Continuing with our celebration of this year’s CALS Awards recipients, this week we are recognizing Mallika Nocco, winner of the Louise Hemstead Leadership Award.

The Louise Hemstead Leadership Award was created by Organic Valley of LaFarge, Wisconsin. It recognizes a CALS faculty or staff member who demonstrates passion for advancing agriculture through innovation and cooperation. The award is in honor of Louise Hemstead, a meat and animal science graduate and former member of the CALS Board of Visitors, who used her CALS education to build a successful career in the dairy industry. As Chief Operating Officer, Louise oversaw all operational aspects of CROPP Cooperative/Organic Valley. She also served as president of the Cooperative’s wholly owned subsidiary, Organic Logistics, the Cooperative’s distribution arm.

This year’s recipient is Mallika Nocco, an assistant professor in the Department of Biological Systems Engineering and extension specialist in agricultural water management. Nocco has a passion for her work that is motivated by a drive to serve farmers and communities, while advancing conservation in a rapidly changing climate.

Coming from a non-traditional background, Nocco studied philosophy, cultural studies and literature as an undergraduate student and then worked in sales for five years, becoming inspired by the philosophy and science of sustainable agriculture. Through her tenacity and grit, she went back to school and got a masters in soil science and a Ph.D. in environment and resources at UW–Madison.

Nocco’s research and extension program, the “Conservation Irrigation Lab,” has a mission to help growers navigate the ever-changing terrain of sustainable agricultural practices and implement water-saving measures that advance production goals. She collaborates with a diverse group of students, farmers and extension professionals to identify conservation solutions that will maintain and advance agriculture.

Nocco is an effective leader and collaborator, placing stewardship for natural resources and communities as her highest priority. She has educated the public on water stewardship and invited new voices to the conversation through her podcast, “Water Talk.” In 2023, the Water Talk podcast team received the Conservation Innovation Award from the Soil and Water Conservation Society.

Nocco’s dedication and passion for advancing agriculture, stewardship and conservation is evident through her research and drive to serve the farmers and communities around her.