Marco Palma to lead Responsive Agriculture at Texas A&M AgriLife institute
Career spans agriculture, human behavior and economics
Marco Palma, Ph.D., has been named associate director for Responsive Agriculture at the Texas A&M AgriLife Institute for Advancing Health Through Agriculture, IHA, part of Texas A&M AgriLife Research.
Palma is an AgriLife Research fellow, director of the Human Behavior Laboratory and professor in the Texas A&M Department of Agricultural Economics. He has served as the IHA’s interim associate director since 2024.
IHA’s Responsive Agriculture strategy is a data-driven, consumer-informed approach to reshaping the food system. It seeks solutions that consider human behavior, nutritional needs and environmental realities.
With a background that spans agricultural economics and human behavior, Palma said Responsive Agriculture research is now more pertinent than ever. His vision for the future includes agriculture as a solution to a host of challenges.
“Agriculture is our core strength; it can drive meaningful change,” Palma said. “Responsive Agriculture research empowers the agriculture industry to dynamically adapt to modern challenges, improving human health while increasing resiliency and economic prosperity for farmers and ranchers.”
A network in support of the vision
IHA Director Teresa Davis, Ph.D., said Palma’s appointment reflects a vast network of research talent that Texas A&M AgriLife brings to bear on solutions through responsive agriculture.
“We have an unparalleled network of researchers within Texas A&M AgriLife and The Texas A&M University System deployed around the state, representing elite capabilities that allow us to engage in this strategic agricultural research,” Davis said. “With a researcher of Dr. Palma’s caliber leading this work at the IHA, we’re moving toward our goal of improving food system innovations and human health around the state, and, ultimately, the world.”
“The whole food system needs to be economically prosperous to create meaningful and lasting impact,” Palma added. “The ingenuity of Texas A&M AgriLife’s and IHA’s people is what makes a difference in advancing Responsive Agriculture. I am honored to serve as associate director to empower this work.”
Uniquely positioned to advance responsive agriculture
Palma brings two decades of research and leadership experience at Texas A&M University to the new position — a combination the IHA will use to align farm-level production with human health outcomes.
In the past year alone, he was honored with the Board of Regents’ title of Regents Professor and the Dean’s Outstanding Achievement Award for research from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Palma is also a Texas A&M Presidential Impact Fellow, was a participant in the first cohort of LEAD AgriLife, and was recently appointed the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences’ Economics of Responsive Agriculture Endowed Chair.
