DWFI Podcast 19 – Renee San Souci, Omaha Tribe Member

In this episode of the Water for Food Podcast, DWFI Director of Communications Frances Hayes caught up with Renee San Souci at the 2022 Platte River Basin Conference in Kearney, Nebraska. Renee was a featured speaker at the conference, providing a tribal perspective on creating vibrant, resilient solutions for the future of the people and wildlife who depend on the …

The BetterSoil Alliance Welcomes New Partners

Marking its first year, the Alliance brings in new technology partners to support its 6,000 engaged acres (Modesto, California) – The BetterSoil Alliance supports the California almond industry in the pursuit of practical solutions that positively impact food production by improving water productivity, soil health, and lowering carbon footprint. Since its inception last fall by Yara North America and Heliae® …

DWFI Podcast 18 – Renata Rimšaitė, National Drought Mitigation Center

Renata Rimšaitė is a senior program manager with DWFI and the National Drought Mitigation Center. Renata studies incentive-based water management, including tools designed to motivate or incentivize water using or managing parties to modify the way they use water, not only because it is sustainable, but also because it’s in their financial interest. Water markets is an example of incentive-based …

DWFI Podcast 17 – Karina Schoengold, UNL Agricultural Economics

DWFI Faculty Fellow Karina Schoengold is leading a $6 million, 4-year project to reduce the use of plastics, herbicides and associated environmental impacts in agricultural production. The use of plastics has been growing in agriculture over recent years to help increase productivity by limiting weeds, protecting growth and extending growing seasons. The team aims to create a bio-based material called …

DWFI Podcast 16 – Erin Haacker – Nebraska Groundwater

Erin Haacker is a hydrogeologist and assistant professor at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. As Erin would say, her professional path has been a winding road. She has two bachelor’s degrees – zoology from the University of Montana and geology from University College Cork in Ireland. She ventured to Michigan State University for her Ph.D., double majoring in environmental science and …

DWFI Podcast 15 – Roric Paulman, Paulman Farms

Roric Paulman is a producer and owner of Paulman Farms, located just south of Sutherland, Nebraska and in the heart of the Ogallala Aquifer, comprised of both irrigated and rain fed farmland. The farm was established and harvested its first crop in 1985 and uses the latest on-farm technology to grow more than a dozen crops. It is one of …

DWFI Podcast 14 – Jackson Stansell, Sentinel Fertigation

Jackson Stansell is CEO and founder of Sentinel Fertigation, a Lincoln, Nebraska ag startup founded in 2021 that uses drone- and satellite-collected imagery to predict when a corn crop needs fertilization — saving growers money and reducing environmental impact. Jackson has a connection to the Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute. He received student support from the institute while working …

DWFI Podcast 13 – Business Ecosystem in Rwanda

Of Rwanda’s roughly 600,000 hectares of irrigable land, only 10% is currently irrigated. With a more developed irrigation industry, farmers would be able to take advantage of three growing seasons, rather than one, enabling better food security and income. However, there are gaps in knowledge needed to advance the industry. Seeking to make these advancements accessible, staff at the Daugherty …

Daugherty Water for Food Podcast Episode 12

Managed aquifer recharge can be an innovative way to both satisfy endangered species’ habitat restoration and benefit crop irrigators in the area. This is exactly how it was used in Nebraska’s Central Platte Valley when river canals were already in need of repair after more than 100 years of use. The process consists of recharging an aquifer using either surface …

Daugherty Water for Food Podcast Episode 11

The Daugherty Water for Food Podcast is back after a brief hiatus to bring you a new episode focused on ensuring water and food security for our growing world. Matt Foley is program director for The Combine AgriFood Incubator, a part of Invest Nebraska, which supports early stage agtech companies in row crop, animal health, digital agriculture and sustainability. The …

Salvus Gearing up to Start Clinical and Market Trials in 2022

Company adds product manager role to support future growth Salvus™ LLC, part of the CJB family of companies, expects to take delivery on its first commercial pathogen and chemical contamination detection devices in December and anticipates clinical and market/demo trials to commence in early 2022. “Global semiconductor supply chain challenges have delayed device deliveries by three to four months. We …

BetterSoil Alliance Rewards Growers for Sustainable Achievements

Yara and Heliae® Ag invite the almond industry to join them in driving practical solutions that positively impact food production by improving water productivity and soil health Yara North America, Inc. with Heliae® Agriculture, has launched the BetterSoil Alliance to support the California almond industry in the pursuit of sustainable farming practices to improve water productivity and soil health, while …

Water for Food Global Forum

The Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute this week kicked off its “Water for Food Global Forum,” a virtual series of events convening international experts, growers, and organizations to focus on achieving global water and food security. The event features both on-demand and live virtual events. Water and Food Systems Panel and Discussion Dr. Shakuntala Haraksingh Thilsted – Global Lead …

Daugherty Water for Food podcast – Episode 10

This episode of the Daugherty Water for Food podcast features Amy Wu, an award-winning journalist, filmmaker and the creator of From Farms to Incubators. From Farms to Incubators is a multimedia platform that uses documentary, video, photography and the written word to tell the stories of women leaders and innovators in agtech. It has a mission of highlighting women in food, farming, and …

Daugherty Water for Food Podcast Episode 9

This episode of the Daugherty Water for Food podcast features Babak Safa, a postdoctoral research associate with the Water for Food Global Institute who specializes in agricultural meteorology, micro-meteorology and vegetation-atmosphere interaction. Safa analyzes eddy covariance flux data from installed systems to support remote sensing based model verification and water productivity estimates for several agricultural and natural ecosystems and projects …