Dr. Allen is a botanical research and development leader with broad expertise spanning management, product development, regulatory affairs, sales, and marketing. He has served as publisher of a nationally recognized wellness magazine and co-founded a health product company, bringing together a strong grasp of science, business, and consumer needs. His work spans the globe, with collaborations across nutraceutical, functional food, and herbal enterprises in countries including Sweden, China, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Denmark, Norway, England, Poland, Canada, France, Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea. Today his focus centers on botanical drug development, particularly botanical APIs and dietary supplements, where he pursues innovative applications of these components and continues to serve as a thought leader at the intersection of science and wellness. 

Mr. Stevie Council is a Brown University graduate with a dual focus on Organizational Behavior & Management and Business Economics, whose career bridges finance, strategy, and biomedical innovation. He began as an investment banker specializing in mergers and acquisitions at Donaldson, Lufkin, and Jenrette Securities in New York, then moved into management consulting at Towers, Perrin in Atlanta, where he advised Fortune 500 companies and public municipalities. In recent years he has redirected his expertise toward product development and biomedical innovation in cancer and infectious diseases. As a key contributor to ABDA, he applies his blend of financial and strategic acumen to forge partnerships across the biomedical and pharmaceutical sectors, advancing healthcare solutions grounded in natural products.

Chip Paul is a systems theorist, endocannabinoid system researcher, and national policy architect with over a decade of leadership across botanical science, healthcare innovation, and regulatory reform. He holds a B.S. in Mathematics from the University of Oklahoma, with graduate work in Electrical Engineering at Oklahoma State University and executive training at the University of Louisville. He authored Oklahoma's landmark medical cannabis law (SQ788), which passed with 57% approval and which he defended before the state Supreme Court, and he co-founded Oklahomans for Health and the Oklahoma Responsible Cannabis Action (ORCA) organization. As founder of GnuPharma (2015–2023), TrueMedX, and co-founder of Neighborly Wellness, he has built multiple botanical drug and nutraceutical platforms, and he holds an U.S. Patent for modulating the endocannabinoid system with natural compounds. A TEDx speaker featured in The New York Times, Politico, and Entrepreneur, Mr. Paul has collaborated with the University of Mississippi and Arizona State University on endocannabinoid curricula. At ABDA, he leads public policy strategy to advance evidence-based regulatory frameworks for botanical drug products.

Dr. Chun-Su Yuan is a distinguished leader in herbal medicine research, holding the Cyrus Tang Professorship in the Department of Anesthesia & Critical Care at the Pritzker School of Medicine and serving as Director of the Tang Center for Herbal Medicine Research at the University of Chicago. Over a career spanning more than three decades, he has published over 100 papers on herbal research, edited the Textbook of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (1st & 2nd editions), and serves as Editor-in-Chief of The American J of Chinese Medicine. His clinical trial work contributed to the FDA's 2008 approval of methylnaltrexone for opioid bowel dysfunction, translating research into tangible patient care advances. Under his directorship, the Tang Center stands as a hub for research bridging traditional Chinese medicine and modern medical practice, establishing him as a trailblazer in the field.

Dr. Goran Olsson is a seasoned pharmaceutical professional with over two decades of experience spanning management, marketing, sales, and talent management. Throughout his career, he has orchestrated more than 25 successful product introductions on a global scale, demonstrating the strategic acumen and leadership needed to launch and position pharmaceutical products across international markets. He also brings over a decade of consulting experience in Europe and the United States, helping pharmaceutical and biotech companies enter new markets and develop patient compliance programs. With a consistent focus on innovation, market expansion, and patient-centric solutions, Dr. Olsson stands as a respected leader in the global pharmaceutical industry.

Dr. Perdeep Gupta is a professor at Saint Joseph's University and Director of the Industrial Pharmacy Laboratory, a research facility dedicated to pharmaceutical R&D. His work centers on complex drug delivery challenges, particularly for proteins and poorly soluble drugs, with ongoing projects in nanoparticle-based protein delivery systems, amphiphilic peptides as nanosuspension stabilizers, peptide drug design, and analytical research in botanical drug development. In 2018, he was invited along with other colleagues at ABDA to attend the inaugural International Conference on Botanical Drug Development in China, where he delivered a keynote address. As an educator, researcher, and collaborator, Dr. Gupta continues to advance drug delivery science with the potential to improve patient outcomes.

