Sustainable Agriculture Summit

The Arion, Iowa farmer runs a 6,000 acre no-till operation of corn, soybean, and winter wheat. He also manages a 500 head cow-calf herd and GLC Beef, a direct-to-consumer beef retail operation. Some of Garrett's main goals on the farm are practicing soil conservation and achieving uniformity of yield throughout his many acres.  Kelly Garrett boasts a 2016 National Corn Growers Association win using drip irrigation, several state NCGA no-till irrigated yield wins, and most recently took third place nationally in the National Corn Yield Contest, no-till irrigated class, with a yield of 387.93 BPA in 2021.

Mr. Sheldon Jones, a 4th generation Arizonan, was born and raised on the family’s ranch near Payson, AZ.  Sheldon now serves as the Chief Operating Officer with the Soil Health Institute, Morrisville, NC, with over 40 years of experience, a balance of private sector, non-profit and public service experience. Prior to joining SHI Sheldon served as Vice President at the Farm Foundation, from 2008 to 2016, where he oversaw the Foundation’s financial operations and project management activities. His public service experience involved service as deputy commissioner of the Colorado Department of Agriculture, 2004-2008. From 2002 until 2004, Sheldon was executive vice president of the Agri-Business and Water Council of Arizona. In From 1997 until 2002, Mr. Jones was director of the Arizona Department of Agriculture. During his term, he was active in the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, the Arizona/Mexico Commission, and the Board of Governors Agribusiness and Water Committee.  Mr. Jones worked in the Arizona banking industry for 14 years before beginning his career in government service. Mr. Jones earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Agri-Business at Arizona State University.

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Porter also is an attorney, having graduated from Harvard University with a bachelor’s degree and obtaining her juris doctor from Arizona State University (ranking third in her class). She clerked for federal appellate Judge William Canby and was a litigator for Brown & Bain; Coppersmith Gordon Schermer Owens & Nelson, PLC; and Osborn Maledon PA. She left her law career in 2006 for Audubon because she wanted to contribute to a collaborative effort to address Arizona’s natural resource challenges. She will now dedicate that focus to the Kyl Center.

Cynthia Rosenzweig, Senior Research Scientist and head of the Climate Impacts Group at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS), is the 52nd Laureate of the World Food Prize. By designing and leading rigorous observational and modeling research efforts, she has influenced climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies in over 90 countries. She founded the Agricultural Model Intercomparison and Improvement Project (AgMIP) in 2010,building a community of experts dedicated to advancing methods for improving predictions of the future performance of agricultural and food systems in the face of climate change. She is also an Adjunct Senior Research Scientist at the Columbia Climate School and a Professor at Barnard College.

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