Advisory Councils

Our rigorous scientific review process includes External Peer Reviewers and Advisory Councils Reviewers to ensure we fund bold science addressing big challenges.

Each Challenge Area has an Advisory Council, comprised of scientists, farmers and industry experts. Council members review research applications and offer recommendations based on a proposal’s merit, alignment with our priorities, potential impact and the Challenge Area’s portfolio balance. The Councils also advise staff on program development, implementation and potential partnerships.

Council members are selected from a competitive pool of applicants nominated through an open solicitation. Each council member serves two- or three-year terms. The Councils meet virtually three times a year. Some Advisory Councils appoint a chair; the names of the Council Chairs are bolded in the list below.

Learn more about our review process

Soil Health Advisory Council Members

Maria Bowman, USDA ARS

Chad Ellis, Texas Ag Land Trust

Jeff Goodwin, Texas A&M University

Britt Lundgren, Stonyfield Farm Inc.

Bianca Moebius Clune, American Farmland Trust

Steven Rosenzweig, General Mills

Michael Vance, Stark Ranch

Michelle Wander, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Raymon Shange, Tuskegee University

Jason de Koff, Tennessee State University

Hannah Smith-Brubaker, Pasa Sustainable Agriculture

T.J. Wilson, USDA

Tunsisa Hurisso, Lincoln University

Ryan Smith, Danone North America

Sustainable Water Management Advisory Council Members

Bill Alley, National Ground Water Association

John Farner, Babbitt Center for Land and Water Policy

L. Jason Krutz, Mississippi State University

John Pierson, Georgia Tech Research Institute

Jim Eckberg, General Mills

Stephen Smith, Wade Water LLC

Daniel Sonke, Blue Diamond Growers

Next Generation Crops Advisory Council Members

Gregory Goins, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University

Evy Jaconis, Cotton Incorporated

Jim Kirkwood, Independent

Jeff Lakner, Independent

Philip Pardey, University of Minnesota

Adrian Percy, NC State University

Katy Rainey, Purdue University

Amber Sciligo, The Organic Center

Advanced Animal Systems Advisory Council Members

Lisa Becton, National Pork Board

Barry Bradford, Michigan State University

Brooke Humphrey, Phibro Animal Health

Gary McMurray, Georgia Institute of Technology

Don Ritter, Mountaire Farms

Hongwei Xin, University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture

Joao Costa, University of Kentucky

Raghavendra Amachawadi, Kansas State University

Debbie Bouchard, University of Maine

Candace Croney, Purdue University

Urban Food Systems Advisory Council Members

Luis Bettencourt, Mansueto Institute for Urban Innovation, University of Chicago

Kate Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald-Canepa, LLC

Mike Hamm, Michigan State University

Andrew Harig, Food Marketing Institute

Dean Kopsell, University of Florida

Erin McDonald, New York City Mayor’s Office

Ronda Rutledge, Sustainable Food Center

Gary Stutte, SyNRGE

Ashley Zanolli , Oregon Department of Environmental Quality ReFED: Rethink Food Waste

Health-Agriculture Nexus Advisory Council Members

Ann Beaulieu, AgroFresh

Kitty Cardwell, National Institute of Microbial Forensics & Food and Agricultural Biosecurity, Oklahoma State University; Advisory Council Chair

Katy Franklin, ReFED

Emily Engelhard, Feeding America

Rosetta Newsome, Consultant

Veronica Oates, Tennessee State University

Brian Roe, Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Development Economics, College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, The Ohio State University

AgMission Advisory Council Members

Dorn Cox, Wolfe’s Neck Center for Agriculture & the Environment

Rob Trice, The Mixing Bowl

John Reilly, MIT

Ranveer Chandra, Microsoft Azure Global

Jim Krogmeier, Purdue University

Jane Zelikova, Colorado State University, Soil Carbon Solutions Center

Stephen Wood, The Nature Conservancy

Andy Knepp, Corteva Agriscience

John Mesko, Potato Sustainability Alliance

Lauren Brey, Edge Dairy Cooperative

Sara Place, Colorado State University

A.G. Kawamura, Orange County Produce LLC