Alumni Posts

by David Pinzon

Going through the AdvancingAg Future Leaders Program provided Dr. David Pinzon with a new way of looking at his career and a new perspective on how to advance within it.

Dr. Pinzon, an alumnus of the program’s 2019-2020 year, was paired with Ben Graham, CEO of the agriculture advertising firm AdFarm. Dr. Pinzon, who works as a regulatory affairs manager at Corteva Agriscience and is a scientist by training, found that being paired with a professional who works outside of the scientific realm was a boost to his career and to his confidence.

“Ben encouraged me [in a way] that was probably different from how I would have been encouraged by a mentor within Corteva,” says Dr. Pinzon.

That’s a key reason Dr. Pinzon still tries to connect with Graham, even though their formal mentorship has ended.

“I worked with Ben on an agriculture magazine-type article, talking about the requirements to register a pesticide. Even though I had no experience writing this type of document, Ben paired me with a scientific writer to get to the ideal article” says Dr. Pinzon. “He helped me to draft the article and to put it together. I let him know I’m going to publish it in a pest management magazine.”

Graham’s mentorship also encouraged Dr. Pinzon to take new risks — risks he hadn’t anticipating ever taking before entering the AdvancingAg Future Leaders Program.  

“I would have never imagined doing this beforehand, but I was a judge for the 2019 CAMA (Canadian Agri-Marketing Association) Awards,” says Dr. Pinzon, explaining that he had the confidence to nominate himself and try something new. “Even though I don’t use advertising [day to day], I do like to communicate with the public.”

Dr. Pinzon likes the work he’s doing currently at Corteva Agriscience, and looking forward, hopes to use the new leadership skills he’s learned to give back to others.

“I also want to be a mentor,” says Dr. Pinzon. “It would be nice to pair with someone that shares what I enjoy and then I can really teach them some things.”

by B. Pratyusha Chennupati

Having former politician Ted Menzies as a mentor both inspired and gave B. Pratyusha Chennupati the confidence to have ambitious career goals and dream big.

Chennupati is an alumna of the AdvancingAg Future Leaders Program and participated in its 2018-2019 year, connecting with Menzies each Saturday. And even though the formal mentorship has ended, Chennupati and Menzies continue to communicate.

“Following the program, we still email,” says Chennupati. “I’ll share an interesting article if I think he would be interested in reading, and he is doing the same with me.”

As well as having had thoughtful conversations on the pros and cons of new agricultural policies, brainstorming career routes and discussing politics, Menzie’s mentorship opened up numerous doors for Chennupati.

“One of the things I realized when having Ted as a mentor is that the world is such a small place. He has connections all around the world… and he was more than happy to leverage his contacts,” says Chennupati.

In addition to gaining professional connections, Chennupati says the mentorship has shaped how she thinks about industry challenges.

“Ted would say, ‘If there’s something you don’t like, why are you not questioning or challenging it?’” says Chennupati. “We always think the government has to do everything. But you have to give it your own thinking and bring it up to their attention. Ted validated for me [the idea that] if you want to see a change, you have to be in the process of making that change.”

That is the main reason Chennupati applied to sit on the Canadian Agriculture Youth Council in 2020; she was selected for one of the 25 volunteer roles out of hundreds of applicants. Additionally, Chennupati works with a start-up company, Heliae, as a regulatory affairs manager.

Looking back, Chennupati says the AdvancingAg program and her mentorship with Menzies made the agriculture industry feel like a close-knit family. That’s something that led to more opportunities than Chennupati imagined possible.

And looking forward, she plans to keep Menzies’ advice in mind and keep aiming high.

“Whatever the next challenge is coming towards me, I’m more than open to take it, embrace it and go from there!”

by Logan Skori

According to Logan Skori, he wouldn’t be where he’s at in his career today if it weren’t for the AdvancingAg Future Leaders Program. Skori, an alumnus of the 2018-2019 program, was paired with Sarah Foster, president of 20/20 Seed Labs based in Nisku, Alberta. Foster’s mentorship proved to be highly engaging and rewarding, and following Skori’s completion of the program, the duo kept in touch. “I keep in touch with Sarah on a daily basis almost,” says Skori, explaining that Foster’s mentorship directly led to the work he’s doing today. “A group of four of us, including Sarah, founded a new company that was incorporated this year.”

