Members
Kenji Matsuura
Born: 1974 | Appointed: 2024
Field: Behavioral Ecology, Evolution, Social Insect Biology
E-mail: matsuura.kenji.6s AT kyoto-u.ac.jp
Website: click here
Bio: Kenji Matsuura (Japan) is the Vice Provost of Kyoto University and has been a Professor at the Laboratory of Insect Ecology, Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University since 2012. He completed his BSc in 1998, MSc in 2000, and Ph.D. in 2002 at Kyoto University. Between 2002 and 2004, he served as a postdoctoral research fellow at Harvard University. Afterward, he returned to his hometown, Okayama, to work as an Assistant Professor at Okayama University. Following a promotion to Associate Professor, he moved back to Kyoto University in 2012 to assume his current position as Full Professor of Insect Ecology. Matsuura’s research explores the behavioral ecology and evolution of termites, covering topics such as the evolution of reproductive systems, pheromone communication, and termite interactions with other organisms. His work has led to findings such as the reproductive system Asexual Queen Succession (AQS), the identification of termite queen pheromone, the discovery of the termite-egg mimicking fungus ‘termite ball’ and its mimicry mechanism, experimental insights into kin selection in termites, and an understanding of transgenerational epigenetic effects on caste determination. Matsuura has been fortunate to receive awards, including the Miyaji Award of the Ecological Society of Japan, the Japan Ethological Society Award, The JSAEZ Prize of the Japanese Society of Applied Entomology and Zoology. In 2011, he was deeply honored to receive the JSPS Prize and the Japan Academy Medal. Matsuura served as Secretary General of the 27th International Congress of Entomology (ICE2024KYOTO).
Sakiko Shiga
Born: 1965 │ Appointed: 2024
Field: Neurobiology, Diptera, Hemiptera, Coleoptera
E-mail: shiga.sakiko.sci AT osaka-u.ac.jp
Website: click here
Bio: Sakiko Shiga (Japan) obtained her BSc in 1988 and MSc in 1990 from the School of Science, and her PhD in 1993 from the Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology at Okayama University (Japan). She is currently a professor at Osaka University, and has been an associate member of the Science Council of Japan since 2014 and the vice president of LOC of the 27th International Congress of Entomology at Kyoto (2024). Her primary research focuses on the comparative neurobiology of biological timing systems, with a particular emphasis on the photoperiodic response and circa’bi’dian rhythms governed by the circadian clock. Her interests include the diverse roles of the clock system, especially in the encoding of temporal information by the brain, the mechanisms and significance of timed growth and behavior, and the exploration of diversity and commonality. She has published over 80 scientific papers, including reviews and book chapters. She is also serving as president of the Zoological Society of Japan (2024-) and the Japanese Society of Comparative Physiology and Biochemistry (2024-). Her contributions to the scientific community also include serving as an associate editor of Zoological Science (2022-2024), a member of the editorial board for Current Opinion in Insect Science, and on the advisory board of the Journal of Comparative Physiology A.
María Marta Cigliano
Born: 1959 │ Appointed: 2016
Field: Taxonomy and Systematics, Orthoptera
E-mail: cigliano AT fcnym.unlp.edu.ar
Website: click here
Bio: María Marta Cigliano (Argentina) completed a Licentiate in Zoology and a Ph.D. in Natural Sciences at La Plata National University, Argentina. She received postgraduate training in Ecology at the Rangeland Insect Laboratory, Montana State University, USA. She is a Professor at La Plata National University and a Research Scientist with the Argentine National Research Council (CONICET). She has served as President of the Orthopterists' Society and Vice President of the Argentine Entomological Society. She has been a Research Scientist at Illinois Natural History Survey, USA and Invited Professor at the Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France. She is a member of the Global Team for the Catalogue of Life, an Affiliate Researcher at the Illinois Natural History Survey, University of Illinois, USA, and the curator of the global Orthoptera Species File (OSF), an online database that serves as a comprehensive resource for taxonomic and biodiversity data on Orthoptera. She has published over 80 scientific papers and book chapters on the systematics of grasshoppers, integrating traditional taxonomy with molecular data to study evolutionary relationships, biogeography, and species diversity. Currently, her research group focuses on two key areas: macroecology of Orthopteran biodiversity, and investigations into the phase polyphenism of South American locusts (Schistocerca cancellata), including modeling the risk of gregarization and the population dynamics of these locusts.
Jocelia Grazia
Born: 1944 │ Appointed: 2016
Field: Taxonomy and Systematics
E-mail: jocelia AT ufrgs.br
Website: click here
Bio: Jocelia Grazia (Brazil) born in 1944 is a Full professor of the Department of Zoology at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul since 1980. She obtained her Ph.D. degree in zoology at the University of Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil in 1976 and pos-doc at the American Museum of Natural History, New York, N.Y., USA in 1995.
