Brandon R. McFadden is a Professor and the Tyson Chair in Food Policy Economics in the Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness at the University of Arkansas. He uses experimental economic methods to study food choices and shed light on consumer perceptions about agricultural production methods, and behavioral economic concepts to understand how consumer perceptions and food choices are formed. His work has been published in disciplinary journals like Food Policy, Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, Food Quality and Preference, and the American Journal of Agricultural Economics. He also publishes work in multidisciplinary journals like Trends in Biotechnology, The FASEB Journal, and Biotechnology Journal

Dr. Ecuru is an interdisciplinary scientist and researcher. He works on issues related to technological innovation and industrial competitiveness in Africa. His focus is on the theory and practice of sectoral and regional innovation systems, innovative clusters and innovation policies (especially in health, agriculture and environment) that foster sustainable development. Dr. Ecuru also contributes to scholarly works in the chemical and bioengineering sciences and supports regulatory science and research ethics capacity development. His current research interests include interactive learning models, which make universities, firms, and related organizations more productive and catalytic mechanisms for innovation, growth, and social development. He served as Assistant Executive Secretary of the Uganda National Council for Science and Technology in charge of research development and innovation prior to joining icipe as head of BioInnovate Africa. He received his B.Sc (Chemistry) Honors and M.Sc in Environmental Science from Makerere University, Kampala, and a Ph.D. in Technology/Technoscience Studies (Innovation and Development) from the Blekinge Institute of Technology, Sweden. Dr. Ecuru is also a Fogarty Bioethics Fellow having received a postgraduate diploma in International Research Ethics from the University of Cape Town, South Africa.

LouAnn Burnett, MS, CBSP (ABSA) has been a member of the Global Chemical and Biological Security Program at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA for twelve years. She spent 17 years as a university biosafety program manager (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Vanderbilt University). LouAnn’s work at Sandia focuses on strengthen biorisk management systems and building human capacity to support biorisk-informed decision-making. LouAnn holds an M.S. in Biology and is a Certified Biological Safety Professional. LouAnn is the immediate Past President of ABSA International (formerly the American Biological safety Association) where she also served as President in 2012 and in 2022 and received the ABSA Everett Hanel, Jr. Presidential award in 2003. She has authored numerous papers on biosafety, biosecurity, biorisk management training, and biosafety program management. In 2012, LouAnn was selected as an Outstanding Women at Sandia and was recently honored with a Sandia Employee Recognition Award for her work in mentoring trainers.

Dr. Joe Smith has over 35 years of experience in diverse public and private sector roles involving scientific research, services, and regulation. He was Australia’s Gene Technology Regulator, the Australian Government statutory office holder responsible for leading the national regulatory system for gene technology. Joe has extensive experience in various senior regulatory science roles, including as Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority following various other senior roles within the APVMA, Director of the Therapeutic Goods Administration Laboratories, and as Australian Government Analyst, where he provided scientific leadership to the then network of Australian Government Analytical Laboratories. He was actively engaged in international standards-setting and harmonization activities through forums such as the OECD and FAO/WHO, and in building cooperation and assisting capacity development with counterparts in other countries. Joe is currently President of the International Society for Biosafety Research and Chair of the Agricultural Biotechnology Council of Australia and provides strategic advice to government agencies and other organizations regarding the regulation of science and technology. He has a strong commitment to regulation that is based on sound science and realistic assessment of risk. He has a Ph.D. and BSc (Hons), is a Fellow of the Royal Australian Chemical Institute, and a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.