Owais Bashir, PhD, is presently working in the Department of Soil Science at SKUAST-Kashmir, India. Dr. Bashir has been involved in the research from the last five years on soil pedology, climate change, machine learning (ML), and soil health. He is an author of more than 10 research articles (h-index 6; i-index 4; total citation 108) and two book chapters and has published one book with international publishers (Apple Academic Press). Dr. Bashir has presented and participated in numerous state, national, and international conferences, seminars, workshops, and symposiums. He has received many awards, appreciation, and recognition for his services to the science of soil analysis. He has pursued his doctorate at Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology Kashmir (Division of Soil Science). He has served as an editorial board member and reviewer for reputed international journals. Currently, Dr. Bashir is experimenting with diverse capacities of soil health and climate change and its impact on plant health. Shabir Ahmed Bangroo currently holds the position of Assistant Professor at Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology of Kashmir (SKUAST-K) in Shalimar, Srinagar, Kashmir (J&K), India. Prior to this role, he served as an Assistant Professor of Soil Science at Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur, Bihar. Additionally, he has held visiting scientist positions at two universities in Canada and the Netherlands. His expertise lies in remote sensing and GIS, digital soil mapping, carbon footprinting, and crop-climate modeling. He has led numerous externally funded projects and has an extensive publication record, with over 50 research articles in peer-reviewed national and international journals, along with book chapters and one authored book. With more than 11 years of combined teaching and research experience, he has received recognition through various national and international awards and fellowships. Moreover, he has supervised the research of over 15 graduate students. Currently Professor Emeritus at the University of Bari, Bari, Italy. Previously Full Professor of Soil Chemistry (1986-2013, now retired) at the Department of Soil, Plant and Food Sciences, Head of the Department of Agroforestal and Environmental Biology and Chemistry (2005-2011) at the University of Bari. Previous academic career: Assistant Professor: 1969-1980, Associate Professor: 1980-1986. Courses taught: Soil Chemistry, Soil Science, Agricultural Chemistry, Wood Chemistry and Technology, Organic Chemistry, and General and Inorganic Chemistry. Visiting professor and/or scientist for various periods (months/years) in Universities and Research Institutions in Canada, USA, Somalia, Indonesia, Switzerland, Spain, Argentina, Brasil, Venezuela and Colombia. Honors/Awards: Doctor Honoris Causa Institute National Polytechnique de Toulouse (INPT), France (2000); Dokuchaev Award, Int. Union of Soil Sciences (IUSS) (2022); Emeritus Fellow, Division VI-Chemistry and the Environment, Int. Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) (2022); Fellow of American Society of Agronomy (ASA) (1995) and Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) (1996); Service Award, Mediterranean Scientific Association of Environmental Protection (MESAEP) (2005) ; Honorary Scientist, Rural Development Administration (RDA), Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, South Korea (2005). Honorary Member of: Int. Humic Substances Society (IHSS) (2009), Polish Soil Science Society (2011), Int. Union of Soil Sciences (IUSS) (2012), Italian Society of Soil Science (2014), Azerbaijan Soil Science Society (AzSSS) (2012). Former President of: the European Confederation of Soil Science Societies (ECSSS), Division VI-Chemistry and the Environment and Chair of the Subcommittee Biophysico-Chemical Processes in Environmental Systems of the Int. Union of Pure and Applied Chemists (IUPAC), the Mediterranean Scientific Assoc. for Environ. Protection (MESAEP), the Int. Humic Substances Society (IHSS) and Chairman of Division II-Soil Properties and Processes of the Int. Union of Soil Science (IUSS), the Italian Soil Science Society (SISS). Currently, Associate Editor of Pedosphere and previously of Geoderma, European Journal of Soil Science, Soil Science, CLEAN-Soil, Air, Water and other international and national peer-reviewed technical and scientific journals. President of Organizing and/or Scientific Committees of various Congresses, Conferences, Symposia and Workshops, among which: Biomass 1991, 6th Int. Meeting IHSS (1992), XIII Int. Symp. on Environmental Biogeochemistry "Matter and Energy Fluxes in the Anthropocentric Environment", 4th Int. Congress EUROSOIL 2012 “Soil Science for the Benefit of Mankind and Environment, Int. Conference Biowaste, Compost, Digestates BCD 2013, 1st Joint Meeting Soil and Plant System Sciences, SPSS 2019. I am a person who is keen to learn, teach, educate and explore new things in a changing world. My main goal for the future is to conduct more productive research as I pursue a career in academia. Currently I am currently pursuing PhD in environmental engineering and soil science under full scholarship at Griffith University, Australia. I am passionate about the practical application of theoretical engineering concepts. I have research capabilities that include analytical, critical thinking, qualitative, and quantitative skills. I am an expert in environmental engineering, built environment, soil science, geotechnical engineering, sustainable agriculture, hydrology, climatic science, water quality and maintenance. I have completed several research projects through local and international partnerships and published peer-reviewed research articles in SCOPUS-indexed journals and at international scientific conferences. I am also a peer reviewer in established journals at Elsevier, Springer Nature, and Wiley Online Library. I am capable of working in both team-based and self-managed contexts with strong interpersonal and organizational abilities. Dr. Khalid Rehman Hakeem (PhD) is Professor at King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. He has more both teaching and research experience in plant eco-physiology, biotechnology and molecular biology, medicinal plant research, plant-microbe-soil interactions as well as in environmental studies. He has served as the visiting scientist at Jinan University, Guangzhou, China. He has more than 110 research publications in peer-reviewed international journals has extensive book publishing experience as well. He is included in the advisory board of Cambridge Scholars Publishing, UK. He is a fellow of Plantae group of the American Society of Plant Biologists, member of the World Academy of Sciences, member of the International Society for Development and Sustainability, Japan, and member of Asian Federation of Biotechnology, Korea.