She has been a Researcher of National Research Council of Brazil for the last 50 years. She was President of the Entomological Society of Brazil (1984–1990) and also Editor in chief of the Annals of the Entomological Society of Brazil (1978–1984). She was Director of the Natural Science Museum, Zoobotanical Foundation, Porto Alegre, Brazil (1972–1975) and also Vice Rector of Graduate Courses, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (2003–2004). She has been conducting studies in systematics, biodiversity, and evolutionary biology of Heteroptera (Insecta), with emphasis on Pentatomidae, comparative morphology, integration of morphological and molecular data for phylogenetic analysis. She has published almost 200 on international peer-reviewed journals, including Cladistics, Annals of Entomological Society of America, Zoological Journal of the Linnaean Society, Arthropod Structure and Development, Zootaxa and so on; and also 23 book chapters, and one book. She was conferred Jesus Santiago Moure Prize (2010) and Alexandre Rodrigues Ferreira Prize (2013) given by the Brazilian Society of Zoology for the best paper published in taxonomy and the best book in zoology (senior author of the Hemiptera chapter), respectively; and also Edilson Bassoli de Oliveira Prize given by the Brazilian Entomological Society in recognition to the members who have contributed to the development of entomology in Brazil (2014).
Marec Frantisek
Born: 1957 | Appointed: 2012
Field: Genetics and Molecular Cytogenetics
E-mail: marec AT entu.cas.cz
Bio: Frantisek Marec (Czech Republic), born in 1957. Director of the Institute of Entomology, Biology Centre of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic (2012–2022), and Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology and Genetics at the Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, both in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic. He obtained his PhD in Entomology (insect genetics) in 1987 at the Institute of Entomology. Since 1990 he has been a research fellow of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Germany. He has had a long-standing collaboration with Prof. Walther Traut at the University of Lubeck, Germany, where he worked as a Humboldtian in 1991–1992 and 1998. Like many geneticists, he started his career in Drosophila, but soon become fascinated by Lepidoptera genetics. His research has focused on sex chromosomes in Lepidoptera, especially on meiotic pairing, molecular differentiation and evolution, and also applications of the sex chromosomes in genetic control strategies against pest species. Current research interests also include molecular mechanisms of sex determination in insects. In addition, his co-operation with the Insect Pest Control Section, Joint FAO/IAEA Division of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture, International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna, Austria, resulted in a new approach for the construction of genetic sexing strains in lepidopteran pests. So far Prof. Marec has published more than 115 peer-reviewed articles and contributed to 6 book chapters. He was also editor of a book on “Molecular Biology and Genetics of the Lepidoptera” (edited by Marian R. Goldsmith and F. Marec, 2010, CRC Press). Since 2001 he has been an Executive Editor of the European Journal of Entomology. He co-organized symposia on insect genetics at the VIth and VIIIth European Congress of Entomology (ECE). In 2022, he was awarded the Gregor Johann Mendel Honorary Medal of the Czech Academy of Sciences for Merit in Biological Sciences.
Angharad Gatehouse
Born: 1954 │ Appointed: 2016
Field: Plant-Insect Interaction; Novel Approaches to Integrated Pest Management
E-mail: a.m.r.gatehouse AT ncl.ac.uk
Website: click here
Bio: Professor Angharad Gatehouse (UK) born in 1954 is the chair of the Invertebrate Molecular Biology Department at the University of Newcastle. She is also head of Molecular Agriculture within the Institute of Sustainability, which coordinates research across Newcastle University around key issues of sustainability, including food security. Her over-arching research interests are in the molecular and biochemical bases of insect-plant interactions for the development of novel approaches to crop protection. As part of this, her research interests also encompass the potential impact of such technologies on non-target organisms, particularly beneficial insects including pollinators such as bees, and natural enemies such as parasitoids and predators.
Takema Fukatsu
Born: 1966 │ Appointed: 2016
Field: Evolutionary biology of Insect -endosymbiotic microorganism interactions
E-mail: t-fukatsu AT aist.go.jp
Website: click here
Bio: Takema Fukatsu (Japan) born in 1966 is Prime Senior Researcher and Group Leader at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Professor at the University of Tokyo, and Professor at the University of Tsukuba, Japan. BSc in 1989 and PhD in 1994 from the Department of Zoology, the University of Tokyo, Japan. His research areas are extremely broad, encompassing diverse sophisticated biological interactions associated with such phenomena as symbiosis, mutualism, parasitism, reproductive manipulation, morphological manipulation, insect sociality, etc. In particular, his scientific interest focuses on insect-microbe symbiotic associations and their biological relevance, which have been published as over 210 peer-reviewed papers describing symbiont-mediated insecticide resistance, symbiont’s modification of insect body color, symbiont’s broadening of insect food plant range, symbiont-mediated pest evolution, insect-symbiont lateral gene transfers, and many other topics. His services for scientific communities other than the ICE councilor include: fellow, the American Academy of Microbiology (2013-); associate member, the Science Council of Japan (2011-); editor-in-chief, Zoological Science (2015-); associate editors, Zoological Letters (2014-), Journal of Experimental Zoology A (2007-); editorial board members, Current Opinion in Insect Science (2013-), Journal of Insect Physiology (2011-), Proceedings of the Royal Society B (2007-2012), Entomological Science (2004-2005), Applied Entomology and Zoology (2003-2006); councilors, the Zoological Society of Japan (2016-), the Japanese Society of Applied Entomology and Zoology (2009-), the Society of Evolutionary Studies, Japan (2006-).