During the AdvancingAg mentorship program, Skori and Foster had numerous conversations about starting a biotechnology business, and Skori is thrilled that the mentorship helped bring the idea to life.

The new company, Ag Gene, is commercializing a technology that Skori and his supervisor developed while Skori was working on his PhD at the University of Calgary: it’s a technology to increase protein content in crop cultivars.

“Now, we’re working to scale that technology up so we can distribute it to other businesses,” says Skori. “Ag Gene is focused on helping companies do gene editing in crops and advance their genetic technologies.”

Skori says that when he first joined the program back in 2018, he “never anticipated anything like this happening. But all it takes is meeting the right person and then things will evolve from there!”

Skori also believes that all the networking opportunities and relationships he formed as Foster’s mentee will be hugely beneficial as he navigates the start-up world and grows Ag Gene.

This next year looks like another exciting one for Skori. He plans to defend his PhD this spring, and at the same time, is developing Ag Gene further, expanding its technologies and exploring funding options. And Skori’s AdvancingAg mentor, Foster, will continue to provide invaluable insight.

“Sarah’s [role at Ag Gene] would be like an advisor and she’s a lot of help on the business development end of things,” says Skori. “I don’t think I’d be in the position that I’m in today if it wasn’t for the mentorship with Sarah.”

By: Jordyn Prior

Wow! Where has time gone? How has a year passed already?

When I first found out I was accepted into the program, I knew there would be numerous opportunities to network, gain knowledge and grow as a person and an agvocate, but I had no idea that what I would experience would be so much more…

Below are some of the highlights of my Advancing Ag mentorship:

1) My relationship with my mentor, Janine Paly. I couldn’t have asked for a better role model and agvocate to look up to, ask questions and indulge in agricultural related conversations. Janine is a contact and a friend that I will stay in touch with long after this program is completed.

2) The friendships that have been formed with other mentees in the program. I have had the privilege to attend several conferences and really get to know the other mentees one on one. These are the types of connections that each of us will value for years to come.

3) The opportunity to attend and speak at the Prairie Cereals Summit through the Advancing Ag Essay Contest – this was an AMAZING experience and opened up so many doors to speak at other events including the Catalyst Conference and an Agricultural Education Forum in Sherwood Park.

For those that are just entering the program or curious about joining, I have four pieces of advice for you:

1) Push yourself outside of your comfort zone – this is where the magic happens. One of the biggest takeaways I’ve learned during this program is that the greatest educational and personal growth experiences occur when you start to feel uncomfortable. I had the opportunity to attend a high-end marketing conference known as “The Gathering” in Banff where professionals like the Marketing Director of Yeti, Skittles, MacDonald’s, Tim Hortons, the Founder of Hot Wheels, Spotify, Coca-Cola, GoDaddy etc. presented and were available for intimate conversations. While I was intimidated by these leaders and their accomplishments, I pushed myself to interact and ask them what advice and tips they might have for agriculture. I know have direct contact to some of these leaders and the opportunity to work on some unique social media strategies for our industry moving forward – all of which would not have been achieved had I not pushed myself to make these connections.

2) Have confidence in yourself, your objectives and what you want to say to others.

3) Jump in headfirst and seize every opportunity! Whether it’s an introduction to a new person or presenting at a conference, every step forward you take, is going to give you an opportunity to grow personally and professionally. I also really love the saying, “you only get out of it what you put into it” because it’s very true for this program – the amount of effort you put in is directly related to the amount of gains you’ll make.

4) No question is a bad question (I thank my mentor Janine Paly for this one!). Make sure to take full advantage of having a mentor – they are there to support you so don’t be afraid to pick their brains and take advantage of their networks.

A huge thanks goes out to the Advancing Ag Coordinators, the Alberta Wheat and Barley Commissions and staff and the sponsors that make this program a success! The Advancing Ag Program has been nothing short of AMAZING and I can’t recommend it enough to others whether you’re in the ag industry or just curious to learn more about the cropping sector.

That’s a wrap!

By Matija Stanic

This program has, thus far, allowed me to attend a leadership conference which focused on enabling effective communication between the mentees of the program and allowed the mentees to practice these skills. I found this workshop to be highly beneficial as a tool for analyzing potential communication problems not only in one’s workplace but also in everyday life. This was important for me as a recent university graduate attempting to make the transition to a professional career as my degree did not emphasize communication, although this is a crucial component of professional life.

