Jaya (J) Nepal, Ph.D.

Dr. Jaya (J) Nepal is an early-career researcher with PhD in Soil and Water Sciences from University of Florida. His PhD work evaluated different biochar and carbon nanoparticles as organic amendments for field crop production in acidic-sandy soils of Florida with a research lens in soil, plant and environment fertility-health continuum. In his postdoctoral experiences, he has continued research in organic cereal production systems (NY, Cornell University) and currently in vegetable production system (PA, Penn State University) with main objective of understanding how agricultural management systems can be modified/designed with a “soil health” focus while balancing productivity. Jaya’s work particularly embraces the complexity and uniqueness of each agro-ecosystem and is interested in adapting the concept of soil health with a context-based approach. Jaya is particularly interested in how ecological tools such as cover crops, biochar, tillage practices can be evaluated and adapted to fit the specific goals of each farm.