Speakers

Rosa Freitas is an Associate Professor with habilitation in the Biology Department at the University of Aveiro (UA), Portugal, where she also coordinates internships for bachelor’s and master’s students. Since 2011, her research interests expanded to Ecotoxicology, concentrating on the impacts of climate change and pollutants on marine invertebrates, particularly those vital for ecological and economic stability. With more than 300 publications in international journals, Rosa Freitas has established herself as a significant contributor to marine science. Her scholarly work is highly regarded, and she holds a position in the top 2% of influential researchers worldwide, as recognized by Stanford University. Rosa Freitas has a strong track record in student supervision, having mentored more than 130 undergraduate and master students, and 20 PhD students. She also coordinated several international research projects, fostering collaborations with institutions across Europe, North and South America, and China. Rosa's dedication extends to education, where she has developed and taught numerous courses at UA, emphasizing innovative teaching methodologies. Her outreach efforts include participation in science dissemination activities aimed at both the academic community and the general public, promoting marine science awareness.

Gianluca LI PUMA is Professor of Chemical and Environmental Engineering at University of Palermo (Italy) and Visiting Professor at Loughborough University (UK) Previously, he was Professor at Loughborough University (UK), Assistant and Associate Professor at University of Nottingham (UK), and completed his Postdoc and PhD and at Hong Kong University of Science & Technology. His research focuses on i) Environmental Nanocatalysis & Heterogeneous Photocatalysis, ii) Photo/Microbial Electrosynthesis Systems & Solar Fuels, iii) Advanced Disinfection, Advanced Water Detoxification & Reuse, iv) Photoreaction/Solar Engineering & Advanced Mathematical Modeling. It addresses problems with global significance including water scarcity & reuse, renewable energy & sustainability.

Gianluca Li Puma is Editor of Applied Catalysis B: Environmental and previously editor of Journal of Hazardous Materials. He has participated as committee member or as programme chair in the organization of over 80 international conferences in catalysis, engineering and environmental science, including at ACS National Meetings and Expositions, World Congress of Chemical Engineering, SPEA, EAAOP, IWA AGRO, R&R, IAP series. He is member of the International Advisory Board of the Water Research Centres in Cyprus (NIREAS), the EPSRC Solar-Chemical Network (UK) and previously UK Management Committee Member of EU COST Action ES1403 on “New and Emerging Challenges and Opportunities in Wastewater Reuse (NEREUS)” and CA18225 on “Taste and Odour in Early Diagnosis of Source and Drinking Water Problems (WATERTOP)”.

Sibel A. OZKAN has been working as a Full Professor of Analytical Chemistry at Ankara University, Faculty of Pharmacy since 1986.

She is an active member of the European Chemical Society, a DAC member on behalf of the Turkish Chemical Society. She is a member of the European Pharmacopoeia-EDQM- Chromatography Section. She is also a member of the International Society of Electrochemistry (ISE) and the American Chemical Society (ACS). She has 2 completed and 1 running COST Actions. She has 2 HORIZON and 1 bilateral agreement Project and has published over 500 original and review papers; her h-index is 54, and she is the Editor of 12 scientific books and about 70 book chapters. She has several international and national awards.

She is the Editor of the Journal of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Analysis (SCI-Elsevier) and Section Editor (Analytical & Environmental) of Essential Chem (Taylor & Francis) and Regional Editor (Europe part) of Current Pharmaceutical Analysis (SCI-Bentham). Besides, she is the Editorial Board member of Talanta, Chromatographia, Biosensors & Bioelectronics X, Critical Reviews in Analytical Chemistry, Electrochimica Acta, Analytical & Bioanalytical Chemistry, Trends in Analytical Chemistry, Advanced Sample Prep., Green Analytical Chemistry, and so on.

Rudolf Schneider is an analytical chemist. He studied chemistry at the Technical University of Munich and did his PhD with Professor Niessner, starting to work on antibody-based analytical methods. He joined University of Bonn from 1993-2005 where he achieved his habilitation in Agroecology/Environmental Chemistry.

