Conference Speakers

Aaron Krueger is a fourth-generation farmer in the southwest corner of Owensville, Indiana, where he manages 870 acres of corn, soybeans and soft red winter wheat with his grandfather. His conservation practices have created…

Ducks Unlimited CEO Adam Putnam is a hunter, angler, and lifelong advocate for conservation and agriculture. In the past year, Ducks Unlimited reached a tremendous milestone – more than 15 million acres conserved across…

Adam York is the Director of Sustainability with National Sorghum Producers and the United Sorghum Checkoff Program. He is responsible for developing and leading the U.S. Sorghum Industry’s sustainability initiatives and continually assessing opportunities…

As President & Chief Executive Officer of Certis Biologicals, the world’s leading full-line biological-based agricultural inputs company, Amy leads a global team of manufacturing, distribution, marketing, sales and field development professionals for this division…

Amy is a senior program officer leading the foundation’s Mississippi River initiative, which seeks to support healthy soils, clean water and a restored and resilient Mississippi River system. Before joining the foundation, Amy was…

Andrew Jordan is owner of Jordan Associates whose business purpose is to aid agricultural organizations in meeting customer expectations for responsibly grown products. Most recently Jordan was on the grant writing team of the…

As ESMC’s Policy Director, Andrew develops the consortium’s strategic national policy plan to support and align with ESMC’s mission, vision, and national program buildout. Andrew has over a decade of experience in the nation’s…

Ashley M. Stokes, who previously served as associate vice president for engagement and extension and deputy director of extension at Colorado State University, has been in her new role as the leader of UT…

As Portfolio Leader, Carbon and Ecosystems Services Portfolio at Corteva Agriscience, Ben Gordon is responsible for developing holistic solutions to reward farmers for sustainable outcomes and drive farm profitability. Prior to this leadership role,…

Billy Gascoigne is the Director of Agricultural Sustainability & Strategic Partnerships for Ducks Unlimited (DU).  In that role, Billy helps crosswalk DU’s on-the-ground conservation capacity with industry partners and their respective sustainability objectives. Billy leads…

Bradford Warner is vice president of sales and business development for Farmobile — AGI’s (Ag Growth International’s) field and fleet data collection technology. With more than two decades of diverse experience in both industry…

Bruce Knight is a nationally recognized expert on conservation, agriculture and the environment. With a long track record of bringing strategic workable solutions to complex and controversial issues, he understands the workings of farm…

Carlos Suarez is California State Conservationist and has worked for USDA-NRCS for 28 years. He has also been State Conservationist in Florida, Deputy State Conservationist in Nebraska and California, Assistant State Conservationist for Field…

Chad Ellis is the Chief Executive Officer for Texas Agricultural Land Trust (TALT) and the founding chair of Trust In Beef. He brings a wealth of land conservation experience, most recently in his work…

Chaz Holt is a seventh-generation farmer from northern Georgia who is the precision agriculture and conservation specialist in the Southeast for the Quail Forever and Cotton Inc. partnership. He is married and raising his…

Christopher Adams is partner at Adams Family Farm in Grand Forks, ND., where he grew up. Following high school, he earned a Biology pre-health degree from the University of North Dakota. Upon graduation Christopher…

Cristian Barcan is vice president and rural sustainability officer for Rabo AgriFinance. In his role at Rabobank, Cristian leads the rural sustainability and Carbon Bank efforts across the region and works closely with the…

Darren is Director of Carbon & Sustainability for Trimble Agriculture Enterprise Solutions. He grew up on a mixed cattle and grain farm in Southern Alberta, Canada. As an agronomist and business manager he has…

Dr. LaKisha Odom joined the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) in 2016 as a scientific program director to pursue her commitment to promoting the use of innovative science and interdisciplinary thinking to…

Dr. Leah Windsor is an Associate Professor in the Applied Linguistics group in the Department of English and the Institute for Intelligent Systems at The University of Memphis. She also has Faculty Affiliate status…

Sara is the Chief Sustainability Officer at Elanco, where she provides technical expertise on sustainability issues to customers and supports Elanco’s Healthy Purpose. Prior to Elanco, she was the senior director for sustainable beef…

Gary Adams is the National Cotton Council’s president and chief executive officer. In that role, he helps guide the industry’s seven segments to reach consensus on critical policies affecting U.S. cotton, with the mission…

Greg is currently in his 31st year at Grande Cheese Company, Dairy Road, Fond du lac, Wisconsin as the Vice President of Milk Marketing and Supply Chain. Within his current role, Greg is responsible…

Hansel New is Director of Sustainability at Dairy Farmers of America, a farmer-owned cooperative and one the world’s leading dairy food companies. In this role he leads sustainability programs across the co-op and helps…

Jay Vroom chairs the America’s Conservation Ag Movement Board of Advisers, guiding the largest public-private conservation partnership in American agriculture. Jay is a long-trusted voice in agribusiness, having served 30 years as CEO of…

Jim Winn is a lifelong dairy farmer and co-owns Cottonwood Dairy with two other partners. He was a founding member of Edge, has served on its board of directors since inception and now serves…

John represents AFT externally and works to establish strategic partnerships that advance mission goals. Before joining AFT, John served as CEO of the National Association of Conservation Districts, executive director of the Washington Association of Conservation Districts,…

Dr. Justin Ransom is the Senior Director of Sustainable Food Strategy at Tyson Foods. He works with subject matter experts, business leaders and external partners to develop and implement sustainability strategies that will have…

Keith Mears is a 5th generation farmer who grows 310 acres of corn, soybeans, and wheat near Delphi, IN with his wife, Kristen, and three children ages seven, four, and one.  After growing up…

As senior vice president of sustainability for Dairy Farmers of America, Kevin is responsible for steering DFA’s sustainability activities and evolving the Cooperative’s environmental, social and governance efforts. Prior to joining DFA, Kevin worked…