Dr. Kakani brings a distinguished record of academic leadership, research excellence, and international collaboration to this role. At the University of Florida, he served as Professor and Chair of the UF/IFAS Agronomy Department, currently Professor in Agricultural & Biological Engineering and holds joint leadership responsibilities through GFSI. Prior to UF, he held two distinguished professorships and served as Interim Department Head at Oklahoma State University, where he developed nationally and internationally recognized programs in bioenergy, crop modeling, and sustainable agriculture.
His scholarship is widely respected: with nearly 100 peer-reviewed publications, six book chapters, nearly 175 invited and volunteer talks and presentations, and more than $16 million in competitive research funding from agencies such as NSF, USDA-NIFA, DOE, and NASA, Dr. Kakani’s work bridges the cutting edge of crop production, digital agriculture, remote sensing, and climate-smart farming systems. He is also actively involved in mentoring undergraduates domestically through NSF REU and internationally through World Bank funded projects. His contributions have earned international recognition, including the Fulbright-Kalam Climate Fellowship for building U.S.–India collaborations on sustainable agriculture, and multiple professional society honors from the Association of Agricultural Scientists of Indian Origin.
“I have a passion for international research, and a passion to promote collaboration, with the mantra of ‘connect-collaborate-cocreate. Agriculture is global, so feeding the planet sustainably is our primary goal as this leads to happy people, societies, and planet.”
That passion began early: working as a research associate at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) in India and earning his Ph.D. in Crop Physiology and Modeling from the University of Reading, England, he witnessed firsthand how nations could unite to solve shared agricultural challenges of hunger and malnutrition.
As Associate Director of GFSI, Dr. Kakani is spearheading efforts to expand UF’s global footprint, especially in underrepresented regions at UF such as India and Southeast Asia. In January 2025, he co-led a UF delegation—including Dr. Scott Angle, Dr. Adegbola Adesogan, Dr. Jasmeet Judge, and Dr. Andy Ogram—to India, where they built new partnerships with national institutes like ICAR and NABARD, state agricultural universities, national councils and industries. These efforts lay the groundwork for upcoming summit on AI and south-south cooperation focused on co-developing solutions for food security, nutrition, and climate resilience.
“Through GFSI, we aim to integrate the best scientific know-how with sustainable traditional practices from around the world to promote North-South and South-South cooperation,” he explains. “There is a growing need for global cooperation—how we design foods, balance nutrition, and adapt to escalating climate and geopolitical challenges will determine food security for billions.”
Dr. Kakani’s career, spanning India, the UK, and the U.S., reflects a consistent vision: connecting global research systems, fostering innovation, and ensuring agriculture contributes to a resilient and sustainable future for all.
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