Jianghua Sun
Born: 1961 | Appointed: 2024
Field: Forest Entomology, Invasive Species, Chemical Ecology
E-mail: sunjh AT hbu.edu.cn
Website: click here
Bio: Jianghua Sun (China) obtained his BSc in 1982 and MSc in 1985 from the College of Forestry, Northeast Forestry University (China) and his PhD in 1991 from the School of Forestry, Stephen F. Austin State University (USA). He is currently a Distinguished Professor at Hebei University and Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and has been co-coordinator for FAO Asia-Pacific Forest Invasive Species Network since 2013 and the vice president of Science Council of Hebei University since 2023. His primary research focuses on multi-specific interactions among host plants, herbivores, and their associated fungi and bacteria which are dominated by chemical signals that exert feedback amongst multiple trophic levels. This research emphasizes the context-specific nature of multiple-partner associations, and how these associations affect the ability of insects to counter pathogens, host defense, food and pheromone production, and contend with plant defensive chemicals. The work employs both chemical ecology and molecular methods. He is also studying the invasion biology of important forest invasive species in China and the development of semiochemical-based monitoring and control technologies. He has published over 250 scientific papers and book chapters. He is also the holder of 19 patents. He serves as Editor-in-Chief for Acta Entomologica Sinica since 2015 and as subject editor or member of editorial board of 8 international journals. He served as president of Chemical Ecology Branch of Entomological Society of China (2014-2022). His contributions to the scientific community also include serving as expert on various scientific committees of relevant governmental agencies or research institutions on scientific research and management of invasive species in China.
Zeyaur Khan
Born: 1955 | Appointed: 2010
Field: Pest Management, Biology
E-mail: zkhan AT mbita.mimcom.net
Bio: Zeyaur R. Khan (Kenya) is a Principal Scientist and Leader of Habitat Management Program at the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE), Nairobi, Kenya and a Visiting Professor of Entomology at Cornell University, Ithaca, NY. Dr. Khan has dedicated his 30 year career as an agricultural scientist to advancing the science and practice of agriculture by studying and applying chemical ecology, behavior, plant-plant and insect-plant interactions to improve farm productivity to combat poverty and food insecurity in Africa.
He is responsible for the discovery and wide scale implementation of a scientific innovation through a biologically-based IPM technology called ‘Push-Pull’ (www.push-pull.net), providing practical solutions, and sustainable livelihoods for thousands of small-holder poor cereal-livestock African farmers. Dr. Khan obtained his Ph. D. from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi in 1980. Before joining ICIPE, he worked with Rajendra Agricultural University, Bihar, Pusa, India (1980-1983), the International Rice Research Institute (1983-1991), University of Wisconsin, Madison (1985-1986) and Kansas State University, Manhattan (1991-1993). Dr. Khan is a Fellow of the Entomological Society of America and a Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society, London. He was a plenary speaker at during XXIII International Congress of Entomology in 2008. In 2009 Dr. Khan was awarded the International IPM excellence award. In 2010 he received Nan-Yao Su award for Innovation and Creativity in Entomology and was named as a Distinguished Scientist by the International Branch of Entomological Society of America. In 2011, ICIPE designated him as a Thomas Odhiambo Distinguished Research Fellow and in the same year he was a winner of TWAS Prize in Agriculture.
Walter S. Leal
Born: 1954 │ Appointed: 2016
Field: Chemical Ecology
E-mail: wsleal AT ucdavis.edu
Website: click here
Bio: Walter S. Leal (USA) born in the beautiful city of Recife, Brazil in 1954 is Distinguished Professor at the University of California-Davis, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology. He is former professor and chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology. Leal received his B. Eng. in chemical engineering from the Federal University of Pernambuco, Brazil, M. Sc. in agricultural chemistry from Mie University, Japan, and Ph. D. in applied biochemistry from Tsukuba University, Japan. He received postgraduate training in entomology and chemical ecology at the National Institute of Sericultural and Entomological Science, Japan and Cornell University, USA, respectively. Leal distinguished himself as the first non-Japanese scientist to earn tenure in the Japan Ministry of Agriculture. He joined the faculty at UC Davis in 2000. Leal’s research if focused on insect chemical communication and olfaction. His laboratory discovered a mosquito receptor for the insect repellent DEET and published about 200 peer-reviewed papers. Leal is a member of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI), and a corresponding member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences, Honorary Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society (Hon. F.R.E.S.), Honorary Member of the Entomological Society of America, and Fellow of the California Academy of Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the Entomological Society of America. He is recipient of prestigious awards from three different countries, including the Nan Yao Su Award for Innovation and Creativity in Entomology and the Silver Medal of the International Society of Chemical Ecology. Leal served (with Dr. Alvin Simmons, USDA-ARS) as co-Chair of the 2016 International Congress of Entomology.
