Alcorn’s Kostyleva participates in international conference at Penn State
Alcorn’s Kostyleva participates in international conference at Penn State
Elena Kostyleva, senior staff writer in the Division of Media and University Relations, participated in the second International Conference on Pollinator Biology, Health and Policy held at Penn State University, Pennsylvania, August 14-17, 2013.
This Conference brought together individuals from universities, government agencies, agrochemical companies, non-profit organizations, and several stakeholder groups from across the nation and abroad, to discuss the research, management, conservation and policy approaches needed to tackle the issues of dramatic declines in pollinator populations world-wide.
“Pollinators are essential for both plants and animals in agriculture and natural ecosystems, so the problem of pollinator populations’ decline not only has alarmed the scientific community, but has gained prominence in the popular press, raising the public’s awareness about threats to our ecosystem,” stated Kostyleva. “The causes for pollinator decline are complex, and it is thought that a combination of many stressors are responsible, including parasites, pathogens, environmental toxins, and poor nutrition and habitat loss.”
Kostyleva recently received her a Ph.D. in agriculture with a concentration in biological resources from Voronezh State Agricultural University, Voronezh, Russia. Her research on honey and pollen producing plants was carried out in the state of Mississippi. At the Conference, she did a poster presentation “Conservation of Melittophilic Plants Species’ Diversity as the Essential Environmental Function of Bee Pollinators.” Kostyleva took advantage of the networking opportunities provided by the Conference and made several contacts with the representatives of domestic and international higher education institutions, industry and agencies. She shared about Alcorn’s mission as land-grant institution and the University’s quest for talented students with diverse backgrounds.
Pictured: Elena Kostyleva answering question about her research.
