44 GERMINATION.CA JANUARY 2018 Germination: What is your favorite book currently on your bookshelf? Diego Risso: “The One Minute Manager”. It's an old book, but everything inside the book makes sense for today. We're living in a world with a lot of adrenaline, where we have less time to think and make plans, both in work and at home. In order to be smart when making decisions, if you lack time, you need to be a good man- ager and make quick decisions. This book teaches how to make quick decisions and how to be a good team player.  G: Who was your most influential mentor? DR: My father. He passed away a few years ago, but he's also an agronomist, like me. He was also involved in seed breeding. He was also one of my early bosses in the seed industry. G: What do you see as the biggest challenge facing members of SAA today? DR: Regulations and compliance with regulations. I'm focused on promoting the seed trade in the Americas, and regulation is a key part of my job. Compliance with regulations is definitely a big challenge.  G: What's the biggest success you've had working with the SAA? DR: Bringing together the seed industry representatives with government officials and regulators to discuss devel- opment and implementation of regulations.  G: Where do you see the future of plant breeding going in South America? DR: As big companies get bigger, there are opportunities for medium and smaller companies, but also challenges and threats. I think that licensing will be very impor- tant, because now we are seeing many agreements between companies about breeding through licensing. It's important for small and medium companies to find a way where they can compete with larger companies. Plant breeding in soybeans, corn, and our major crops will take the lead, and plant breeding innovation is something that our region will be active on. GM is very important for our region, but in the past, all our GM varieties were made in North America. Now, South America will be able to develop our own needs with our tools — we will become an active participant in plant breeding innovation, instead of sitting on the sidelines. Diego Risso, executive director of the Seed Association of the Americas (SAA), talks about the challenges the SAA faces and plant breeding changes in South America. C M Y CM MY CY CMY K AD for SGS BIOVISION 3.5 x 4.75in.pdf 1 12/8/2017 10:01:31 AM JUMPINGINTOTHEGAME