Shu Sheng Liu
Born: 1955 | Appointed: 2012
Field: Ecology
E-mail: shshliu AT zju.edu.cn
Website: click here
Bio: Shu-Sheng Liu (China) born in 1955 is Distinguished University Professor at Zhejiang University and Deputy President of the Academic Committee of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China. He did his undergraduate study at Hunan Agricultural University 1974-1977 and his postgraduate study at the then Zhejiang Agricultural University 1978-1980. He then went to Australia and did his PhD study at CSIRO Entomology 1980-1984, and obtained his Ph.D. in Zoology from the Australian National University in 1984. He then returned to China and has been on the faculty of the College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, serving as head of entomology 1991-2009 and discipline leader of plant protection since 2007. His work focuses on integrated pest management (IPM) in vegetable crops and has promoted vegetable IPM in China, Australia and elsewhere. Apart from applied research and IPM implementation, he has been conducting studies on host-parasitoid interactions, vector-virus-plant interactions, and invasion biology. His work has been published in over 200 peer-reviewed articles in English journals and over 100 peer-reviewed articles in Chinese journals, one book and 10 book chapters. He has served as subject editor of the Bulletin of Entomological Research since 2006, column editor for the Journal of Integrative Agriculture since 2013, associate-editor for two Chinese journals including Acta Entomologica Sinica and Journal of Biosafety, and is on the editorial boards of six other journals including Science China Life Sciences, Insect Science, Chinese Journal of Biological Control and others. He has been active in international conferences, serving as section convener and symposium organizer at XVth International Plant Protection Congress, and plenary lecture speaker and symposium organizer at ICE XXII, symposium organizer at ICE XXIV, and member of the organizing committee for ICE XXV 2016.
Dmitrii Musolin
Born: 1971 │ Appointed: 2016
Field: Insect Ecophysiology, Climate change, Forest Entomology, Invasive Insects
E-mail: musolin AT gmail.com
Website: click here
Bio: Dmitrii Musolin (Russia/France) born in 1971 is a Scientific Officer of the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization (EPPO). He received his BSc degree in Forestry from the Saint Petersburg State Forest Technical Academy (Russia), MSc degree in Environmental Sciences and Policy from the Central European University (Budapest, Hungary), PhD degree in Entomology from the Saint Petersburg State University (Russia), and a degree of Doctor of Biological Sciences (Entomology) from the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Saint Petersburg, Russia) in 2017. He was a postdoctoral associate with Professor Hideharu Numata at Osaka City University (Osaka, Japan, 1998–2000) and Dr. Kiyomitsu Ito at National Agricultural Research Center for Hokkaido Region (Sapporo, Japan, 2001–2005), then an invited foreign researcher at Kyoto University (Kyoto, Japan, 2005–2009) before joining the faculty at the Saint Petersburg State Forest Technical University. He moved to EPPO (Paris, France) in 2022. His recent research focuses on eco-physiological control of insect diapause, ecology of forest insects, responses of insects to climate change, ecology and distribution of forest invasive pests. He has had a long-standing interest in true bugs (Heteroptera), especially their diapause and seasonal development. He has published over 90 papers in refereed journals, refereed conference papers, and book chapters. He serves on the editorial boards of Applied Entomology and Zoology, Transactions of the Saint Petersburg Forest Technical Academy, and EPPO Bulletin. He co-organized a few national entomological meetings in Russia. Dr. Musolin served as a reviewer of the Working Group II contribution to the Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and as an expert of the scientific foundations in several countries. In 2018–2022, he was a member of the Expert Council on Biological Sciences of the State Commission for Academic Degrees and Titles, Russia. He was also involved in protection of human rights in Russia. Dr. Musolin is a member of the Presidium and Central Council of the Russian Entomological Society (since 2012).
Daniel Obeng-Ofori
Born: 1957 | Appointed: 2010
Field: Chemical Ecology, IPM
E-mail: provc.office AT uenr.edu.gh
Bio: Daniel Obeng-Ofori (Ghana), born in 1957. Professor of Agricultural Entomology at the Department of Crop Science in the College of Agriculture & Consumer Sciences, University of Ghana, Legon, Ghana. He completed a Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture at the University of Ghana in 1982, M.phil and Ph.D degrees in Applied Biology and Agricultural Entomology from the University of Cambridge, UK in 1986 and 1990. At the International Centre for Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE), Nairobi, Kenya from 1991-1994, he was a member of the Locust Research Programme which championed the pioneering work on pheromone-mediated communication in the desert locust. From 1994-1996, he was an Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellow at the Federal Biological Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry, Institute for Stored Product Protection, Berlin, Germany. Prof. Obeng-Ofori has worked at the University of Ghana since 1996, was Head of Department and Vice-Dean (2002-2005), Ag. Dean of the School of Agriculture (2005-2006), Deputy Provost and Coordinator of the African Regional Postgraduate Programme in Insect Science (ARPPIS), West Africa Sub-Regional Centre since 2009. He is currently the Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the University of Energy and Natural Resources, Sunyani, Ghana. His research focus is on chemical ecology and integrated management of agricultural pests for sustainable crop production. He has published some 100 journal articles, 5 book chapters and four books. He was the African Association of Insect Scientists (2005-2009) and is the President of the Ghana Science Association and the Entomological Society of Ghana.
