The American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) presented awards to five young members for notable early-career achievements. The five were honored at the 2022 ASABE Annual International Meeting.
Click on links below for more biographical information and portraits. Click here to request additional photos.
EHSAN GHANE is the recipient of the 2022 Larry W. Turner Young Extension Professional Award for his advancement of agricultural and biological engineering by significantly improving the design and implementation of subsurface drainage. Ghane is an assistant professor and extension specialist in biosystems and agricultural engineering at Michigan State University, where he conducts research and works in extension in the areas of water quality and agricultural drainage. Ghane provides practical drainage education that ties closely to his applied research for addressing the needs of a wide group of stakeholders. Ghane’s applied research seeks to increase the performance and profitability of subsurface drainage systems and reduce its water-quality impact. Ghane embraces diversity and interdisciplinary research to advance agricultural engineering and acceleration of scientific discovery in the drainage community. Full Biography
The Larry W. Turner Young Extension Professional Award recognizes excellence in personal character and outstanding achievement in serving and motivating clientele to acquire new knowledge and skills, transferring technology and research, and advancing the profession of agricultural and biological engineering.
ADAM WATSON is the 2022 recipient of the A.W. Farrall Young Educator Award for his contributions to the advancement of agricultural operations management and for stimulating professional development, intellectual curiosity, and achievement. Watson is an assistant professor and the undergraduate coordinator of Agricultural Operations Management (AOM) in the agricultural and
biological engineering department at the University of Florida. Watson teaches and coordinates courses in technical management, food systems, controlled environment plant production, professional practices, and applied methods for smart agricultural systems. He also conducts research in the areas of food systems, technology adoption, food marketing, and farm management. He is currently leading projects on the feasibility of local and regional food hubs to support small- and medium-sized specialty crop producers as well as the acceptance of smart technology to identify and select alternative water sources for irrigation. Full BiographyThe A. W. Farrall Young Educator Award honors outstanding success in motivating the application of engineering principles to the problems of agricultural engineering.
CARY S. HUBNER is the recipient of the 2022 Sunkist Young Designer award for his exceptional engineering design, innovation, and advancements in technology of modern large-scale planting equipment. Hubner is a staff engineer in Crop Care Technology Development at the John Deere Seeding Group in Moline, Illinois. He is responsible for new planting technology development, specializing in machine design to optimize seed emergence uniformity. He leads a team to identify the most valuable new planting technologies, develop solutions to meet the growers’ needs, and demonstrate the feasibility of the design. Hubner also mentors interns and students in planter innovation. Full Biography
The Sunkist Young Designer Award honors the development or creation of a technical plan that is materially influencing agricultural engineering progress, as evidenced by use in the field.
M. TOURIQ REZA is the 2022 recipient of the New Holland Young Researcher Award for his role as an emerging global leader connecting diverse fields of agricultural, chemical, and environmental engineering on biomass conversion. Reza is an assistant professor of chemical engineering in the Department of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences at the Florida Institute of Technology. He currently teaches courses in introduction to environmental engineering, heat transfer processes, industrial safety, and chemical reaction engineering. Reza also leads a research group seeking to apply fundamental chemical engineering concepts and hydrothermal processes to recover energy and value-added products from unwanted wet biowastes in a sustainable manner. Full Biography
The New Holland Young Researcher Award honors dedicated use of scientific methodology to seek out facts or principles significant to agricultural engineering.
TIFFANY L. MESSER is the 2022 recipient of the Gale A. Holloway Professional Development award for her exemplary support of career development and membership activities for ASABE student members at local, section, and national levels. Messer is an assistant professor in biosystems and agricultural engineering at the University of Kentucky. Messer conducts research and teaches courses related to identifying, tracing, and treating water in agroecosystems. She has supervised a number of graduate student projects and student undergraduate summer research projects. Messer is currently a fellow of the University of Kentucky Center for Appalachian Research in Environmental Sciences. This organization seeks to enhance the interactions and expand the critical mass of investigators and citizen scientists with expertise and experience in transdisciplinary, translational environmental health research on the University of Kentucky campus and in Appalachian communities. The purpose of this pilot program is to provide new opportunities and resources to support innovative, collaborative environmental research. Full Biography
The Gale A. Holloway Professional Development Award seeks to encourage and recognize outstanding leadership and active involvement in ASABE for early career members.
The American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers is an international scientific and educational organization dedicated to the advancement of engineering applicable to agricultural, food, and biological systems.