US MICROALGAE INDUSTRY SUMMIT

The US Microalgae Industry Summit is taking place on 15th – 16th May in Fort Lauderdale, Florida-USA, discussing “The Future Business and Financial Perspectives of the Algae Industry“.
David D. Ramjohn, CEO at Algeternal Technologies and Valerie Harmon, President at Harmon Consulting will be delivering in-depth insights into this topic during the first day of the conference, focusing on:

• Exploring the best business models to attract funding and investment
• Looking into the opportunities for estabilishing strategic financial partnerships for the industry
• The business opportunity for microalgae: facilitating algae entrepreneurship at small scales

David holds a B.Sc. in Marine Biology and an M.Sc. in Environmental Studies (Policy and Law), with over 20 years’ experience in sustainable development and environmental and natural resource management.  He won the 2004 Bishop Robert Smith Award from the College of Charleston in South Carolina, and the 2002 Betty Spence Conservation Award from the South Carolina Wildlife Federation. David belongs to the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society, the Golden Key Honor Society, and the National Society of Collegiate Scholars.  He  was recently inducted into the 2019 Edition of “Marquis Who’s Who in America”.  He is a member of the Algae Biomass Organization (ABO), serving on the ABO’s Algae Foundation Education and Communication Committees, and is a member of the Phycological Society of America.
He developed a successful algae business proposal that received approval for funding from the EXIM Bank of Trinidad and Tobago, which ultimately led to his current role as CEO of AlgEternal.

Valerie has 27 years of experience in microalgae production.  Most recently, she is President and CEO of Harmon Consulting, Inc. a business in support of microalgae biotechnology industry development.  Prior to this she served as Sr. Director of Research and Development for Cellana LLC, overseeing Cultivation, Quality and Research.  She served as Director of Cultivation, Environmental and Safety Systems for Aurora Algae Pty Ltd in Western Australia, where she was in charge of Cultivation, Quality, Safety and Environmental Systems.  She worked in multiple roles of increasing responsibility for Cyanotech Corporation, a world leader in microalgae products:  Technical Sales/Animal Feed Sales Manager, Director of Business Development, and Director of Cultivation.  Before working exclusively in microalgae, Harmon worked in the Shellfish Hatchery Management.  Harmon holds a Masters in Agriculture, with an emphasis on Aquaculture, Fisheries Economics and Business Strategy from Oregon State University and a B.S. in Biology from Davidson College.