Dr. Hadji-Minaglou is the founder and president of BotaniCERT, a specialized analytic center recognized for excellence in botanical product identification and quality control. A renowned expert in botany and phytotherapy in France, he holds a Pharmacy Ph.D. from Marseille University and brings over 30 years of experience across toxicology, ethnobotany, pharmacology, and pharmacognosy. Under his leadership, BotaniCERT combines botanical methods such as organoleptics, macroscopy, and microscopy with advanced phytochemical techniques including HPTLC, UHPLC, and GC, building a wealth of data that serves as a gold standard for the field. As Senior Vice President for France within the American Botanical Drug Association (ABDA), he connects the French botanical research and industry community with ABDA's broader initiatives and provides identification and manufacturing quality control services for ABDA network projects, advancing the integrity and reliability of botanical products.

Dr. Gruenwald is a pioneering health product consultant whose career includes securing permits and licenses for over 300 botanical products in Germany and the European Union. As Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of a Berlin-based consulting firm, he brings two decades of expertise at the intersection of science, regulation, and botanical medicine. A prolific author and editor, he has contributed to 13 books, including the Physician's Desk Reference (PDR) for Herbal Medicines, Plant-Based Ingredients for Functional Foods, and Grüne Apotheke, and co-edited the American Botanical Council's The Complete German Commission E Monographs. He served as an Expert Committee Member for Botanical Dietary Supplements and Herbal Medicines at the U.S. Pharmacopoeia (USP) from 2015 to 2020 and is currently Vice Chair of the USP Admission Evaluation Joint Subcommittee. A Board Member of the American Botanical Council (ABC) and editor for seven scientific journals including Phytomedicine, Dr. Gruenwald stands as a leading authority and advocate for integrating botanicals into modern healthcare.

Dr. André Boulet is a seasoned entrepreneur and industry leader with expertise in drug development, regulatory affairs, market access, financing, and pharmaceutical and biotech restructuring. As Senior Vice President of Canada at ABDA, he helps shape botanical drug development in the Canadian context. He is the driving force behind Thykamine™, a flagship anti-inflammatory drug developed under the Botanical Drug Regulation, leading its phase 1 and phase 2 clinical programs for ulcerative colitis and raising over $50 million in private and public equity funding since 2005. Previously, he was a managing partner in SIPAR's biotech unit, a private investment firm with $400 million in assets, and a partner at BioCapital III LP. Now President of Devonian Health Group, a prominent Canadian botanical drug corporation, Dr. Boulet continues to advance botanical drug development in Canada and beyond.

Dr. Semprini is the Deputy Director of the Medical Research Institute of New Zealand, with expertise spanning academia, research methodology, and the exploration of indigenous New Zealand medicinal plants. He holds an adjunct Professor position at Victoria University of Wellington and is an Adjunct Fellow at Western Sydney University, with research focused on asthma, green biotechnology, medical devices, and research methodology. As founder of the Pharmacy Research Network, a consortium of over 80 community pharmacies, he has pioneered accessible, cost-effective randomized controlled trials examining indigenous botanicals such as kānuka honey, kānuka, and mānuka oil-based topicals. Within the ABDA, he works to expand the clinical network and foster collaborations with university laboratories, strengthening research and development capabilities for botanical drug development in New Zealand and beyond.

Prof. Chaofeng Zhang is a Professor and Associate Dean of the School of Traditional Chinese Medicines at China Pharmaceutical University (CPU) in Nanjing, China. She holds a Ph.D. in Pharmacognosy from Shenyang Pharmaceutical University and completed postdoctoral training at CPU, with additional research fellowships at the University of Toyama and Kyushu University in Japan. Her research centers on the phytochemistry, quality control, and mechanistic pharmacology of traditional Chinese medicines, with particular emphasis on anti-fibrotic and anti-inflammatory bioactive substances; her work on pulmonary fibrosis, spanning the lung-gut-microbiota axis, ferroptosis pathways, and IDO1-mediated mechanisms — has appeared in leading journals including Small, Journal of Hazardous Materials, Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B, Pharmacological Research, and Phytomedicine. She has authored over 30 peer-reviewed publications, holds 5 patents, and has served as principal investigator on 3 grants from China's National Natural Science Foundation. As SVP of China Affairs, she provides strategic leadership in connecting Chinese botanical medicine research, academic institutions, and regulatory expertise with the Association's mission to advance botanical drug development under U.S. FDA pathways.

Mr. John Tobin is an international healthcare industry leader with over two decades of expertise in business relations, corporate strategy, and corporate sales and marketing across the USA, Europe, India, China, and other global markets. He has held president roles in several nutraceutical and pharmaceutical companies, where his leadership focused on developing unique formulations and product design in nutritional, botanical, and traditional herbal medicine products. Among his notable contributions to healthcare innovation is the creation of Strip Melts® oral thin film strips, a pioneering method for delivering botanical health products that reflects his commitment to fusing the "Science of Nature into Botanical Drugs." With a strategic vision and deep understanding of global market dynamics, Mr. Tobin continues to bridge science and nature and redefine the possibilities in botanical drug development.