AMANDA MITCHELL

Amanda Mitchell is currently pursuing a M.Sc. in Soil Science at the University of Saskatchewan. Her research is examining soil carbon and microbial community dynamics in buried surface horizons in Saskatchewan croplands. Soil eroding from hill-tops in hummocky terrain due to conventional tillage practices buried the original surface horizon in the lower slopes of hills, creating buried surface horizons rich in stable organic C. Her research aims to help advance the collective understanding of C stabilization and sequestration in soils by studying these unique buried surface horizons.

 Amanda was raised on a grain farm in Southwest Saskatchewan where her passion for agriculture and interest in soil was ignited. She received a B.Sc. from the University of Saskatchewan in 2021 with a major in agronomy and minor in soil science. Amanda’s interest in soil microbiology developed while working as a summer student in a plant pathology lab which focused on root rot disease complexes.

 Amanda enjoys being an active member in her community currently serving as the Academic VP on the soil science graduate students association, and previously serving as the first graduate student representative on the College of Agriculture and Bioresources graduate advisory committee, a member of the board of directors for the Canadian Agriculture Agri-Business Education Foundation (CABEF), and a variety of other activities in her local community.

 After finishing her M.Sc., Amanda is planning on pursuing a Ph.D. in soil microbiology. In the future she would like to be involved in public research in the agriculture industry in the Canadian Prairies.

JEFF DANIEL NZE MEMIAGHE

Jeff Daniel Steeven Nze Memiaghe is PhD candidate in Soil and Environmental Sciences from Laval University, Quebec City (Canada). His research activities focussed on spatial variability of soil phosphorus (P) and its agri-environmental implications in Eastern Canadian soils in Precision Agriculture (PA). He’s Soil and Environmental Scientist, with a Bachelor Degree in Agronomy, options Soils and Environmental sciences from Laval University. After completing his Master Degree in Environmental Engineering from École de Technologie Supérieure (University of Quebec), Jeff Daniel worked as Soil scientist for different environmental companies in Canada.

Jeff Daniel’s PhD project aims to generate scientific knowledge on understanding spatial variability of soil P and its agri­-environmental implications using statistics, geostatistics, geospatial, and geographic information system tools. His research activities aim to assess impacts of contrasting cropping systems i.e., grassland systems, soil tillage, soil sampling density, and management zones on spatial variability of soil P in Eastern Canadian soils. Among strong candidates, Jeff was awarded of many scholarships and awards, including the Outstanding Graduate Student Awards from the International Society of Precision Agriculture in Minnesota, USA.

Jeff Daniel is interested in soil and environmental scientific projects or issues aiming to reach Sustainable Development Goals in agriculture and environment. Later, he would like to become a soil researcher by extending his future research activities on precision agriculture and its main applications in Soil Sciences and developing a soil spectroscopy approach from an Eastern Canadian perspective. Jeff Daniel may be contacted at: jdnzm at ulaval.ca