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Representing the diversity of voices and views in the global seed industry, the ISF Board of Directors defines ISF's key strategic objectives.

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The ISF Board of Directors performs the duties of strategic planning and oversight to develop and achieve ISF’s Key Strategic Objectives and general communications strategy.

Arthur Santosh Attavar

ISF President; Chair of the Board of Directors

Lorena Basso

ISF Vice-President; Argentina - Basso Semillas, ASA

Marco van Leeuwen

ISF Past President

Bert-Jan van Dinter

ISF Treasurer; Netherlands - van Dinter Semo, Plantum

Hamdi Çiftçiler

(Ordinary Members); Turkiye - May Seed, TSUAB

Marc Cool

(Associate Members); Corteva Agriscience

ELLEN SPARRY

Canada - C&M Seeds, Seeds Canada

Fabrizio Ceccarelli

Italy - SAIS SPA, Assosementi

Dave Armstrong

USA - Sakata, ASTA

EIKE HUPE

Germany - DSV, BDP

MARY ANN SAYOC

Philippines - East-West Seed, PSIA

MINJIE YING

China - Syngenta, CNSTA

DAIJU YUKI

Japan - Musashino Seed, JASTA

LAURENT GUERREIRO

France - RAGT Semences, UFS

LUKESHNI CHETTY

South Africa (SANSOR) - Chair, NSA AG

KATHERINE DELBRIDGE

Australia (ASF) - Member, NSA AG

KLAUS K. NIELSEN

Denmark - DLF Seeds

Pablo Civetta

Uruguay - Agrofuturo, CUS

Modou Thiam

Senegal - Sedab

JOHN PIETER SCHIPPER

Netherlands (Enza Zaden) - Chair, Vegetables & Ornamentals AG

Naomi Stevens

Bayer - Associate Member

Kanokwan Chodchoey

East-West Seed - Associate Member

NICK GOBLE

South Africa (Corteva) - Chair, Field Crops AG

Darrell Dziver

Canada (BrettYoung) - Chair, Forage & Turf AG

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Meet our members around the world

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Michael Keller 

Secretary General, ISF  

 

 

Michael Keller is Secretary General of the International Seed Federation (June 2014 to present), focusing on the vision of a world where quality seed is accessible to all farmers to support sustainable agriculture and food security. In line with ISF’s mission, Michael is engaged in creating through collaboration an enabling environment for the private seed sector. 

 

Through long-standing involvement at national and international levels, he has an extensive knowledge and understanding of cooperation within the private sector and with non-governmental and civil society organizations.  

 

His field of expertise spans a wide range of topics including seed, agriculture, food security, Sustainable Development Goals, law, policy and advocacy.   

 

Prior to joining ISF, Michael worked in the French Senate as a Parliamentary Advisor, as Head of European and International Affairs of the Mayor’s Association of France and in different positions at DuPont de Nemours and Pioneer Seed.   

 

Michael studied law in Germany (Law State examination) and holds a post-graduate in law from the Paris-Sorbonne University. He spent time in Switzerland, Tunisia and France for trainings in international law and political science. 

Marie Tahmazian 

Finance and Member Engagement Manager, ISF  

 

 

Marie Tahmazian earned her degree in Chemistry specialized in formulation from the French Science University of Montpellier. After spending a gap year in UK, she had the opportunity to work for Syngenta Jealott’s Hill International Research Centre in the UK as a formulation chemist in crop protection. 

 

After taking a break from her professional life to raise her two kids while moving to different countries, Marie transitioned back into the workplace and pursued an Accountancy degree in Switzerland. 

 

She spent some years in an accounting firm in France before finally joining ISF in December 2013 as an accountant, where her role gradually grew to include engagement with members like national seed associations and seed companies. 

Khaoula Belhaj-Fragnière 

Regulatory Affairs Manager, ISF  

 

 

Khaoula brings 15 years of experience in the fields of agricultural innovation, private sector and government affairs. Previously she served as government officer within the Federal Office for the Environment, Switzerland, and then later worked as Senior Regulatory Scientist -Scientific Regulatory Affairs & Standards for Philip Morris International. In her role at the FOEN, she was responsible for law adaptation projects related to regulation of new biotechnologies and synthetic biology. She also represented the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment in the United Nations (Biodiversity convention) and in the European Food Security Authority (EFSA, GMO panel). 


Khaoula has a degree in Agronomical Engineering-Plant Production & Seed Biotechnology, a Master in Agronomy & Plant Breeding, a PhD in Biology from the University of Fribourg-Switzerland (2009) and a Foundation for Business Leadership Certificate from the IMD Business School (2018) in Lausanne.

