Dr. Andrei Alyokhin received B.S. degree in Education in Biology and Chemistry from Moscow Pedagogical State University in Moscow, Russia. He then completed a Ph.D. in Entomology at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, advised by Dr. David Ferro. After doing post-doctoral work at the University of Hawaii under the supervision of Dr. Russell Messing, he joined faculty at the University of Maine in January of 2001 as an Assistant Professor of Applied Entomology. He was promoted to Associate Professor in 2007, and then to Professor in 2013. He also served one term as a Director of the School of Biology and Ecology.Dr. Alyokhin is interested in applied insect ecology, behavior, evolution of insecticide resistance, and integrated pest management. He is working mostly in potato agroecosystems, although recently he also started looking at insect mediated recycling of organic wastes. Dr. Alyokhin has authored or co-authored 181 publications, including 83 peer-reviewed articles in scientific journals. He also taught or co-taught Insect Ecology, Pesticides and the Environment, Biological Invasions, Introductory Applied Entomology, Evolution, Advanced Insect Pest Ecology and Management, Capstone Experience in Biological Sciences, and Professionalism in Biology. In addition, Dr. Alyokhin maintains an extensive outreach program to a variety of stakeholders, including potato growers, other crop production professionals, natural resource managers, K-12 students, and members of the general public. He is a recipient of several professional awards from Entomological Society of America, National Association of County Agricultural Agents, Aroostook County Extension Association, College of Natural Sciences, Food, and Agriculture at the University of Maine, and the U.S. National Park Service. Dr. Silvia I. Rondon is a Professor and Extension Entomology Specialist and Oregon State University Extension Entomologist Specialist affiliated to the Hermiston Agricultural Research and Extension Center and the Department of Crop & Soil Sciences. Silvia received her BA and MS in Entomology at the Agraria University in Lima, Perú, and her PhD in Crop Sciences with a major in Integrated Pest Management from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she worked on the influence of different cropping systems on the population dynamics of the western corn rootworm (Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte). In 2002, Silvia worked as a Postdoctoral Associate in the Horticulture Department at the University of Florida in Gainesville. In Florida, her responsibility was to develop an integrated pest management program for field and greenhouse strawberries to reduce insecticide use. In 2005, Silvia joined Oregon State University. Her area of expertise is pest management, insect ecology, insect distribution, population dynamics, insects-plant interactions, biological control, and chemical control. Her works involves various cropping systems including potatoes, onions, sweet corn, small fruits, and other high value vegetables. She has over 150 peer reviewed scientific and extension papers, book chapters, non-peer reviewed publications, abstracts, and reports. She has brought over $35 million in private, state, and federal grants through her collaborations around the world. She enjoys travelling and nature as well as spending time with her husband and two kids. Dr. Yulin Gao was Professor of Entomology working at Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences in Beijing, China. His primary research focus has been on integrated pest management of potato and vegetable crops. Dr Gao has authored more than 80 journal articles (2 in the Annual Review of Entomology) and book chapters, and he serves as the Executive Editor of the well-known international journal Pest Management Science. Furthermore he serves as an editorial board member for a number of journals including Journal of Economic Entomology and Journal of Pest Science. Dr. Gao also served as scientific advisory board member for 2020ICE Finland; committee member of International Branch of ESA; and the Vice President of APRS-IOBC. Dr Gao holds three degrees in entomology: B.S.,Southwest University, Chongqing (2003); M.S (2006) and Ph.D(2009) from Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing.