Francesco Pennacchio
Born: 1960 │ Appointed: 2016
Field: Insect Physiology
E-mail: f.pennacchio AT unina.it
Website: click here
Bio: Francesco Pennacchio (Italy) born in 1960 is Professor of Entomology at the University of Napoli “Federico II” (Italy) and Visiting Professor at Newcastle University (UK). In 1989 he received a PhD in Entomology, from the University of Napoli “Federico II”, for his research on parasitic Hymenoptera biology. He continued to focus on this research area as a visiting scientist (1989-1991) at Texas A&M University (College Station, TX, USA). The study of parasitology and pathology of insect pests and pollinators is the core of his current research interests, along with technologies for sustainable insect control that can be developed on this background. He has published extensively within the field, including in discovery journals. In 2013 he was awarded the Cozzarelli Prize by the National Academy of Sciences of USA for his seminal work on elucidating the molecular mechanism through which the neonicotinoid clothianidin adversely affects the insect immune response. He co-edits the Journal of Insect Physiology and serves on the editorial boards of other entomological journals. He is the Co-Chair of the XI European Congress of Entomology, which will be held in Italy, in 2018. He is the President of the Società Entomologica Italiana (SEI) and member of the Italian National Academy of Entomology.
Audrey E. Lenhart
Born: 1975 | Appointed: 2024
Field: Medical Entomology
E-mail: ajl8 AT cdc.gov
Website: click here
Bio: Audrey Lenhart (USA), PhD, MPH, is the Chief of the Entomology Branch at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. She is based in the Division of Parasitic Diseases and Malaria in the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, where she serves as a senior agency expert on public health entomology. The Entomology Branch provides technical assistance throughout the Americas, Asia, and Africa regarding vector surveillance and control, including co-implementing the U.S. President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) across its 30 focus countries. Dr. Lenhart serves as a senior advisor to PMI and coordinates CDC’s activities in the USAID-funded Latin America and Caribbean Regional Malaria Program. She also leads CDC’s VecNet Program, which supports regional public health entomology networks in 7 regions across the globe. She previously led the Entomology Branch’s Insecticide Resistance and Vector Control Team, which included a research group that focused on the biology and control of mosquitoes and laboratory activities centered on the molecular mechanisms that cause insecticide resistance in mosquito vectors of human disease. Dr. Lenhart is a founding member of PAHO’s Technical Advisory Group for Public Health Entomology in the Americas, and is co-chair of the WHO Vector Control Advisory Group. She is an Honorary Research Fellow at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and adjunct faculty in the Department of Environmental Sciences at Emory University.
Charles Vincent
Born: 1953 │ Appointed: 2016
Field: Pest Management; Alternatives to insecticides in agriculture
E-mail: ch20100 AT yahoo.ca
Website: click here
Bio: Charles Vincent (Canada) completed a Ph.D. (1983) in Entomology at McGill University (Montreal, Canada). From 1983 to 2021, he worked as a reserach scientist (agricultural entomology) for the Horticultural Research and Development Center (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada) at Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, Canada. In 1984, he has been appointed adjunct professor at the Macdonald Campus of McGill University. He has been appointed as adjunct at Université du Québec à Montréal in 1992, and, since 2000, is invited professor at l’Université de Picardie Jules Verne (Amiens, France). Since 2021, he is consultant in environmental agriculture. His research focus is on the management of insect populations of horticultural importance with biological (including biopesticides) and physical control methods. To date he published 186 scientific and more than 200 technical papers. He edited 24 books or technical bulletins and did > 500 presentations worldwide. Elected to the Académie d’agriculture de France in 2012, he received numerous awards, notably the Gold Medal of the Entomological Society of Canada, the Distinguished Scientist Award from the Entomological Society of America (International Branch), and an International Plant Protection Award of Distinction from the International Association for the Plant Protection Sciences. He is a Fellow of the Entomological Society of Canada, the Entomological Society of America, and the Royal Entomological Society (London, U.K.). He is an Honorary Member of the Société entomologique de France, and the Entomological Society of America, and the Entomological Society of Canada. He has been inducted into the Quebec and the Canada Agricultural Halls of Fame
Marcel Dicke
Born: 1957; appointed 2023
Field: Insect Ecology, Multitrophic Interactions, Insect-Plant-Microbe Interactions
E-mail: marcel.dicke AT wur.nl
Website: click here
Bio: Dr. Marcel Dicke (the Netherlands) completed his MSc at Leiden University and his PhD at Wageningen University (both in the Netherlands). He is an elected member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW). He is professor of Entomology and chair of the Laboratory of Entomology of Wageningen University (the Netherlands). His research focuses on chemical, molecular, behavioural and community ecology of insects. He aims to understand ecological processes including the underlying mechanisms at the subcellular and physiological levels. His fundamental research is connected to applications in the fields of insects for biological control, host-plant resistance and insects for food and feed. He is the recipient of the Spinoza Award, 2007 (also known as the Dutch Nobel Prize), the Rank Prize for Nutrition (London 2006). He published more than 500 scientific papers in peer reviewed journals and several books among which (1) the text book Schoonhoven, L.M., van Loon, J.J.A., & Dicke, M. 2005. Insect-Plant Biology. 2nd edition. Oxford University Press, 421 pp. and (2) the Insect Cookbook, by A. van Huis, H. van Gurp and M. Dicke 2014. Columbia University Press, 191 pp. Dicke supervised more than 95 PhD students: for access to their theses click here. He was Rhodes Visiting Professor at Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA (2013-2016), Visiting Professor at the Institute of Insect Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, P.R. China (2008), Visiting Professor at the Centre for Population Biology, Imperial College at Silwood Park, UK (2002), Visiting Professor at the Max Planck Institute of Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany (1999) and Adjunct Associate Scientist at the Institute of Biological Chemistry, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, U.S.A. (1993). He is currently a member of the editorial boards of the Journal of Chemical Ecology, Ecological Entomology, Current Opinion in Insect Biology, Insect Science and Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata. Outreach activities include e.g. the organisation of the week-long festival Wageningen City of Insects (2006) and his TED talk at TED global entitled ‘Why not eat insects’. He was awarded the Eureka prize for science communication (2013).
