b'ISF President Aims to Bridge the Communication DivideHalfway through his term as International Seed Federation president, Coles reflects on how we have everything to celebrate and nothing to apologize for.Treena HeinA NATIVE OF SOUTHEASTERNAustralia, a love for seed sprouted early for Donald Coles. His father Jim was a seed industry trailblazer who started Australias first forage grass seed growers marketing cooperative. He also later started Australias first forage breeding company, Valley Seeds. Growing up in this environment led Coles to attend agri-cultural college and then to travel and work on farms and in seed businesses in New Zealand and Canada. Through these experiences, Coles learned different ways of operating and absorbed the ways in which business owners strategi-cally built their enterprises. I also learned that people in the seed business, no matter where they are around the world, are all collegial, he says. They are willing to share information and insights with their own.12/ SEEDWORLD.COMINTERNATIONAL EDITION 2021'