Conference Program (subject to change):
Day 1: 09 June, 2026 Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center
13:00 Optional Technical Tour
17:00 Registration Desk Opens – pick up your nametag and welcome packet
18:00 Evening Session – Welcome and Keynotes (Presidents Ballroom)
– Russell Redding, PA Secretary of Agriculture
– Kevin Atticks, MD Secretary of Agriculture
– Troy Ott, Penn State Dean, College of Agricultural Science
19:00 Posters and Reception (Presidents Ballroom)
– student research posters, commercial posters and displays
Day 2: 10 June, 2026 Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center
7:30 Registration Desk Opens – pick up your nametag and welcome packet
Breakfast buffet (outside Presidents Ballroom)
8:30 Welcome, Morning Plenary (Presidents Ballroom)
8:35 – Keynote Presentation: Lisa Schulte-Moore, Iowa State University
9:15 – Policy Panel Discussion (Moderator: Lara Fowler, Penn State) Alex DePillis, VT Agency of Food,, Ag & Mkts; Mike Roth, PA Dept of Ag, Katie Zerfuss, PA PUC
10:30 Morning Break
10:45 Breakout Sessions #1
Session 1a: Advancing Policy Frameworks for AD on the Farm
- Growing the On-farm Biogas Opportunity in the Midwest – Brad Matuska, Agricultural Utilization Research Institute
- Anaerobic Digester Policy at the Federal and State Levels – Michael D Helbing, Penn State University — Center for Energy Law and Policy
- Stakeholder-informed scenario analysis aimed an finding win-win solutions and policy needs – Chris Costello, Penn State
- Odor, Trucks, and Trust: Understanding and Addressing Community Concerns About On-Farm AD – Mindi DePaola, Environmental Defense Fund
- Supporting Biogas with Pennsylvania’s Ag Innovation Fund – Michael Roth, PA Department of Agriculture
Session 1b: Feedstock and Digestate Management
- What’s in our feedstocks? – Elmin Rahic, Iowa State Univesity
- Manure Movement, and Community Digester Siting: An Application Engineering Approach – Daniel Andersen, Iowa State University
- A System-Level Framework for Valorizing Specialty Crop Residues: The Impact of Viticulture Feedstock Heterogeneity on Bioenergy Performance – Matteo Mereu, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY ESF)
- Scaling up Winter Rye as a new Bioenergy Feedstock in the US – Esther Parish, DOE Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Session 1c: Understanding the Fundamentals of Anaerobic Digestion
- What is a digester anyway?
- Making the digester a safe part of your farm – Luke Darlington, Penn State Extension
- What’s it like to run a digester on a farm? – Farmer Panel
- Case Study: Small Dairy Biogas to Power – Matt Steiman, Dickinson College Farm
Session 1d: Innovative Approaches to AD
- Boosting Anaerobic Digestion on Cow Farms via Sludge-to-Sludge HEAT RECOVERY – Erwin Schwartz, DDI HEAT EXCHANGERS INC
- Anaerobic Digestion of Poultry Litter – Matthew McVey, University of Arkansas
- From Waste to Watts: Two-Phase Anaerobic Digestion and Biochar Integrated Systems for On-Site Energy and Bioproduct Recovery – Anga Hackula, University of Maryland
Heated Anaerobic Digesters vs Covered Lagoons for RNG, Electricity, or - Flaring – A Techno-economic and Emission Analysis – Luke Soko, Iowa State University
- Poultry Power: Millennium RNG Facility – Nick Cloyd, Planet Found Energy Development
12:10 Lunch (President’s Ballroom)
13:00 Afternoon Plenary (President’s Ballroom)
– Poster Session Awards (Heather Dzidzic, American Biogas Council)
13:15 – Codigestion Panel Discussion (Moderator: Heather Karsten, Penn State) Rashi Akki, AgGrid Energy; Will Charlton, Digester Doc;
14:30 Afternoon Break
15:00 Breakout Sessions #2
Session 2a: AD in a Regional, National, Global Context
- Regional US Biogas Utilization Pathways – Lauren Ray, Cornell University
- Evaluating the potential of anaerobic digesters in Iowa’s energy landscape: Farmer perspectives – J. Arbuckle, Iowa State University Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice
- Anaerobic digestion in Maryland: Trends, Barriers, and Opportunities – Stephanie Lansing, University of Maryland
- From Data Scarcity to Energy Security: Leveraging Machine Learning for Food Waste Forecasting and AD Allocation – Roger A. Leyba Mercado, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