In 2006 he changed to BAM, the German Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing in Berlin, Department of Analytical Chemistry; Reference Materials, to head a research group on environmental analysis with one focus on immunoanalytical methods. He published more than 125 research papers. His interests are in antibody production and their application in portable analytical devices for the areas environment, food, and health.

Ana Rita Lado Ribeiro (ARLR) is Principal researcher at LSRE-LCM (FEUP) and Executive Editor of Chemical Engineering Sciences (Elsevier) and Special Issues Editor of Chemical Engineering Journal Advances(Elsevier).

ARLR co-authored more than 250 publications, including 10 chapters in books or in book series with peer review, more than 100 publications in international peer reviewed ISI indexed journals, and more than 150 communications in conference proceedings, having a h-index of 41. She has experience in leading projects (European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant (ERA-ARE, Project Ref. 101039270; national financed projects (STAR, Ref. 2022.02842.PTDC, ongoing; SAMPREP, Ref. POCI-01-0145-FEDER-030521, concluded)). ARLR has participated as team member in several national and international research projects and is Portuguese representative in the Management Committee of Water4Reuse COST Action (Mainstreaming water reuse into the circular economy paradigm, Ref. CA23104).

Lucia De Marchi is a researcher at the Department of Veterinary Sciences at the University of Pisa. She earned her Ph.D. in Biology and Ecology of Global Change from the University of Aveiro (Portugal) in 2019. Her doctoral research focused on the effects of carbon-based nanoparticles on aquatic organisms under climate change scenarios. Lucia's involvement in international projects has expanded her expertise in both aquatic and terrestrial toxicology, with particular emphasis on contaminant accumulation and biological responses in vertebrate and invertebrate species. She is the author of more than 100 publications, and her research centers on evaluating the toxicity of emerging contaminants and their impact on animal and environmental health. Lucia employs a multidisciplinary approach, utilizing biomarkers and cell models to assess toxicity across various biological systems. Her work also includes studying environmental contamination indicators and investigating antibiotic resistance mechanisms in veterinary pathogens to address pressing health challenges.

Principal Investigator of the Bioe Group at the University of Alcalá and IMDEA Water. His scientific activity focuses on environmental biotechnology; specifically, in the use of electromicrobiology for the bioremediation of water (urban and industrial) and natural environments, as well as the detection of pollutants.

After receiving his PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Granada (EEZ-CSIC, 2000), carried out 7 years of postdoctoral stays at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst (USA), and at the Center for Astrobiology (INTA/CSIC, Madrid). He joined the University of Alcalá with the Ramón y Cajal program, where he has been a Full Professor in the area of Chemical Engineering since 2013.

He has supervised 18 doctoral theses, 5 of them industrial co-financed by the Innovation program of the Community of Madrid, and currently directs another 8. In addition, he is the author of more than 100 scientific publications, 15 book chapters, and seven national and international patents. He has organized the international congresses of the International Society of Microbial Electrochemical Technologies (EU-ISMET 2014) and the Bioelectrochemical Society (BES 2024) in Madrid. In 2016 and 2020 he received the First Prize of the Campus of International Excellence Intelligent Energy for various works.

He has participated in and coordinated more than 40 national and European projects, including iMETland (awarded by Madri+d), ELECTRA (EU-China Flagship) and, currently, NYMPHE of the HORIZON EUROPE programme.

Among its technology transfer activities, the foundation of METfilter, a company owned by IMDEA Water, stands out, whose METland® solution represents a paradigm shift in the regeneration of wastewater for reuse in urban environments. The technology was chosen in 2020 among the three best in the field of biotechnology in Europe. In 2020 he received the Global Innovation Award from the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change of the United Arab Emirates (Abu Dhabi, 2020). In 2021 he was awarded the Innovation Award by ISMET for the development of METland® technology.