UC Riverside's Office of Technology Partnerships (OTP) is thrilled to invite you to Volume 10 of our University-Industry Research Engagement (UIRE) Speaker Series on Wednesday, April 17th 2024 at 12PM in Room 240 at the Orbach Library. Lunch will be provided.

A Zoom webinar will be available for people who cannot attend - register here: https://ucr.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJEsduypqD4uGtJeTs-sHU3ptbq4-GkS_VwW

Learn about the transformative potential of biologicals for pest management and plant health as Dr. Marrone shares insights from her lifelong entrepreneurial journey. Gain valuable perspectives on overcoming adoption challenges and driving industry change over lunch and collaborative discussions.

Who Should Attend:

Ideal for UC Riverside faculty, researchers, postdoctoral, and postgraduate students interested in the future of agriculture and entrepreneurship and any potential collaborations between university faculty and industry-leading companies.

Key Takeaways:

• Learn about the power of biologicals in modern agriculture
• Entrepreneurial insights from a pioneering figure in agtech
• Opportunities for collaboration between academia and industry

Who is the Invasive Species Corporation?

The Invasive Species Corporation is a Delaware Benefits Corporation dedicated to the discovery, development, manufacture, and marketing of efficacious products for the control of invasive species throughout the world.

The Invasive Species Corporation was founded by experienced and successful entrepreneurs, Pam Marrone and Jim Boyd, with a mission to develop environmentally responsible solutions to control the spread and impact of invasive species in water, forestry and agriculture. Invasive species have caused more than $1 trillion in economic damage, are the second largest cause of biodiversity decline behind land use changes and are getting worse with climate change. 400 of the 958 threatened or endangered species are at risk due to competition with or predation by invasive species.

Synthetic chemical pesticides used to control pests are often acutely toxic. Some are suspected carcinogens and their use have other harmful effects on the environment, humans, animals and beneficial insects such as pollinators. Many of these chemical pesticides have not actually proven effective against the invasive species we are targeting or are too harmful to be applied to these sensitive environments.  Instead, we discover, develop and deploy biological solutions from microorganisms and other natural sources such as plant extracts.

About Dr. Pam Marrone

Dr. Marrone spent her 30+ year career focused on biological products for pest management and plant health, having started and led three bioag companies (Entotech, AgraQuest and Marrone Bio Innovations (now called Profarm Group), all of which were sold to larger companies.

With co-founder Jim Boyd, the former CFO of Marrone Bio, Pam is currently in the process of launching a fourth company, the Invasive Species Corporation and its corresponding Invasive Species Research Institute, to bring effective, environmentally friendly biological solutions to control destructive invasive species, in water, forestry and agriculture.

She is on the board of the Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research, is a Senior Fellow of the Arizona State University Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems and is a past alumni-Trustee of Cornell University. She is Chair of the Board of Elicit Plant and serves on the boards of 180 Life Sciences (NASDAQ:ATNF), Stem Express and Pheronym and advises several agtech/agbio startups, many founded or led by women. Among her many awards, in 2022 she received the American Chemical Society “Kathryn C. Hach Award for Entrepreneurial Success.”

She has a B.S. in entomology with Honors and Distinction from Cornell University and a Ph.D. in entomology from North Carolina State University. She is a Fellow of the AAAS and has over 400 patents.

What is the University-Industry Research Engagement Speaker Series?

Our UIRE Speaker Series is a monthly webinar led by UCR’s Office of Technology Partnerships that serves as a beacon for faculty who are eager to comprehend the intricacies of University – Industry engagement. Learn how collaborations between universities and industry work, uncover research avenues, and explore opportunities aligned with UCR’s SoCal OASIS ™ Initiative.