Dickson Donald Despommier, professor of public health and microbiology, will join other industry luminaries in delivering a keynote address at the 2018 International Indoor Plant Factory Symposium mid-June in Shanghai.

Dr. Despommier, emeritus professor at Columbia University, will deliver a presentation titled, “Tomorrow’s City Will Be Self-Sustaining."

The symposium is co-sponsored by AEssenseGrows and the Shanghai Academy of Agricultural Sciences (SAAS). It runs June 12-15 at the Blue Palace Hotel in Jiading, Shanghai.

The event brings together some of the world’s leading experts in commercial indoor cultivation for an exchange of ideas and information about the latest innovations, technologies and research in the field. For more information about the symposium or to register, visit www.plantfactorysymposium.com.

Despommier has been a faculty member at Columbia University since 1971. He is Emeritus Professor of Public Health and Microbiology, having retired in 2009. He is currently engaged in a project to bring fresh produce to the urban environment by growing edible crops in vertical farms

Other symposium presenters include:

• "The Present & Future of the Plant Factory with Artificial Lighting," by  Toyoki Kozai, president of the Agricultural Academy of Japan, Japan
• “The transforming power of vertical farming—global trends and local impacts,” by Christine Zimmermann-Loessl, chairwoman of the Association for Vertical Farming, Germany
• “A total solution and innovation for smart plant factory with artificial lighting,” by Dr. Huafang Zhou, vice president of AEssenseGrows, United States
• “Grow light recipes and study of artificial lighting for plants,” by Professor Shaohua Li, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China