fulbright Scholar) and a BA in Economics from Universidad de San Andrés.
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Cherae Robinson, Director, Partnerships, CYMMIT
Cherae Robinson leads the Strategic Partnerships and Development team at CIMMYT, the international agriculture research institute that was once home to Nobel laureate Norman Borlaug. Her work focuses on engaging the private sector in CIMMYT’s work in order to build a sustainable, food secure future. Prior to joining CYMMIT, Cherae joined the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2006 where she trained microbiologists and epidemiologists in developing countries on foodborne disease outbreak response and co-chaired a WHO working group on DALY’s as a metric for measuring the burden of foodborne disease on various populations in the developing world. Prior to the CDC, she wrote policy briefs and articles examining best practices for the health and livelihoods of the world’s 50+ population for AARP’s Global Aging Program, before working on national campaigns, events and regional celebrity relations at CARE. Cherae holds a degree in biology from Morgan State University.
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Michael Rubino, Director, Aquaculture Office, National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Dr. Michael Rubino is the Director of the Aquaculture Office in Silver Spring, Maryland. He joined NOAA in late 2004 to lead NOAA’s renewed commitment to marine aquaculture. Dr. Rubino represents the Department of Commerce on the executive committee of the U.S. Joint Subcommittee on Aquaculture. Prior to joining NOAA, Dr. Rubino was the manager of New Funds Development for the World Bank's Carbon Finance Group. In the 1990s, Dr. Rubino was at the International Finance Corporation, a private sector affiliate of the World Bank, where he developed renewable energy and biodiversity investment funds. Earlier he was the CEO of an aquaculture R&D company and a partner in a shrimp farm in South Carolina. Dr. Rubino also served as vice-chairman of the State of Maryland's Aquaculture Advisory Committee. He holds a Ph.D. in Natural Resources from the University of Michigan.
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Dmitry Rylko, General Director, Institute for Agricultural Market Studies (IKAR)
Dmitry Rylko graduated with distinguished diploma from the Moscow State University, economic faculty. Post graduation of the Institute of World Economy and International Relations (IMEMO), Russian Academy of Sciences. From 1996 he is the Head of IMEMO Agribusiness Department. From 2001, he occupied the position of the General Director of the Institute for Agricultural Market Studies (IKAR). IKAR is the leading private domestic agbiz infocentric institution. Over his professional career, Dmitry has worked as consultant for World Bank, EBRD, FAO, TACIS, USAID and other foreign and international organizations in Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan.
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Kevin Schwartz, Partner, Paine + Partners
Mr. Schwartz is Partner at Paine & Partners and a member of the Investment Committee of the firm’s $1.2 billion Fund III. He joined the predecessor firm in 2002 and had responsibility for Fund II investments in Seminis, Inc., Advanta B.V. and VCST Industrial Products B.V. He was previously at Fremont Partners a private equity firm where he assisted with the management of approximately $1.7 billion of funds, and prior to that time was in the Investment Banking Division of Goldman, Sachs & Co. Mr. Schwartz has a B.S. in Accountancy from the University of Illinois.
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Angus Selby, Senior Principal (Agriculture), Canada Pension Plan Investment Board
Angus recently joined CPPIB to lead their Private Investing activities in Agriculture. Previously he was a Principal and Portfolio Manager (Agriculture Private Equity) with Altima Partners in London, and before that was a Vice-President at Morgan Stanley Commodities. These roles have involved an unusual depth and breadth of agribusiness experience across five continents. Angus is from a multi-generation farming family in Zimbabwe and Zambia, and retains a keen interest in Africa’s farming prospects and development in general. He was a Beit Scholar at Oxford, where he graduated with a DPhil and MPhil in International Development, and also holds a First Class BSc (Hons), in Agriculture from Wye College, London University.
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Desmond Sheehy, Chief Investment Officer, Duxton Asset Management
Desmond Sheehy (CIO) is the co-founder of Duxton Asset Management. Prior to joining Duxton, Desmond worked for DeAM Asia from July 2005-April 2009, where he was the Head of the Complex Asset Investments Team. Prior to joining DB, Desmond worked at the International Finance Corporation (IFC) as a Senior Investment Officer in both Washington DC and Hong Kong, where he was responsible for the origination, execution and supervision of investments throughout Asia, working on several innovative and successful deals across the region. Before joining IFC, Desmond spent nine years as an engineer working throughout Europe and Asia on large infrastructure projects. Desmond holds an MBA from INSEAD (1998) and a BE (1988) from UCC in Ireland.
