Dr. Alireza Rahemi worked several years as a fruit tree specialist at the Ministry of Agriculture in Iran. He is interested on wild relatives of subtropical and temperate fruit trees. He received his Ph.D. in 2010, in Horticulture from Tehran Azad University, Science and Research branch, where his research focused on wild almond species, including genetic diversity, and the application of emerging molecular techniques. He has also been involved in research on the native wild grapes species and their utilization in rootstock breeding at the University of Guelph, Canada. At present, he is a post-doctoral research associate at Virginia State University, USA.

Dr. Jean C. Dodson Peterson is an associate professor of Viticulture at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. She earned her undergraduate degree from the University of California, Davis, in Viticulture and Enology with a minor in Managerial Economics in 2009. She continued at UC Davis, earning her M.S. and Ph.D. in Horticulture and Agronomy in 2012 and 2014, respectively. She teaches Basic Viticulture, the Advanced Viticulture Series, Advanced Independent Study, Senior Project Research and Thesis courses. She has been awarded the Panhellenic Award for Excellence in Education and the Terrance Harris Award for Excellence in Mentorship. Her research program strives to advance the understanding of grapevine physiology, rootstock-scion interactions, rootstock selection, and vine performance factors. Her research mission is to execute innovative and inspiring research that advances the wine and viticulture industry and scientific community.

Dr. Karl True Lund is the University of California Viticulture Advisor for Madera, Merced, and Mariposa Counties. The primary research he is currently conducting is looking at the adaptation of nematode resistant rootstocks for high yielding mechanized vineyards. Prior to his current position, he was a lecturer at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, where he taught introductory viticulture and viticulture pest management classes. He conducted his Ph.D. work at the University of California at Davis under Dr. Andy Walker. His Ph.D. work looked at the diversity of phylloxera within California. He also assessed the resistance of wild accessions and current rootstocks to the different types of phylloxera he identified within the state.