Consuelo C Romero

Consuelo Romero (PhD) has a background in Biology, an MSc in Soil Science (both from Universidad Nacional Agraria - La Molina, Lima-Peru) and a PhD in Production Ecology: Soil Erosion and Water Conservation (Wageningen University, The Netherlands). As faculty at her Alma Mater, she taught Principles of Geology, Soil Fertility, and Soil and Water Conservation. Her Ph.D. research topic focused on Soil Erosion and Water Conservation. During these years she had the opportunity to learn about farming in Peru. After a training in Japan in Soil Management, she headed to Florida for a Post-Doc in evapotranspiration and irrigation requirements for turfgrasses at the University of Florida. Then, she continued at University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where she did on climate effects and soil variability on crop growth. Consuelo has multiple articles published in all these topics, where one of them dealt with the systematization of the largest soil database in the world.

While living in Nebraska and being surrounded by enormous farming land, she realized that she could contribute in making irrigation more efficient and avoiding potential pollution of groundwater by optimizing crop management in a more personalized way. Now, Consuelo is an entrepreneur and owner of Next Season Systems in the U.S., AgexTec in Brazil and AgEris in Peru, an online system to support farm producers on tailoring their irrigation and fertilization practices considering climate risks to optimize crop production.

Guillermo Baigorria (PhD) is a distinguished expert in climate science, agriculture, and technology integration, with over 20 years of experience in research, academia, and leadership. He holds a B.S. in Meteorology and an M.S. in Crop Production from Universidad Nacional Agraria - La Molina in Lima, Peru, and a Ph.D. in Soil Sciences and Land Evaluation from Wageningen University in The Netherlands.

Dr. Baigorria's postdoctoral research at the University of Florida focused on developing innovative methods for crop yield forecasting and crop modeling. He has held faculty positions at three prestigious universities: Universidad Nacional Agraria - La Molina, the University of Florida, and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and has served as a visiting faculty at numerous other institutions. His research career includes significant roles as a scientist at the CGIAR - International Potato Center in Lima, Peru, and as a visiting scientist at NOAA and the International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI). He has led and participated in numerous projects across Africa, Latin America, Asia, and the United States, specializing in climate, soils, and crop modeling.

A lifelong passion for science and technology, Guillermo self-taught computer programming at the age of 14, enabling him to integrate diverse disciplines and automate complex processes. He is the author of 36 peer-reviewed scientific papers, 10 books and book chapters, and has served as a reviewer for over 30 international journals. His ability to secure funding is demonstrated by over US$4.3 million in research grants in the US and US$19.5 million as CEO of SENAMHI.

From 2022 to 2023, Dr. Baigorria served as the Chief Executive Officer of the National Weather and Hydrology Service of Peru (SENAMHI), where he led a team of over 1,000 employees, doubled the institutional budget by 2024, and oversaw the modernization of infrastructure, including the acquisition of a high-performance computer center. Currently, as the Director of Research and Development at Next Season Systems in the US, AgexTec in Brazil, and AgEris in Peru, he focuses on system integration and automation to develop software and hardware solutions that support stakeholders' decision-making, particularly for farm producers. His work includes creating digital tools such as automatic fertilization programs,  irrigation scheduling systems, crop monitoring platforms, and early warning systems for agricultural diseases, significantly enhancing farm management practices.

Dr. Baigorria has developed 10 software programs, 6 artificial intelligent systems, and 4 field monitoring device designs, all aimed at improving agricultural and water resource management. His contributions extend to global food security and agricultural sustainability through research, training, and technology transfer, particularly in Latin America and Southeast Asia.