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John Shmorhun, President, Harmelia Holdings
John Shmorhun is President of Harmelia Holdings and a former DuPont executive. He managed DuPont's agro businesses in Ukraine and Russia for more than 17 years and was in charge of operations in CIS countries for eight years. Between 2003-2008, Mr. Shmorhun was in charge of DuPont's agrochemical business. And prior to that he served as a naval pilot for 10 years. Mr. Shmorhun has served on many boards, including the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia, DuPont Khimprom CJSC, and DuPont Russian Coatings CJSC. Mr. Shmorhun holds an MBA from the International Management Institute in Geneva and a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the US Naval Academy.
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Jason Silm, Head of Agriculture Fund Management, VTB Capital
Jason Silm has over 20 years experience in agribusiness funds management, strategy development, operations and supply chain management in grains, oil seeds, forestry, almonds and dairy industries globally and within emerging markets. Jason is currently based in Moscow as Head of Agricultural Investments for VTB Capital, Russia’s largest investment bank. Prior to this role Jason was the Global Operations Manager - Agribusiness for Macquarie Agricultural Funds Management. In this role Jason has had overall asset management and operations responsibility for assets and commitments with a NAV in excess of US $1.2b across food supply chain assets in Australia, Brazil and China. Jason holds a B.S. degree from Charles Sturt University.
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Dave Smardon, Managing Partner, Bioenterprise Capital
A seasoned executive, Mr. Smardon has a track record of transforming innovative technologies into businesses that compete successfully on the world stage. After founding Learning Connections and Commcorp Technologies Inc., he switched his focus to venture capital and investment activities, establishing and growing the Nibiru group of companies. Mr. Smardon has also held a variety of senior-level positions within leading companies, including Apple Computer Inc., where he headed up the Canadian arm of Apple's venture capital group, delivering returns on investment of 43 percent. As CEO of Bioenterprise Corporation, Canada's leading accelerator for agriculture- and biotech-based business, he has helped hundreds of entrepreneurs grow and expand their operations. Mr. Smardon acts as an advisor to a number of government funding programs, volunteers for several industry associations and serves as an active board member of more than a half-dozen companies.
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Hunt Stookey, Director, Agricultural Investments, AEW Capital Management
Hunt Stookey is a Director of AEW Capital Management and leads AEW Agriculture, with responsibility for investment origination and asset management. Prior to joining AEW, Mr. Stookey was a Managing Director with HighQuest Partners where he worked with operating companies globally across the agricultural value chain, and developed the firm's investment consulting practice. In this capacity, he advised both leading investment managers and large institutional investors with respect to agricultural investments worldwide. Mr. Stookey is considered one of the leading experts globally on diverse agricultural investment strategies. He is a graduate of Trinity College and holds an MBA from the Yale School of Management.
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Alison Sunstrum, Co-CEO, GrowSafe Systems
Alison Sunstrum shares CEO responsibilities with the Founder of GrowSafe Systems Ltd. GrowSafe develops novel technology that maximizes profitability, ensures animal health and welfare and does so in sustainable ways. A majority shareholder, she is the bean counter in a company of geeks and nerds. Alison developed one of the first prototype electronic data interchange programs for a Canadian railway. She holds US Canadian and Australian patents for innovative technology. She has published several articles on strategic alliances enabled by Electronic Data Interchange and change in the cattle industry. Today, Alison will share the GrowSafe philosophy that disruptive innovation deployed across all segments of agriculture is key to feeding a growing world.
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Thor A Talseth, Head of Seafood – Corporate Finance, Arctic Securities ASAM
Mr. Talseth is heading the seafood team at Arctic Securities, a leading investment bank in Norway with a special focus on the international seafood sector. Mr. Talseth has spent the majority of his professional carrier in the global seafood and marine biotechnology industry as executive chairman, CEO and in other leading positions. In 2006 Mr. Talseth joined Landsbanki as country manager, Norway and head of global aquaculture, corporate banking. Mr. Talseth has a B.Sc. from Trondheim Business School and programs from M.Sc. in Management of Norwegian School of Management. The Arctic seafood team has long and complementary experience from the seafood industry, understands its nature and has lately co-organized Seafood Investment Forums in Hong Kong and New York.
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Craig Tashjian, Principal & Founding Partner, AMERRA Capital
Prior to founding AMERRA Capital, Craig was employed by Societe Generale from 1997-2008 in a number of different capacities, the last of which was as the Head of the Natural Resources business line in the Americas. Upon joining SG in 1997, Craig led the green-field development of Societe Generale's NY-based Commodities & Trade Finance Group, creating one of the leading market players as exemplified by their top league table rankings. Craig specializes in executing innovative and comprehensive commodity financing transactions. Prior to joining the Commodities Group at SG, Craig was the Global Head of Commodity Finance at Standard Chartered Bank. Craig holds an MBA from Rutgers University and a B.S. in Finance and Accounting from Lehigh University, along with Series 7, 24 and 63 securities licenses.