In the near future, the program will enable me to meet the mentor I have been assigned, a professional scientist in the agriculture industry. I am looking forward to this as I have not had much exposure to professional scientists outside of academia. This will be an important stepping-stone for me and will open up opportunities for me to meet with agricultural professionals and to get a better idea of the agricultural production chain. As my science education has not enlightened me on the general means by which the crops we grow make their way through the various standardized pipelines.

I have a lack of knowledge of the more practical aspects of our agricultural system and am excited to broaden my knowledge to allow me to apply my skills in an effect way. I plan on exploring various aspects of the agricultural production chain from farms where the crops are cultivated and harvested to seed analysis labs which are used to determine seed quality of our important seed crops.

As a recent graduate this program is offering me the ability to make a smooth transition from academia to the professional sector in the agriculture industry. This transition, I feel, is a source of anxiety for many graduates who finish their education and are left not knowing what do to next or where they can apply acquired skills best.

By Carly Schoolemmer

The variety of things that I got to do in this program, from the leadership conference to attending agriculture extension like Agronomy Update, Farm Tech, Making the Grade and Hedging Edge, has helped me learn so much more. I’ve also have great conversions with my amazing mentor Janine, who has introduced me to amazing people that have been involved in agriculture for a long time. Since she has worked in agriculture finance, we discussed topics like purchasing land and how to set up your farm financially. Those are some topics that I struggle with understanding, but with her help, things are now a lot more clear.

Over this past year, I have had the opportunity to travel to different places in Alberta to diversify my knowledge about agriculture. I’ve had an incredible journey meeting new people that have made a huge impact in agriculture, learning new technologies that are advancing agriculture, and obtaining skills that I can implement into my family farming operation.

One of the best things that I gained was the connection and friendship with the other members of the program. It is so exciting running into them at events to catch up and chat. I am looking forward to seeing where their agriculture journey takes them. I’ve also met some incredible speakers that have taught me great life lessons, which I am already using in my everyday life, like how to properly communicate and have a memorable conversation.

I will be forever thankful that I was accepted into this program and for any of you that want to advance your agriculture career, this is the program for you.

By Logan Skori

First, I would like to extend a huge thank you to the sponsors for providing us with the opportunity to participate in the Advancing Ag program. For those of you who are not familiar, the Advancing Ag program pairs young industry professionals with a mentor for the year. During this time, frequent meetings and discussion with your mentor will help shape your path in the agriculture industry. In addition, Advancing Ag provides funding and opportunities to attend events to develop careers and interpersonal skills.

During my time in the Advancing Ag program, I was very fortunate to be paired with Sarah Foster, president of 20/20 Seed Labs based in Nisku, Alberta. Sarah is an amazing mentor and has a wealth of knowledge regarding both agriculture and business. Over the course of the year, I had many engaging conversations with Sarah regarding the future of ag and prospects of starting my own ag business surrounding crop development and biotechnology. I had the chance to visit 20/20 Seed Labs and check out the molecular facility and headquarters, which was very impressive to say the least! I also attended FarmTech 2019 in Edmonton, Alberta with my mentor. During this time, I was able to connect with several professionals in multiple sectors across the agriculture industry.

Participation in Advancing Ag also provided opportunities to attend events including TasteTech and the Calgary Stampede Agriculture and Agri-Food reception. These events were a great way to network with industry professionals, which was one of my main objectives coming into the program. One of the highlights of the Advancing Ag program was a leadership training seminar hosted in Banff, Alberta. There were many speakers who helped us understand different personality types and how we can become better leaders and communicators.

Since the Advancing Ag program does have a budget for career development, I decided to attend the International Rapeseed Congress in Berlin, Germany. This was a fantastic international event that brought Canola and OSR scientists together from across the globe. During the conference, I was able to present my research which focuses on the use of genetic engineering to reduce green seed Canola and pod shatter. I also had the opportunity to meet and connect with prospective employers and other scientists to establish research collaborations.

The Advancing Ag program was a great experience and I would highly recommend any interested individuals to apply! This program has provided many great opportunities to interact with other agriculture professionals and has sparked many friendships with other participants in the program! I would also like to thank my mentor Sarah Foster, who has really provided great insight and advice that will be very helpful in my future endeavors.