Gail S. Anderson
Born: 1961│ Appointed: 2022
Field: Forensic Entomology
E-mail: ganderso AT sfu.ca
Website: click here
Bio: Dr. Gail S. Anderson (Canada) completed her B.Sc. (Hons) in Zoology at Manchester University, England, and her Master of Pest Management (M.P.M) and PhD in Entomology at Simon Fraser University, BC Canada. Dr. Anderson is a Professor in the School of Criminology at Simon Fraser University, Co-Director of the Centre for Forensic Research and holds a Burnaby Mountain Endowed Professorship. Since 1988, she has been a forensic entomology consultant to police, SPCA and Wildlife Enforcement and has testified as an expert witness many times. Her work has been featured in numerous television programs. Anderson was a recipient of Canada’s Top 40 under 40 Award, the YWCA Women of Distinction Award for Science and Technology, the SFU Outstanding Alumni Award, the CSFS Derome Award, the most prestigious award the Canadian Society of Forensic Sciences bestows for “outstanding contributions to the field of forensic science”, the Dean’s Medal for Academic Excellence and the AAFS, Path/Bio Award for Achievement in the Life Sciences. TIME magazine listed her as one of the top five global innovators in the world, this century, in the field of Criminal Justice in 2001 and as one of the Leaders for the 21st Century in 1999. She was listed as one of the 100 most Influential Women in BC by the Vancouver Sun in 2010, and one of the six most influential scientists in 2015. She is a past President of the Canadian Society of Forensic Sciences, President of the Entomological Society of Canada, North American Forensic Entomology Association, and the BC Entomological Society as well as a past Chair of the American Board of Forensic Entomology. She was recently awarded the ESC Gold Medal and the ESA Medical, Urban and Veterinary Entomology Recognition Award. She has published numerous papers and two books (both in 2nd editions).
Alison R. Mercer
Born: 1954│ Appointed: 2022
Field: Neuroethology, Neural mechanisms underlying insect behavior
E-mail: alison.mercer AT otago.ac.nz
Bio: Dr. Alison R. Mercer (New Zealand) is Professor Emerita at the University of Otago, New Zealand. She graduated with an Honours degree (Class I) in Zoology from Otago University in 1977 and completed her doctoral degree in 1979. After 3 years at the Free University in Berlin, Alison returned to a faculty position at the University of Otago in 1983. In 2002 she was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand, and in 2008 received the award of Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to Science. Her research focuses on the central role biogenic amines play in enabling insects to adapt to complex and ever-changing environments. She is Past President of the International Society for Neuroethology, a former Associate Editor of The Journal of Comparative Physiology A, and she continues to serve on the Scientific Advisory Board of the Max Planck Institute of Chemical Ecology in Jena, Germany, a position she has held since 2016. Dr. Mercer was elected to the United States National Academy of Sciences in 2022.
Mustapha El Bouhssini
Born: 1955 | Appointed: 2022
Field: Integrated Pest Management
E-mail: mustapha.elbouhssini AT um6p.ma
Bio: Dr. El Bouhssini earned his PhD in entomology from Kansas State University (KSU) in 1992. He started his research career as entomologist at the Dryland Research Center (INRA-Morocco) before joining the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) in 1996. Dr. El Bouhssini has been an Adjunct Faculty at KSU, Entomology Department since 2005. He joined Mohamed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P) in 2021 as Professor of Entomology and Program Lead, Biodiversity and Plant Sciences. Since February 2023, Dr. El Bouhssini has been appointed Associate Dean for Research at the College of Sustainable Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at UM6P. His major research focus has been on Integrated Pest Management (IPM) of key pests of cereals, food legumes, date palm and cactus. Dr. El Bouhssini has made exceptional contributions to the development of IPM options that are increasingly used and scaled out particularly in the West Asia, Central Asia, and North Africa regions. Dr. El Bouhssini has been the recipient of several awards that have recognized his achievements in the scientific field of entomology. Major awards include the 2021 Grand Prix Hasan II for Invention & Agronomic Research, category of Advanced Sciences and Technologies, the 2018 Lifetime Achievement Award in plant resistance to insects from the International Association of Plant Resistance to Insects, the 2014 Distinguished Scientist Award from the International Branch of the Entomological Society of America, the 2014 Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Kansas State University Department of Entomology and the 2007 International Plant Protection Award of Distinction from the International Association for the Plant Protection Sciences.
