**Marco Palma** is a pioneering agricultural economist contributing groundbreaking multidisciplinary innovations to understand human food choices and agricultural production decisions. He excels in teaching, research, extension, and service, generating high-quality programs and facilitating global multidisciplinary collaboration. Palma directs the TAMU Human Behavior Laboratory, the world’s largest academic neurophysiological behavioral science lab, advancing research on consumer food choices. Palma’s program creates high impact directly through his efforts and indirectly through the efforts of others using novel research methods he has developed. With 119 peer-reviewed publications, $117 million in grants ($5.5 million allocated to his program), and 110 graduate students advised (26 chaired and 84 member), Dr. Palma’s influence extends beyond academia, into food policy and industry pursuing big ideas impacting people’s health, prosperity, and well-being. Palma is a dedicated mentor cultivating future leaders in agricultural economics.