Module 4: Pest Risk Communication

Alison Neeley

Alison Neeley is a Risk Analyst with the Plant Epidemiology and Risk Analysis Laboratory (PERAL) in Raleigh, North Carolina. Her educational background includes graduate training in Economics, Entomology, and Environmental Education. Alison has over ten years of experience preparing qualitative and quantitative risk assessments for the USDA-APHIS-Plant Protection and Quarantine, dealing with the risks associated with exotic plant pests. Alison has expertise in risk modeling, economic analysis, and training/capacity building. Some of Alison’s current responsibilities include developing import- and export-pathway risk assessments for fruits and vegetables for consumption and for plants for planting. She currently leads the team that is developing a new pest prioritization model that will be used to determine which potential pest threats should be surveyed for and where surveillance should occur.

Alison was part of the team that developed new guidelines for conducting commodity-import risk assessments. She has developed several quantitative stochastic models that estimate the likelihood of pest establishment. Alison has also prepared cost benefit analyses that examine the economic costs and benefits associated with ongoing pest programs in the United States. Alison assisted in the development of a University semester-long class on regulatory plant protection, in conjunction with the North Carolina State University (NCSU) Departments of Plant Pathology and Entomology. Alison also assisted in the incorporation of this class into a specialization (or Minor) in Plant Biosecurity at NCSU. She routinely develops and delivers training materials and presentations in the area of Regulatory Plant Science and Risk Analysis and Risk Communication.

Stephanie Bloem

Stephanie Bloem is a Training Specialist and Risk Analyst with the Plant Epidemiology and Risk Analysis Laboratory (PERAL) in Raleigh, North Carolina. She was born in Mexico City and grew-up in Guatemala. Stephanie has a Licenciatura in Biology from Universidad del Valle de Guatemala and a Doctorate in Entomology from the University of California at Davis. Prior to joining USDA-APHIS, Stephanie conducted basic and applied research in the area of sterile insect technique (SIT), area-wide pest management, and quality control for Mediterranean and Mexican fruit flies, codling moth, false codling moth, and cactus moth. Stephanie has done extensive consulting in South America and Africa for the International Atomic Energy Agency in the areas of area-wide pest management, SIT, mass-rearing, and inherited sterility for moth pests. She has published more than 50 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters on the results of her research.

Her current responsibilities as a Training Specialist include designing, developing, and delivering educational and training materials in the area of Regulatory Plant Science, Pest Risk Analysis, and Risk Communication. As part of her Risk Analyst responsibilities, Stephanie works on import pathway risk assessments that examine the risk of introducing plant pests on fruits and vegetables for consumption and plants for planting. She also serves as Quality Manager for pathway risk assessment products for commodity imports (fruits and vegetables for consumption and plants for planting) and weeds.