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Fostering Soil Health with Regenerative Agriculture wins first place

Nov. 20, 2024
Two individuals standing beside a poster at a conference.

Poster wins first place and recognized for impactful contributions and innovative solutions

Valeria Genara Moreira, a visiting scholar in the School of Environment and Natural Resources (SENR) was awarded first place winner for, “Fostering Soil Health with Regenerative Agriculture in Ohio: Legacy of Crop Rotation and No Tillage Practices Spanning Six Decades” at the Soil Science Society of America – Soils and Environmental Quality Division’s poster session. The session was held at this year’s joint international meeting of the Agronomy Society of America, Crop Science Society of America, and the Soil Science Society of America in San Antonio, TX. 

Valeria is a visiting scholar from Ecuador, who graduated from Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL) in Agricultural and Biological Engineering in 2021 and is currently a member of the soil health and fertility lab in the SENR led by Manbir Rakkar, assistant professor of Soil Fertility and Nutrient Management. 

Valeria worked as a research assistant at ESPOL on a project focused on cadmium contamination in cacao production systems in Ecuador and developed field activities such as soil sampling and laboratory analyses and conducted plant community surveys in the field to identify areas with high and/or low cadmium concentrations, and evaluate their effect on cacao performance and cadmium levels. Additionally, Valeria's research at ESPOL involved the application of soil amendments and micronutrients aiming to mitigate high Cd pollution in cacao plantations. Valeria is versed in processing soil and plant samples, and conducting chemical analysis. At Ohio State, Valeria is contributing to and learning about perennial grain cropping systems, Ohio-based regenerative agricultural systems, and soil health and nutrient management.

Please join SENR in congratulating Valeria on this recognition.