- Biogas solutions in emerging markets, using Iraq as a case study – Muaman Makki, Ras Al-Ain
- Agri-Innovation: Stakeholder Themes for Anaerobic Digester Technology Adoption – Mark Gagnon, Amy Bubb, Penn State
Session 2b: Ecosystem Services and Farm Digesters
- Re-imagining Anaerobic Digestion to Maximize Carbon Removal – Stephanie Herbstritt, Tom Richard, Penn State University
- Do Dairy Digesters Reduce Methane Emissions? Evidence from Satellite Data – Jasmin Wehner, Cornell University
- Maximizing the Economic Benefits of Carbon Intensity scores with 45Z-CF GREET – Tom Richard, Penn State
- What Can Prairie Do For You? Understanding Local Perspectives on Emerging Prairie-Based Bioenergy Opportunities – Margaret Anderson, Iowa State University
- Finding and characterizing methane losses from dairy digester systems – Lauren Ray, Cornell University
- Media sentiment in anaerobic digestion coverage: A quantitative content analysis – Forrest Stagnar, Penn State
Session 2c: Digester Performance and Operation
- Digester operation, maintenance and performance assessment opportunities for on-farm digesters. – Eric Bancks, Roeslein Renewables
- Comparative Techno-Economic Assessment of Electricity and Renewable Natural Gas Production from Dairy Farm Anaerobic Digesters – Camila Valderrama, The Pennsylvania State University
- Expanding the Feasibility of On-Farm Anaerobic Digestion Operations: An Innovative Application of Thermal-Alkaline Hydrolysis and Combined Digestion and Storage of Livestock Manures – Kelly Ward, Lystek International
- Lessons Learned in Anaerobic Digester Operations – Will Charlton
Digester Doc, Managing Dairy Digestate Cost Effectively to Reduce Ammonia Losses, Avoid Salinization, Produce High Quality Reuse Water and Organic Fertilizer. – Eugenio Giraldo, Carbon Materials LLC - Integrating Winter Rye on Dairy Farms: Optimizing Feed and Fuel – pportunities
Al Rotz, USDA ARS
Targeted networking opportunities in Presidents Ballroom
17:00 Close – Supper on your own
Day 3: 11 June, 2026 Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center
7:30 Registration Desk Opens – pick up your nametag and welcome packet
Breakfast buffet (outside Presidents Ballroom)
8:30 Welcome, Morning Plenary, Keynote and panel
8:35 – Ivan Baadsgaard, Grainit
9:15 – Research Fronteirs Panel (Moderator: Elmin Rahic, Iowa State Universtiy)
10:15 Morning Break
10:30 Breakout Sessions #3
Session 3a: Lessons Learned from Interdisciplinary Research of AD
- Christine Costello, Facilitator, Penn State
- Elmin Rahic, Iowa State University
- Forrest Stagnar, Penn State
Session 3b: Nutrients and AD
- Digestate application increases soil carbon and corn yields while reducing the need for additional nitrogen fertilizer – Sebastian Villarino, Iowa State University
- Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of duckweed-based manure treatment systems for dairy nutrient management – Divya Pant, Pennsylvania State University
- Beyond Methane. Adding Value to Swine Manure Two Stage Digestion. – Eugenio Giraldo, Carbon Materials LLC
- Modeling Nutrient Flows in Chesapeake Bay Agriculture: Impacts of Anaerobic Digestion and Best Management Practices – Lucas de Lima Casseres dos Santos, Penn State
- Perspectives on Evolving and Leading Through Experience and Innovation – Ian Makins, EnviTec Biogas
Session 3c: Farm AD Project Development
- Techno-economic analysis for on-farm biogas upgrading (water upgrading) – Mary Akingbasote, University of Kentucky
- Risk Preferences, Ownership Arrangements, and Willingness to Accept Dairy Digester Investments – Jasmin Wehner, Cornell University
- Pathways to change: Stakeholder perspectives on facilitating the long-term success of the herbaceous-based on-farm anaerobic digestion supply chain – Chris Morris, Iowa State University
- Tool for Estimating Costs of Producing, Harvesting, and Storing Herbaceous Feedstocks – Jim Jordahl, ISU Bioeconomy Institute
- Pushing the Envelope on Low-Resource Biodigesters for Small Farmers
Martin Hunter, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Structured Networking and open discussion in Presidents Ballroom
12:00 Lunch (Presidents ballroom)
13:00 Safe travels to all! Space available for “after meetings” – contact dec109@psu.edu if interested in setting up a meeting