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Warren Taylor, Agribusiness Director, Greenfield Capital Advisors
Warren Taylor is the Managing Director and a co-founder of Greenfield. Greenfield is New Zealand’s leading investment manager specializing in the management of agricultural assets for professional and institutional investors. Warren has over twenty years practical experience in agricultural consultancy, ownership and management across some of New Zealand’s largest and most profitable agriculture sector operations. As Managing Director he sits on the Greenfield Investment Committee and is responsible for directing innovative modern farming techniques with a focus on environmentally and economically sustainable annual profitability. Prior to establishing Greenfield, Warren was an independent agricultural consultant.
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Marshall Thomas, President, F&W; Director, Farm & Forestry Management Services
Marshall received a BS degree in forest management from the University of Florida in 1978 and received his MBA from Georgia Southern University in 1988. He began work with F&W Forestry Services in April of 1978 and served as a financial analyst, inventory forester, and as manager of the Savannah and Statesboro, Georgia regional offices. Under his leadership F&W has become one of the largest forest management and consulting firms in the United States, managing over 700,000 hectares with operations in 15 states. In 1988, Marshall became president of F&W. Marshall began exploring business opportunities in the Southern Cone in 1996, and began operations there through the partnership with Romero in 2004. Marshall has served as President of the Georgia Forestry Association, and continues to serve as a board member.
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Peter Thomson, Deputy CEO, Ukrainian Agrarian Investments
Peter Thomson is a farmer from Fife, Scotland. He is a minority shareholder in Ukrainian Agrarian Investments and member of the board of directors. He has served UAI since early in the company’s inception in 2006, running the agricultural operations. He is responsible for most of the farm and elevator CapEx, overviews the production, land and technology aspects of the business, spending as much time as possible with farm managers on the group’s 60 farms around Ukraine, where quality of work is essential to the company’s success. Peter has been working in the Ukrainian agriculture industry since 1993 and, prior to joining UAI in April 2006, was head of Russian and Ukrainian operations at AGCO Corporation for 8 years, where he lead the local teams that built AGCO’s successful farm equipment distribution network. He has served on the board of the American Chamber of Commerce, and led the Chamber’s Agricultural Committee for ten years 1998 – 2008. Peter has authored several articles on agriculture in Ukraine and two management handbooks written for Ukrainian farmers. Peter has an HND in Agriculture from Edinburgh University. He is fluent in Ukrainian and Russian.
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David Tze, Managing Director, Oceanis, Aquacopia
David Tze is a co-founder of Oceanis, the global private equity firm focused exclusively on the aquatic resources sector. Oceanis primarily invests growth equity in the full length of the seafood value chain. In 2004, Tze co-founded Aquacopia, the first and only aquaculture venture capital fund. He has served on the boards of Futuna, Oberon, Open Blue, Ocean Farm Technologies, Litchfield Farms, and The Ocean Stewards Institute. Previously, David was on the entrepreneur's side of the table at several technology companies, starting around the dawn of the commercial Internet. He has an A.B. in economics from Princeton.
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Paul Ulanch, Director, Biotechnology Crops Development, North Carolina Biotechnology Center
Paul Ulanch, Ph.D., M.B.A., joined the Biotechnology Center’s AgBiotech Group as Biotechnology Crops Development Director in October of 2011.? ?Ulanch, director of Technology Commercialization Services with the North Carolina Small Business and Technology Development Center (SBTDC) since 2008, also held faculty and administrative responsibilities for several years with the Department of Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.? ?Ulanch’s expertise spans both animal and crop biotechnology systems.? ?As an independent consultant for the University of North Carolina System, the Biotechnology Center and other economic development organizations, Ulanch conducted a study to inventory the state’s marine science technology and evaluate its commercial potential. The process led the Biotechnology Center to fund the 2011 establishment of a Center of Innovation in Marine Biotechnology.? ?Ulanch received a Bachelor of Science degree in biology from Michigan Technological University and a Ph.D. in biochemistry from Texas A&M. He also earned an executive M.B.A. from the Katz Graduate School of Business at the University of Pittsburgh.
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Antonio ValleNeto, US/Canada Manager, Bunge Environmental Markets
Antonio ValleNeto, US/ Canada Manager of Bunge Environmental Markets has 5 years experience in environmental markets, prior to that he worked 15 years in the custom engineered equipment industry, mainly for the US coal and Brazilian ethanol industries. Antonio is from Sao Paulo/Brazil where he got his engineering and MBA degrees, both from Sao Paulo University (USP).
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Heinrich von Pezold, Director, Rift Valley Holdings
Heinrich von Pezold was born and brought up in Austria. After attending university in London and Oxford he moved to Zimbabwe in 1998 from where he manages his family's investments in Africa, primarily as Executive Director of Rift Valley Holdings Limited, a joint venture vehicle between his family and Hoegh Capital Partners. Rift Valley is currently merging with the family's other assets in the region forming one of Sub Sahara's largest integrated agri businesses with operations in Mozambique Tanzania and Zimbabwe. In 2012 the group will have sales in excess of $ 200m. Heinrich is married and and has two children and lives on their family farm North of Harare.
