Pliakoni, Urban Foods Systems faculty named 2024 Remarkable Woman

Wednesday, April 3, 2024 | Written by Beth Jones

 

OLATHE — Eleni Pliakoni, Ph.D., has been named Greater Kansas City’s 2024 Remarkable Woman by Fox4 KC. She was one of nearly 300 nominees for this annual award.

Each year, Fox4 KC goes on a search to find the most remarkable woman in the Kansas City region. The four finalists from the search included women who are making a difference in their local communities and in the region. With her combined passion for teaching and providing the world with healthy foods, Pliakoni was the winner of this year’s search.

Pliakoni is a professor in urban food production and postharvest handling in the department of horticulture and natural resources at Kansas State University and the director of the urban food systems initiative at K-State's Olathe campus, as well as one of this year’s GRIP recipients.

Recently, Pliakoni was interviewed by President Linton at the Olathe campus to discuss urban farming, food deserts and food as medicine, which is one of K-State Olathe’s Next-Gen strategic imperatives.

In addition to touring the Olathe campus, President Linton and Pliakoni were joined by Cary Rivard, Ph.D., for a tour of the K-State Olathe Horticulture Research and Extension Center facilities where many of Pliakoni’s students conduct their research. Rivard is a professor of horticulture and natural resources, the director of the Olathe Horticulture Center and an investigator for the GRIP grant.

Learn more about Pliakoni’s research on our website or visit Fox4 to view her spotlight.