From the Executive Director
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Darrin is taking a well-earned break this month. His column will return in the September issue. |
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New initiatives, rapidly evolving technology, leadership changes—it’s an exciting time to be in ASABE. Here’s your chance to dig into the issues, with newly installed ASABE President Doug Otto. The conversation will be facilitated by emcee Amy McWhirter.
Register now and plan to bring your questions!
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Annual Meeting
AIM Content Available through October
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That's a wrap! The 2024 Annual International Meeting was well attended, with more than 1600 people from all around the world! We hope you enjoyed the photos sent in the July issue of this newsletter.
If you were registered, you can enjoy the recorded sessions and lightning presentations until the end of October. You will also find the CBS panel, general session and keynote address, awards luncheon, and remarks from 2024–2025 ASABE President Doug Otto. Access all content through your meeting app or directly on the meeting platform.
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| Thanks to all of our presenters, competition participants, committee members, and sponsors who made #ASABE24 a success. And a special shoutout to our volunteers, from the California/Nevada section and beyond, who helped keep a sunny California vibe going throughout the week. |
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We're already thinking ahead to Toronto and #ASABE25, and if you are, too, we're happy to share this preliminary information about sessions and abstract deadlines.
The technical community program chairs are working on next year's sessions. If you're wondering how the annual meeting program all comes together and are interested in getting involved, reach out to your program chair and inquire about being a session moderator or organizer. |
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Expand Your Perspective,
Grow Your Impact
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January 11-17, 2026
Aguadilla, Puerto Rico
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ASABE is pleased to announce the call for abstracts for the Global Symposium on Sustainable Microirrigation Advances: Drop to Boom, to be held
January 11-17, 2026, at the Punta Borinquen Resort in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico.
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Share your expertise at this specialty conference by submitting an abstract before the deadline of February 15, 2025. The submission portal is now open. The symposium invites research on five main themes:
- Challenges to Sustaining Microirrigation into the Future
- Technological Advancements in Microirrigation Systems
- Role of Microirrigation Systems in Land, Water, Energy, & Food Security
- Stakeholder & Community Engagement & Education Microirrigation Design, Innovations
- New Techniques for Increased Crop Productivity
The expanded list of themes is available in the symposium brochure. Bookmark the symposium website where updates will be posted for full schedule details, registration, sponsorship options, and more.
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ASABE JOURNALS
Call for Papers: Robotics Safety, Constructed Wetlands, and More
We invite you to contribute to our scholarly community by submitting manuscripts to our new open-access Journal of Natural Resources and Agricultural Ecosystems, as well as our other hybrid journals and special collections.
These special collections are accepting manuscripts:
8/31/2024 Safety for Emerging Robotics and Autonomous Agriculture
9/15/2024 Constructed Wetlands
12/30/2024 Climate Change Impacts on Natural Resource and Agricultural Systems
12/31/2024 Regenerative Agriculture
11/1/2025 Sustainable Groundwater in Agriculture
Just follow our step-by-step submission instructions. Consider also our special collections, manuscripts for which are due at the end of December.
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AIM Papers Posted
The papers submitted to us before the annual meeting have been posted online. You may still submit your paper to Jill at straub@asabe.org through October.
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Enjoy a Discount When Publishing Your AIM Paper
Further develop your 2024 AIM non-refereed presentation into a high-quality peer reviewed manuscript. Submit to the ASABE journals and receive a page charge discount of $100 or 10%, if over 10 pages for the final layout. You must be registered for the annual meeting, present your work at the AIM, and submit your manuscript to Scholar One by October 1, 2024.
Note that all manuscripts must go through our high-quality review process to be published in the ASABE journals.
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New From ASABE Publications
Open Access Articles, Special Collection Articles, New Journal Issues
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RESOURCE MAGAZINE
Visual Challenge: Your Photos Tell the Story
 It's innovative. It's transformative. It's beautiful. Agricultural and biological engineering is many things, all of which can be captured with your camera lens.
Join us our in annual Visual Challenge and help us showcase the world of agricultural and biological engineering. It's an excellent opportunity for you to share and celebrate your work, research, or technical community. Get creative with your camera, and submit as many entries as you think are compelling!
