Purdue Global economics faculty member honored as Agricultural Economics Society’s outstanding researcher

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Luis Peña-Lévano, a faculty member in Purdue Global’s School of Business and Information Technology, has been named this year’s recipient of the Outstanding Researcher Award by the Agricultural Economics Society. Peña-Lévano was honored during the society’s conference March 24 in Oxford, England. 

This award is given to researchers under the age of 40 who have outstanding early-career research achievements, academic leadership and international impact in agricultural economics.

“This is an incredible honor as the award signals international recognition of both scholarly quality and disciplinary leadership,” Peña-Lévano said. “This identifies me as a researcher whose work is shaping the field, not only through publications but also through teaching, mentorship, extension, collaboration and global engagement.”

Peña-Lévano teaches and develops graduate- and undergraduate-level business and economics classes. His agricultural economics work explores dairy economics, sustainability, climate change, farm decision-making and agricultural policy. He collaborates with researchers across the U.S., Latin America and Europe. He earned his doctorate in agricultural economics from Purdue University in 2017.

In 2025, Peña-Lévano and his research team received four recognitions, including the best poster in the Farm Management and Labor category from the International Dairy Federation’s World Dairy Summit; the International Food and Agribusiness Management Association’s World Best Teaching Case Study; the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association’s Committee on Women in Agricultural Economics’ Mentoring and Outreach Award; and the University of California, Davis Chancellor’s Fellowship.