Global Scholar Madelyn Battcock-Emerson

Madelyn Battcock-Emerson, who graduated from Boston University in May 2024, was chosen to represent District 7930 as the 2026 Global Scholar in the Rotary Foundation’s Area of Focus of the Environment. She will be pursuing her MSc in Plant Biotechnology with a specialization in Molecular Plant Breeding and Pathology at Wageningen University & Research in the Netherlands.

 

Madelyn, who lives in Somerville, has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology from Boston University. She is passionate about using plant biotechnology and cellular agriculture to develop more sustainable agricultural systems and help feed a growing world. Her goal is to contribute to research that makes agriculture more resilient and resource-efficient while translating advances in plant sciences into practical solutions for environmental challenges.

 

Through managing her high school's greenhouse and hydroponic system, Madelyn established an enduring interest in both plant sciences and service, growing plants for the school's biology classes and donating harvested produce to the school cafeteria. At Boston University, she continued pursuing the plant sciences, studying genetics, developmental biology, botany, and other areas of biology, spending much of her undergraduate career conducting plant genetics
research in the Celenza lab. There, she independently developed and conducted a multi-year project introducing genes from Arabidopsis thaliana into the oilseed crop Camelina sativa to improve its chemical defenses. Her research took her from plant transformation through molecular and chemical analysis, and she presented her findings at Boston University research symposia and the American Society of Plant Biologists. While pursuing her degree, she developed a strong passion for using scientific advancement as the way to both food security and environmental stability.

 

After graduating, Madelyn moved into applied biotechnology. At GALY, a startup developing lab-grown cotton and cocoa, she became particularly interested in cellular agriculture, an emerging field that combines sustainability with scientific advancement. She then joined Indigo Ag, where she worked with bacteria and fungi isolated from the plant microbiome in the development of agricultural products designed to improve crop yield and stress tolerance. Her experiences in the laboratory have broadened her perspective on how biotechnology can move from fundamental biological research toward practical applications in agriculture and sustainability. Alongside her scientific work, Madelyn has remained committed to mentorship and community service, such as mentoring girls and gender-expansive youth through Science Club for Girls.  As a Global Scholar, she hopes to serve as an ambassador for science, education, and international collaboration.

Madelyn is excited to be deepening her knowledge of plant sciences and sustainable agriculture at Wageningen University and Research, which is a world-renowned institution and champion of advances in agricultural technology.

 

During her studies, she hopes to connect with other passionate students, learn about innovative agricultural technologies from the field's leading professors, and strengthen her understanding of the science behind sustainably feeding the world.