Plantae Presents: Healthy Supervision in Plant Sciences
Plantae Presents: Healthy Supervision in Plant Sciences
Featuring Vinay Shukla and Paolo Maria Triozzi
When: Tuesday, August 25, 2026, at
9:00 AM PDT | 12:00 PM EDT | 5:00 PM BST | 12:00 AM Beijing
About this Webinar
Supervision is an important part of research and training in plant science, shaping not only scientific progress but also the experiences and development of students, postdocs, and research teams. As research environments continue to evolve, many supervisors are exploring new approaches to mentorship, communication, expectations, and lab culture.
In this webinar, invited plant scientists will share perspectives and experiences from their own supervisory journeys, reflecting on lessons learned throughout different career stages and research settings. The discussion will explore approaches to creating supportive and productive research environments, mentoring diverse trainees, navigating expectations, and balancing the many roles involved in leading a research group.
Hosted by the 2026 Plantae Fellows.
SPEAKERS
Chien Van Ha
Dr. Chien Ha is a Research Assistant Professor and a member of the Scientific Leadership Team at the Institute of Genomics for Crop Abiotic Stress Tolerance (IGCAST) at Texas Tech University. Dr. Ha is also the President and Co-Founder of Vimex Genomics LLC. Dr. Chien Van Ha earned his Ph.D. in Plant Biotechnology and has more than 17 years of research expertise in plant molecular biology, biotechnology, physiology, chemical application, plant signaling, and crop development. He has worked in internationally recognized research institutes in Japan and the U.S. Dr. Ha has a strong interest in developing stress-resilient crops using innovative techniques. During his professional career, Dr. Ha has published more than 50 papers in relevant research fields. In addition, Dr. Ha is an inventor on several patents filed through RIKEN in Japan and Texas Tech University in the U.S.
Johannes Kromdijk
Growing up in an area of The Netherlands with an abundance of glasshouses, Johannes became interested in plants at an early age. He obtained his BSc and MSc in Plant Sciences at Wageningen University (NL). In 2007 he was awarded the Alexander James Keith PhD studentship to work with Prof. Howard Griffiths at the University of Cambridge (UK), where he studied the effects of light limitation on the efficiency of the carbon concentrating mechanism in C4 photosynthesis. Following postdoctoral stints at WUR Greenhouse horticulture and University of Illinois, Johannes returned to Cambridge in 2018 as a research group leader, and currently is leading the Environmental Plant Physiology group at the Department of Plant Sciences and a fellow at Pembroke College. Johannes is a UKRI Future Leaders Fellow and recipient of the SEB President’s medal in 2020. His research group employs a range of techniques from ecophysiology, mathematical modelling, biotechnology and genetic engineering to study plant physiology at the nexus of basic understanding of plant function and applications to improve sustainability and food security.
Charles Anderson
Dr. Charles T. Anderson is a Professor and Associate Head for Research and Faculty Success in Biology at Penn State University. He completed undergraduate studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. After completing a PhD in Cell and Molecular Biology at Stanford University, he became interested in using cell biology to support environmental sustainability. As a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California Berkeley, he analyzed cell wall expansion in plants. His research group at Penn State investigates the dynamics of plant cell walls to inform the sustainable production of energy, food, and biomaterials from plants. They explore how cell wall components and their interactions underpin the properties and behaviors of plant cells and tissues. Dr. Anderson also chairs the Plant Biology graduate program and is the theme lead for Climate and Natural Systems in the Institute for Energy and the Environment.
MODERATORS
Fengoula Avgeri
Fengoula is a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics at Umeå University. Her fascination with nature sparked an interest in biology, leading her to pursue an MSc in Systems Biology followed by a PhD in Plant Molecular Biology in the Department of Biotechnology at the Agricultural University of Athens. During her doctoral research, she investigated protein quality control mechanisms in plant model systems. This field continues to captivate her and remains the central focus of her research.
Fatai Ayomide Akande
Fatai is a research assistant in the Maize Genomics team at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture Headquarters in Nigeria, specializing in advancing crop resilience to biotic and abiotic stresses through molecular breeding, genomics, and bioinformatics. His research focuses on understanding and improving Striga resistance and drought adaptation in maize using gene expression studies, marker discovery, and validation. Fatai is passionate about applying integrative approaches to sustainable crop improvement.