FIU Agroecology Program

09/22/2026

Gods must be Crazy!
I am truly happy and honored to share that, in addition to being named a SSSA Fellow, I will be receiving the 2026 Outstanding Agricultural Scientist Award from the Association of Agricultural Scientists of Indian Origin (AASIO), founded in 1980, as part of the ASA–SSSA–CSSA professional society.
Receiving this recognition while working at a non-land-grant university makes it especially meaningful to me. It is a true honor and a reflection of the opportunities, support, and partnerships that have shaped my professional journey.
I truly believe that these honors are possible because of the wonderful partnerships we have built through cooperation, collegiality, trust, and collaboration. No achievement in academia is accomplished alone.
I am especially grateful to the FIU Agroecology Program and USDA, which have played an important role in supporting and advancing our work in education, research, mentoring, and outreach nationally and internationally.
I share this recognition with my students, colleagues, collaborators, and partners who have been part of this journey. Thank you for your continued support, friendship, and belief in the work we do together.

09/19/2026

Congratulations to Under Secretary of Agriculture Luke Lindberg on his appointment as the next Executive Director of the United Nations World Food Program (WFP). His appointment was announced today by the United Nations and FAO.
The Agroecology Program was fortunate to host Under Secretary Lindberg during his visit to FIU this Tuesday morning, along with our President, Jeanette Nunez. As we experienced during his visit, Under Secretary Lindberg was attentive, thoughtful, an excellent listener, and highly engaged with our faculty and students.
We wish him every success as he takes on this important international leadership role with one of the world's largest humanitarian organizations, working to address food insecurity and hunger around the world.
It was a privilege for our Agroecology Program and FIU to have the opportunity to host him and showcase our education, research, and outreach efforts in food and agriculture. I consider this one of THE BIG IMPACTS!
https://www.wfp.org/news/statement-by-world-food-programme-executive-board-president-on-appointment-of-new-executive-director

09/16/2026

Congratulations to Ms. Sana Awan for publishing her original research. Keep up the good work.

The Impact: Post-Doctoral Fellow upon graduation this December!

Soil salinity raises reactive oxygen species and limits crop performance. Green-synthesized zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) may help, but whether combinin...

09/14/2026

I am happy to share this prestigious award with my students and colleagues at Florida International University, as well as with colleagues from my collaborating institutions.
When you build strong, trusting partnerships and uphold a commitment to work ethic and research integrity, nothing is impossible in an academic career. Together, we can achieve extraordinary things.

Recipient Biography: Dr. Krishnaswamy Jayachandran is a Distinguished University Professor of soil science and environmental microbiology in the Agroecology Program of the Department of Earth and Environment at Florida International University, Miami, Florida. He earned his Ph.D. in Plant Pathology...

04/08/2026

Congratulations to Daphne Sugino Souffront for her publication in American Chemical Society Agricultural Science & Technology Journal.

The ecological challenges can vary over a plant’s lifetime. To overcome these changing conditions some plants will show striking differences in their chemical composition at different times in their development. Here, we use an untargeted metabolomic approach to quantify the changes in low molecul...

03/15/2026

A sustained Mentoring Career Path at FIU marks with seven student awards and recognition on Friday, March 13th, 2026, at our Earth and Environment's Annual Graduate Research Symposium.
Congratulations to Blaire Kleiman, Sana Awan, Marie Isabelle Dubois, Patrick Ben Emoi Otema, Sarah Tillem, Milagros Munoz Salas, and Biplov Oli for serving as your advisor, co-advisor, and committee member.
Keep up the innovation, novelty, and discovery in your research!

01/01/2026

An amazing experience to start the new year from the Holyland - Jerusalem. Peace on Earth!

01/01/2026

To my wonderful colleagues, collaborators, friends, and family around the world.

12/27/2025

I am happy to be selected one of the Israel Science Fellows mainly to develop collaborations on food and agriculture technologies areas and promote the Agroecology Program and the Florida International University.

The link to the press release on Jewish National Fund-USA’s website:

Immersive experience brings non-Jewish academics to Israel to deepen collaboration, firsthand understanding, and lasting partnerships with Israeli colleagues.

12/20/2025

Agroecology Program's Research and Development Work on Climate Control Agriculture suitable and applicable for Urban areas like Miami to grow crops, vegetables, and ornamentals. A combination of originality, innovation, novelty and technology.

Laboratory-grade plant growth chambers provide controlled environments ideal for reproduceable studies, but their high cost and limited space present drawbacks. An alternative approach involves retrofitting decommissioned shipping containers to serve as large-scale growth chambers. We present the co...