Page 5 - Plant Canada 2024 Proceeding

PLANT CANADA 2024

This year’s meeting at the RBC Convention Centre in Winnipeg has been organized by the
Canadian Phytopathological Society (CPS), and there are many people to thank for their hard
efforts and ideas that have brought the meeting to fruition. I am especially grateful to the
meeting co-chairs Dilantha Fernando (CPS) and Tom Fetch (CPS), and meeting coordinator
Brenda Trask (SeCan) for overseeing the development of this conference. Special thanks also
go to Gary Peng (CPS) for kick starting this meeting and the early stages of its planning. I
would also of course acknowledge the hard work and involvement of the Scientific Organizing,
Fund-Raising, and Local Arrangements Committees, and Board Members of Plant Canada who
have contributed to making this event happen, whose names and affiliations are listed below.
Importantly, the meeting would not happen without the generous support and involvement of our
sponsors.

Science Committee
Lord Abbey (CSHS); Guillaume Bilodeau (CPS); Bourlaye Fofana (CSHS); John Markham
(CBA); Andrew McKenzie-Gopsill (CWSS); Harpinder Randhawa (CSA); Marcus Samuel
(CSPB); Barry Saville (CPS); Stacy Singer (CAPB); Stephen Strelkov (CPS)

Fund-Raising Committee
Tom Fetch (CPS), Vikram Bisht (CPS), Mindy Liu (CPS), Hugo Zheng (CSPB), Sylvie Renault
(CBA), Valérie Gravel (CSHS), Pankaj Bhowmik (CAPB), Albert Tenuta (CSA), Mario Tenuta
(CSA), Jagroop Kahlon (CSA), Harpinder Randhawa (CSA), Nicolle MacDonald (CWSS)

Local Arrangements Committee
Tom Fetch (CPS), Dilantha Fernando (CPS), Brenda Trask (SeCan), Champa Wijikoon (CSHS),
Mark Belmonte (CSPB), Santosh Kumar (CSA), John Markham (CBA), Pankaj Bhowmik
(CAPB), and Dilshan Benaagama (CWSS)

Plant Canada Board of Directors and Executive (current members):
Beatrice Amyotte (CSHS); Guillaume Bilodeau (CPS); Rory Degenhardt (CWSS); Sangeeta
Dhaubhadel (CAPB); Deena Errampalli (PC Past-President); Bourlaye Fofana (CSHS); Moira
Galway (CBA); Valerie Gravel (PC Vice President; CSHS); Maria Antonia Henriquez (CPS);
Susanne Kohalmi (CAPB); Jamie Larsen (CSA); Andrew McKenzie-Gopsill (CWSS); Rima
Menassa (PC Secretary; CAPB); Teagen Quilichini (PC Treasurer; CSPB); Harpinder
Randhawa (CSA); Marcus Samuel (CSPB); Julian Starr (CBA); Geoffrey Wasteneys (PC
President); Hugo Zheng (CSPB)

Plant Canada Board of Directors and Executive (prior to 2023):
Lone Buchwaldt (CPS); Andrew Burt (CSA); Robin Cameron (CSPB); Mumtaz Cheema (CSA);
David Clements (CWSS); Diane Edwards (Secretary; CSHS); Daphne Goring (CSPB); Sheau-
Fang Hwang (CPS); Gayle Jesperson (PC Treasurer, until 2023); Gary Peng (CPS); Jaswinder
Singh (CSA); Sheri Strydhorst (CSA); Youbin Zheng (CSHS)

I will take this opportunity to thank members of the Plant Canada Executive who have been a
delight to work with during my time as President. They are Vice President Valérie Gravel
(McGill), Secretary Rima Menassa, Treasurers Gayle Jesperson (2015-2023) and Teagen
Quilichini (since 2023), and Immediate Past-President Deena Errampalli. Special thanks to
Past-President Shahrokh Khanizadeh for continuing to serve as Plant Canada Webmaster.

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