Submit your photos to Resource Managing Editor Melissa Miller by November 1, 2024. Make sure your submissions are original and have a resolution of 300 dpi or higher. Include a title and brief description for each image. If needed, add a name for image credit and assure us you have permission to submit and possibly publish the image. The cream of the crop will be picked by our ASABE team and featured in our January/February 2025 Resource issue. We’re excited to see your contributions! Don’t forget to check out previous winning entries to get inspired.
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Approved Projects
X471.1, Procedure for Measuring Sprayer Nozzle Wear Rate
X642.1, Recommended Methods for Measurement and Testing of Electromagnetic Radiation Sources for Plant Growth and Development
X562.2, Procedure for Determining Recommended Ballast and Minimum Rear Wheel Tread Settings for Agricultural Tractors with Agricultural Front Loaders
X647.1, Seed Cotton Module Identification System
X667-1, Moisture Relationship of Plant-based Agricultural Products - Part 1: Terminology and Formulas
X667-2, Moisture Relationship of Plant-based Agricultural Products - Part 2: Data for Major Grains and Oilseeds
New Standards
ASABE/ISO 12140-1:2020 JUN2024, Agricultural trailers and trailed equipment — Drawbar jacks — Part 1: Design safety, test methods and acceptance criteria
ASABE/ISO 12140-2:2020 JUN2024, Agricultural trailers and trailed equipment — Drawbar jacks — Part 2: Application safety, test methods and acceptance criteria
Revised Standards
ASAE D243.5 JUL2024, Thermal properties of Grain and Grain Products
ASAE EP407.3 AUG2024, Agricultural Drainage Outlets—Open Channels
ANSI/ASABE S625.2, AUG2024 Drawbar Pin Dimensions and Requirements
Withdrawn Standard
ASABE/ISO 12140:2013 JUN2014 (R2018), Agricultural machinery — Agricultural trailers and trailed equipment — Drawbar jacks
Press Releases
June 3, 2024, ASABE Revising Standard on Ballast and Tread Settings for Ag Tractors (press release)
June 11, 2024, ASABE Replaces Drawbar Jack Standard with Two Part ISO Standard (press release)
June 13, 2024, ASABE to Develop New Series of Standards for Plant Moisture Relationships (press release)
August 16, 2024, ASABE Revised Standard for Drawbar Pins (press release)
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Coming Soon: ASABE Awards & Recognition Wrap-Up
There was a lot to celebrate at the 2024 Annual International Meeting. Cue the laughter and ebullience of our newly inducted class of ASABE Fellows, shown above.
And their enthusiasm has inspired us.
From to major award winners, to student competitions, to our new Fellows, we think the venerable list of honorees merits a mailing of its own. So watch your Inbox in coming days for a special mailing from our Awards & Recognitions program for a round-up of all the honorees and competition results. It will leave you cheering (maybe happily making bunny ears #BeLikeMichelle). |
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AE50 Nominations are Now Open!
 Has your company produced new, innovative technology this year? Your product could be eligible for an AE50 product award!
Submit your nominations by September 25. For more details, eligibility requirements, and nomination instructions, visit the AE50 webpage.
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Major Awards Nominations Open September 1
We'll begin accepting nominations for Major Awards on September 1. All nominations must be submitted by October 31.
All details and a complete list of ASABE Major Awards can be found online.
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| During this year's annual meeting, in Anaheim, the ASABE Foundation and Young Professionals Community hosted an animated evening of camaraderie and competitive trivia, raising more than $4,500-and-counting for youth initiatives of the Foundation. Peter Livingston, chair of the ASABE Foundation Development committee, BRAE department Head for Cal Pol, and active member of the California/Nevada section, pulled together local resources to host the annual dinner and trivia event. A special thank you goes to the evening’s sponsors TopCon, Automated Industrial Machinery, Inc., and Bosque Engineering. |
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The "Presidential Pardons" (above) nabbed first place in the team trivia contest, while Team "Let's Go Farrell !"(below) finished third.
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Guest speaker, and leader of facilities for Disneyland, Tony Castillo shared his story of translating an agricultural engineering technology degree from Cal Poly into the management of several international Disney theme parks. Gayle Baker led six rounds of trivia for more than ten teams, with Dana Porter, Gary Seibel, Doug Otto clenching the victory (top photo). Leading the fundraising efforts with a pledge to "put the fun in fundraising," Travis Tsunemori challenged the group several times throughout the evening to match his giving.