Szonja Csörgő

Intellectual Property and Legal Affairs Manager, ISF  

 

Szonja is Hungarian and holds a degree in Law from ELTE Budapest University, an MA in French and European Law from Panthéon-Assas University (Paris), and an L.LM. in Intellectual Property and Competition Law from the University of Liège in Belgium. 

Before joining ISF, Szonja worked for nearly 15 years in Euroseeds first at the Legal and Policy Officer and then as the Director of Intellectual Property and Legal Affairs. Prior to that she worked at the Budapest office of the French law firm Gide Loyrette Nouel and at the European Commission.

Szonja is based in Brussels, Belgium, where she lives with her husband and three sons.

Rose Souza Richards, PhD 

Phytosanitary Affairs Manager, ISF 

Dr. Rose Souza Richards has been the Phytosanitary Affairs Manager (prev. Seed Health Manager) at ISF since March 2020. In this role, she liaises with the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) and coordinates industry-wide responses to World Trade Organization (WTO) notifications on national phytosanitary regulations. She oversees key ISF initiatives such as the Systems Approach, the Regulated Pest List Initiative, and the International Seed Health Initiative. 


Dr. Souza Richards holds a BSc in Agronomic Engineering from the State University of Bahia, Brazil, an MSc in Plant Pathology from the Federal University of Viçosa, Brazil, a second MSc in Plant Diversity from the University of Reading, UK, and a PhD in Plant Molecular Virology from the University of Nottingham, UK.

 

In addition to her role at ISF, Dr. Souza Richards is the Chair of the ePhyto Industry Advisory Group (IAG). She collaborates with the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF) and the WTO to enhance global phytosanitary measures and facilitate international trade in seeds. Her extensive experience includes roles at the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) in New Zealand and Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) in England demonstrating her expertise in plant health and regulatory affairs.

Benjamin (Ben) Rivoire

Sustainability and Crop Value Chain Manager, ISF  

 

Benjamin (Ben) Rivoire joined ISF in March 2022. Prior to that, he served as Head of Seed Sector Cooperation and Regional Development (Africa + Arab Countries) at UPOV.

 

 

Ludivine Thomas 

Technical Lead for the International Seed Health Initiative, ISF  

 

Ludivine joined the ISF Secretariat in March 2022. Prior to that, she was the Seed Health Control Manager in HM.Clause in France for seven years. She also worked as the Team Lead for Proteomics group in Saudi Arabia from 2011 to 2015. She was a post-doctoral fellow in Saudi Arabi and also in South Africa.


Ludivine holds a BSc in Plant Biotechnology and Seed Technologies from France and the Netherlands and a PhD in Plant Biology from Massey University in New Zealand. 


She is based in Valence, France.

Airah Cadiogan 

Communications Manager, ISF  

 

Airah Cadiogan joined ISF in January 2020 as Digital Media Associate before taking on the role of Communications Manager in February 2024. As Digital Media Associate, Airah significantly grew ISF’s online community and implemented wide-ranging enhancements in its digital ecosystem, supporting member engagement and external outreach.

 

Before joining ISF, Airah ran her own strategic communications consultancy, working with clients including the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Oxfam, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) while based in Mexico City, Mexico and in Geneva, Switzerland. 

 

Prior to launching her business, she worked as a Global Campaigns Project Manager for Oxfam GB, supporting the launch of the ‘Behind the Barcodes’ global campaign and advancing national policies on food and climate justice. She also worked for the UN Resident Coordinators of the Philippines and other development organizations in her native country.

 

Airah has a background in Communication Research and Development Studies. She is based in Nyon, Switzerland.

Bénédicte Lebas 

Technical Lead for the Regulated Pest List Initiative, ISF  

 

Bénédicte Lebas joined ISF in January 2021 as the Technical Lead for the Regulated pest list initiative.  

 

Bénédicte has more than 15 years’ experience in plant virology diagnostics at the Plant Health and Environment Laboratory of the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), New Zealand. For two years, she was a Senior Adviser in the MPI Plant Import team looking after the Import health standard for nursery stock and conducting audits of offshore facilities. 

 

Prior to joining ISF, she worked three years at the University of Liège, Belgium on the European project, VALITEST, developing guidelines for the use of high-throughput sequencing as a diagnostic test and guidelines for improved statistical analysis of data generated through validation studies. She has a PhD in plant virology from the University of Greenwich, UK.