Jessica Ware
Born: 1977 | Appointed: 2022
Field: Insect systematics, evolution and behaviour
E-mail: jware AT amnh.org
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Bio: Jessica Ware is a full curator in invertebrate zoology at the American Museum of Natural History. Dr. Ware serves as the chair of the Division of Invertebrate Zoology for the American Museum of Natural History and serves on several editorial boards including Science. Dr. Ware’s research focuses on the evolution of behavioral and physiological adaptations in insects, with an emphasis on how these occur in Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) and Dictyoptera (termites, cockroaches, and mantises). She holds a BSc from the University of British Columbia in Canada, and a PhD from Rutgers, New Brunswick. Dr. Ware served as president of the Worldwide Dragonfly Association 2019-2021 and serves as past president of the Entomological Society of America. She serves as president elect of the Society of Systematic Biologists. She was awarded a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) medal from the US government for her work on insect evolution in 2019.
Hou-Feng Li
Born: 1979 | Appointed: 2024
Field: Urban entomology, termite biology and management
E-mail: houfeng AT nchu.edu.tw
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Bio: Hou-Feng LI (Chinese Taipei), born in 1979, is a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Entomology at National Chung Hsing University. He received his Ph.D. from the Entomology and Nematology Department at the University of Florida, USA, in 2009. His research focuses on urban entomology, with an emphasis on termite biology and management. He has published over 80 peer-reviewed papers and book chapters and delivered over 160 presentations. He was awarded the Ta-You Wu Memorial Award by the National Science and Technology Council and the William L. and Ruth D. Nutting Award for outstanding achievements in basic termite biology from the International Union for the Study of Social Insects. Prof. Li’s extensive involvement in academic societies reflects his commitment to advancing entomological research and fostering collaboration. A member of the Taiwan Entomological Society since 2001, he has held various leadership roles, including President (2019-2020), and is currently the Executive Supervisor. His participation in the Entomological Society of America since 2005 further emphasizes his global engagement. He has also been active in the Pacific Rim Termite Research Group since 2014 and now serves as President. Additionally, his work with the Taiwan Environmental Pest Management Association since 2014 highlights his dedication to pest management and sustainability.
Sunday Ekesi
Born: 1967 | Appointed: 2024
Field: Integrated Pest Management, Biopesticides
E-mail: sekesi AT icipe.org
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Bio: Sunday Ekesi (Nigeria) was born in 1967. He is a Principal Scientist at the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE), Nairobi, Kenya. He is an Extraordinary Professor at the University of Pretoria, South Africa. His research interests include biopesticide development, microbial control, biological control, bait development, habitat management, integrated pest management (IPM), insects for food and feed, biodiversity conservation, pesticide management, climate change, sustainable agriculture, one health amongst others. He obtained a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree in Zoology from University of Jos, Nigeria in 1989; Master of Science (MSc) degree in Applied Entomology & Parasitology from the same university in 1992 and a PhD in Crop Protection from Ahmadu Bello University, Nigeria in 1999. He joined ICIPE as a Post-doctoral Scientist in 2000 and in Rothamsted Research in UK in 2003. He later returned to icipe in 2004 and has held various research and administrative positions in the organization where he currently serves as the Deputy Director General – Research for Development. He has been leading a continent-wide initiative to manage fruit flies in Africa and he has successfully developed pre- and postharvest management methods for the pest that meet the demands for both domestic and quarantine-sensitive export markets. The program has significantly improved the production of fruits and vegetables affected by fruit flies and increased net income reaching >100 million beneficiary households across Africa. He has developed several biopesticides for use in IPM jointly with the private sector benefitting millions of households in Africa and globally; minimizing the use of synthetic pesticides which lead to pollution and negative effects on humans, biodiversity and the environment. He has generated ground-breaking knowledge and technologies on the use of insects as alternative sources of protein for food and feed informing policy decisions and leading to the development of standards for the use of insects as protein additives in animal feed and food in Africa. He has published > 275 peer reviewed articles in scientific journals. He has trained >30 graduate students (PhD and MSc). He has won several awards including The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) Award in Agricultural Sciences (2024) and Distinguished Scientist Award, Entomological Society of America, USA (2021). He is a Fellow of the Entomological Society of America (FESA), Royal Entomological Society (FRES), African Academy of Sciences (FAAS) and The World Academy of Sciences (FTWAS). He provides advisory services to various African governments and technical agencies including the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the UN, the World Bank (WB) amongst others.