Thank you to everyone who attended and generously contributed to student competitions, YPC, and the KEYS fund. Mark your calendars for next year's event in Toronto!
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MEMBER EVENTS
SECTION AND STUDENT ACTIVITIES
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Become an ABET Program Evaluator
 Are you interested in contributing to the accreditation process of an ABE program at a college or university? You can make a significant impact on the profession by becoming an ABET Program Evaluator (PEV) for ASABE.
ASABE members from academia, industry, and government bring valuable expertise to the peer-review process. The Society’s membership in ABET supports accreditation of college and university programs in applied and natural sciences, computing, engineering, and engineering technology at associate's, bachelor’s, and master’s degree levels worldwide. Learn more about ABET and contact Peter Livingston to sign on as a volunteer.
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KNOW YOUR BENEFITS
PE Exam Study Sessions
Underway
 Are you preparing to take the October 10 ag and bio PE exam? We're here to help you succeed. We kicked off a series of online study sessions on July 2. Those sessions were recorded and uploaded to our YouTube channel.
Two sessions remain; please register individually for each:
September 12
September 26
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Career Opportunity: Jefferson Science Fellowships
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine is pleased to announce a call for applications for the 2025 Jefferson Science Fellowships. Established by the Secretary of State in 2003, these fellowships engage the American academic science, technology, engineering, and medical communities in U.S. foreign policy and international development.
Fellowships are open to tenured, or similarly ranked, faculty from U.S. institutions of higher learning who are U.S. citizens.
After successfully obtaining a security clearance, Fellows will spend one year on assignment at the U.S. Department of State or the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) serving as advisers on issues of foreign policy and international development.
Applications will be accepted from August 1 through October 15, 2024 at 5 pm eastern.
Learn more
The JSFs are administered by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and supported by the U.S. Department of State and USAID.
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 Richard Stephen Gates, 67, of Ames, Iowa, passed away November 8, 2023.
Born May 1, 1956, in Plymouth, Minnesota, Gates obtained a BS in agricultural engineering from the University of Minnesota in 1978. He continued his education at Cornell University, earning both masters and doctoral degrees, in agricultural engineering and biological engineering, respectively.
Gates's work encompassed research, teaching, and extension, all centered on controlled environment agriculture, with an emphasis on ventilation, control systems, and physiological responses of animals with their environment. He also conducted research on animal welfare, precision livestock farming, post-harvest loss, and greenhouse ventilation. His love for life, research and education led him on numerous international adventures during his tenure as a professor at the University of Kentucky, University of Illinois, and Iowa State University. His professional research travels included Australia, Brazil, China, South Africa, Greece, Japan, and Israel, sharing his knowledge as one of the most highly regarded agricultural engineers in the world. Of these many places, He particularly cherished his numerous trips to Brazil that were filled with fond memories such as farm visits, road trips, and enjoying churrasco and caipirinhas with his colleagues, friends, and students across Brazil.
Gates was a beloved professor to many, mentoring and influencing more than 110 students during their journeys toward master’s and doctoral degrees, many of whom now hold positions in industry, university or government research institutions in the U.S., Brazil, China and Europe. He was a perpetual teacher at heart and a selfless mentor to all he encountered, leaving a lasting influence not only as a professor but also as a colleague and administrator—serving as chair of the University of Kentucky Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering (2002–2007) and briefly as acting chair for the Department of Animal Science at Iowa State University (2020). He remained dedicated to his work until his final days. At the time of his passing, he held the Iowa Egg Council Endowed Professor at Iowa State University and served as the Director of the Egg Industry Center.
Inducted as a Fellow in 2010, Gates was a 39-year member of the Society and served on the Board of Trustees from 2008 to 2010.
Full obituary
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 ASABE staff was saddened to learn of the passing of a dear colleague earlier this spring. Many members will remember Linda Young, who served for fourteen years as ASABE's Membership and Foundation administrator, and organized the annual golf outing and silent auction. Young passed away May 12, at the age of 77.
Full obituary
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