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Bradley Wheaton, Agricultural Product Specialist, Associate Director, Macquarie Agricultural Funds Management (MAFM)
Bradley Wheaton has over 15 years experience in agriculture, including five years of corporate directorship experience in the agribusiness industry in Australia. Bradley has joined the MAFM team as a Product Specialist for the Americas and is a director of Macquarie Crop Partners GP LLC. Bradley’s experience is broad having been involved in developing agricultural and renewable energy investments in Australia, Africa, South America and the Middle East. He has advised on agriculture policy to government and agriculture industry groups in Australia. Brad also has a solid grounding in agricultural operations management with experience with large-scale production, processing and marketing of agricultural products. He has a Masters of Commerce (Economics) with from the Universities of NSW (Aust.) and Copenhagen (Denmark), a Masters in International Studies and a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture from the University of Sydney (Aust.).
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Geoffrey White, Director & Chief Executive Officer, Lonrho Plc
Geoffrey White holds a BSc in Economics and Management Science and joined the Board of Lonrho Plc on 5 October 2007, having been Chief Operating Officer from 1 May 2007. During his career he has held senior management roles with Thomas Wiling Plc, BTR Plc, Dee Corporation Plc, Asda Plc and laterally worked for five years for a private investment firm based in London. He has been responsible for the planning, financing, development and management, of a range of projects in the hotel, industrial, natural resources and agriculture sectors.
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Stephen Williams, Senior Researcher, Mercer
Stephen Williams is a senior member of the Manager Research group at Mercer, the global services firm offering consulting, outsourcing and investments advice. Mr. Williams is the lead researcher on commodities and macro trading strategies within the alternative investments group. He was previously portfolio manager for three funds and the lead researcher on natural resources at Harcourt, an asset management group based in Switzerland. Prior to this he was a trader of electricity and natural gas for RWE, a global utility, and at Aquila, a merchant energy company. Mr. Williams holds an MA from Edinburgh University and is a CFA Institute charter holder.
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Oliver Williams, CFA, President, Hancock Agricultural Investment Group
Mr. Williams is President of the Hancock Agricultural Investment Group. He directs the institutional farmland investment program and serves on the Investment Committee of the Hancock Natural Resource Group (HNRG). Previously, Mr. Williams coordinated asset management activities and was part of the senior management team. Prior to joining HAIG in 1997, he spent 5 years with the First Pioneer Farm Credit, ACA, one of the largest farm credit associations in the country. At Farm Credit, he was responsible for evaluating and appraising farmland and farm businesses for potential loans. He also managed a farm loan portfolio, which included both row and permanent cropland. He is a member of the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers, the Association for Investment Management and Research and the Boston Security Analysts Society. He has a BS in Agricultural Economics, with a concentration in finance, from Cornell University.
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William Wilson, Professor of Agribusiness & Economics, North Dakota State University
Dr. William W. Wilson received his PhD in Agricultural Economics from the University of Manitoba in 1980. Since then he has been a Professor at North Dakota State University in Agribusiness and Applied Economics with periodic sabbaticals at Stanford University. Recently, he was named as a University Distinguished Professor at NDSU. His focus is risk and strategy as applied to agriculture and agribusiness with a particular focus on marketing, procurement, logistics and international competition. He is currently one of the lead faculty at NDSU in formulating/analyzing strategies for collaboration on GM wheat. He regularly advises a number of large agribusiness firms, railroads, and several major food and beverage companies and/or governments in other countries. He currently serves as a Board Member of several regional firms, and was recognized as one of the top 10 agricultural economists in 1995.
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Mark Zenuk, Managing Director, NGP Global Adaptation Partners
Mr. Zenuk is a Managing Director for NGP GAP. Prior to joining NGP in 2010, he served in many roles with Archer Daniels Midland Company (NYSE: ADM), most recently serving as President of Global Oilseeds, the largest Global Business Unit at ADM, comprising over $24 billion in sales and operating profit of $1.3 billion. These divisions employed 8,600 people, had 116 inland terminals, and 112 oilseed, crushing, refining, and industrial facilities. From 2005 to 2007, Mr. Zenuk was Managing Director for Europe and Asia. In 2005, Mr. Zenuk was elected a corporate vice president of ADM. From 2003 to 2005, he served as Senior VP for ADM’s North American & European Oils & Fats division. Prior to joining ADM, he served as General Manager (Commodity Marketing Group) for the Saskatchewan Wheat Pool and Marketing Manager for the Canadian Wheat Board. Mr. Zenuk received a B.S. from the University of Saskatchewan in Agricultural Economics in 1990.
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