Christian Borgemeister
Born: 1959 | Appointed: 2016
Field: Applied Entomology and Plant Protection
E-mail: cb AT uni-bonn.de
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Bio: Professor Borgemeister (Germany) born 1959. He obtained his PhD in Horticulture from Leibniz Hannover University (LUH) in 1991. He lectured at LUH before embarking on a research career in Africa in 1992. Until the end of 1997 he worked at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), in Benin, West Africa first as a Postdoctoral Fellow, then as an Associate and finally as a Senior Scientist coordinating a multi-country program on the integrated control of an invasive stored-product pest. He returned to Germany in 1998 working as an Assistant, then Associate and since 2003 as a Full Professor for Applied Entomology at LUH. From 2000–2001, he was also a Visiting Professor for Applied Zoology at the Justus-Liebig-University Giessen, Germany. From 2005 to 2013 he was the Director General of icipe, the International Centre of Insect Physiology (www.icipe.org), a Nairobi, Kenya headquartered pan-African R&D Centre. In October 2013 he was appointed Full Professor at the University of Bonn as Head of the Department for Ecology and Natural Resources Management of ZEF, the Centre of Development Research (www.zef.de). Since January 2015 he is the Managing Director of ZEF. Borgemeister is a Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences, the Royal Entomological Society and the Entomological Society of America. Borgemeister was for >8 years Chief Editor of the International Journal of Tropical Insect Science (published by Cambridge University Press) and has affiliations with other distinguished scientific journals as reviewer. He has authored and co-authored over 130 papers in peer-reviewed scientific journals, has co-authored a book on biological control in Africa, and has written over 10 chapters for different scientific books.
Maria Fatima Grossi de Sa
Born: 1956 | Appointed: 2024
Field: Plant-Insect Interactions; Sustainable Agriculture; Genomics and Crop Improvement
E-mail: fatima.grossi AT embrapa.br
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Bio: Maria Fatima Grossi-de-Sa is a researcher at EMBRAPA Genetic Resources and Biotechnology and a professor at the Catholic University of Brasília in Brazil. She is a full member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences (elected in 2011) and a member of the World Academy of Sciences (TWAS, elected in 2014). Among other awards/honors, she received the Scopus Award in 2010 (Elsevier/Capes) and the National Order of Scientific Merit in 2018. She has extensive experience in the field of plant-insect interactions and has dedicated her career to addressing agriculturally significant insect pests that threaten food production, aiming to provide solutions that enhance crop resilience and ensure food security in the face of climate change and environmental challenges. Currently, she is a coordinator of the National Institute of Science and Technology (INCT PlantStress Biotech), and her innovative research ranges from fundamental science to the development of biotechnological products, significantly influencing the national and international scientific community and promoting advanced technologies for sustainable agriculture. Her research emphasizes themes that include plant defense proteins, pesticidal proteins, the development of GM and edited crops for resistance to biotic stress and abiotic stress, and nanobiopesticides for topical applications, utilizing cutting-edge technologies such as genome editing and RNA interference (RNAi).
Shannon Olsson
Born: 1977 | Appointed: 2024
Field: Chemical Ecology, Neuroethology, Sustainable Development
E-mail: shannon AT echonetwork.in
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Bio: Dr. Shannon Olsson has dedicated a quarter century listening to nature’s chemical conversations, and the last decade laying the foundation for a sustainable India. As a Ph.D graduate from Cornell University, a project leader at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, and then a faculty member of the National Centre for Biological Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in India, Shannon is an international leader who brings her unique approach of merging her science background with non-science communities in multiple countries and sectors. Shannon is the founder and Global Director of the echo network, a 2500 member science with society network crossing 46 countries. She also serves through the echo network’s international hub as Special Scientific Envoy to India with the Danish Academy of Technical Sciences (ATV ) in close collaboration with the Danish Innovation Center in India under the auspices of the MFA and the MHER).
Renee Maria Borges
Born: 1959 | Appointed: 2024
Field: Plant–Insect Interactions, Mutualisms
E-mail: srenee AT iisc.ac.in
Bio: Renee M. Borges is a retired Professor at the Indian Institute of Science’s Centre for Ecological Science, Bengaluru, India. She is currently a Senior Scientist of the Indian National Academy of Sciences (INSA). Renee was Secretary of the Indian Academy of Sciences from 2019–2024 and is currently Secretary General of the International Union of Biological Sciences (IUBS). She was elected Honorary Fellow of the Entomology Society of India in 2025.
Renee graduated in Zoology and Microbiology from St. Xavier’s College, Bombay (now Mumbai). She obtained a Master’s in Animal Physiology from the Royal Institute, University of Bombay (now Mumbai). She has a PhD in Ecology from the University of Miami, Coral Gables, USA, where she studied the dietary preferences of giant squirrels Ratufa indica in Western Ghat Indian forests in relations to their phytochemistry.
Renee is an evolutionary biologist with a keen interest in inter-species interactions especially those involving plants, insects, and microbes. The main model systems she has researched are the interactions between figs and fig wasps, ants and plants, fungus-farming termites and their fungi, and pollination systems especially brood-site pollination mutualisms. She has been involved in the discovery of the world’s only known nocturnal bee that has colour vision under starlight conditions; this bee Xylocopa tranquebarica has evoked much interest in the evolution of nocturnality from diurnality in bees. Renee is a behavioural biologist and explores the sensory modalities of olfaction and vision in her work.
Renee has served on the Council of the International Society of Chemical Ecology (ISCE), as well as the Council of the Association of Tropical Biology and Conservation (ATBC). She is currently Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Biosciences, published jointly by the Indian Academy of Sciences and Springer Nature. She is also Editor-in-Chief of a Book Series on Ecology & Evolution, published jointly by the Indian Institute of Science and Cambridge University Press. She has served on and headed numerous committees of the Indian government related to research funding and also on policy matters related to genetically modified organisms.