Cholani K. Weebadde

Cholani K. Weebadde is an Associate Professor in the Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences at Michigan State University (MSU). Her work focuses on plant breeding for international programs, genetics, and biotechnology, with a commitment to training the next generation of plant breeders. She holds a Ph.D. in Genetics and Plant Breeding from MSU and has over a decade of experience in international agricultural outreach before joining the faculty.

Weebadde leads a 100% teaching appointment while maintaining a strawberry breeding program for hands-on student training. She has developed the Global Plant Breeding online master’s program, launching in Spring 2025. Her research spans collaborative projects in tropical agriculture, including disease resistance in crops, yam reproductive biology, potato breeding for nematode resistance, and soybean and cowpea improvement in Sri Lanka and Uganda. She emphasizes knowledge transfer through global networks, inspired by Dr. Norman Borlaug’s legacy.

Her recent publications focus on rural crop breeding (snap beans, yam, rice), phylogenetic analysis, photosynthetic phenomics, and DNA marker applications. She collaborates with institutions in Sri Lanka, West Africa, and Kyrgyzstan, integrating genomics and citizen science for sustainable agriculture. The MSU AgBioResearch and Feed the Future Global Biotech Potato Partnership support her initiatives.