Leonor Ferreira holds a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Sciences and Technology from FCUP and a Master’s degree in Environmental Toxicology and Contamination from ICBAS/FCUP. She worked as a research fellow for project CYANCAN, performing bioactivity screening of cyanobacteria extracts and isolation of new bioactive compounds. Currently, she is a PhD student in Marine Biotechnology and Aquaculture from FCUP. Her work focuses on the prospection of cyanobacteria for isolating new bioactive compounds. Her main research interests are 3D cancer cell models, multidrug resistance, drug discovery and natural products from cyanobacteria.

Leonor Pizarro has a Bachelor’s degree in Microbiology and a Master’s in Applied Microbiology, both from the Escola Superior de Biotecnologia – Universidade Católica Portuguesa do Porto. After working as a research techician at CIIMAR for the DeepResist project, she is now a PhD student at CIIMAR, in colaboration with WHOI (USA), where she explores metal impacts and the bioremediation potential of deep-sea bacteria and microbial communities. Leonor participates regularly in deep-sea cruise expeditions where she collects samples for her PhD work, and learns about various equipments and techniques.
Leonor is also a part of CIIMAR’s PhD students committee, having participated in the organization of 2024’s Blue Think Conference, among other activities.

I completed my bachelor’s degree in biological sciences in July 2019 in Rio de Janeiro with an emphasis on environment and water resources. I am doing a master’s degree in biology and water quality management in Portugal at Universidade do Porto, where I am already doing my master thesis focused on phytoremediation and water quality. Since the beginning of my journey as a biologist, I am very interested and motivated. I have always been part of research groups during several internships at biochemistry, immunology and aquatic ecology laboratories. In the 5 years of studying and researching I learned a lot about laboratory techniques, how to plan research projects, how to write scientific articles and how to do different types of analysis. Today, I am very excited about what I study and very focused. I believe that my experience in other areas helped me to be sure that I love biology. Also, it helped me understand how people think and interact with the environment, so I can make more environment-friendly solutions for the future. I have always participated in volunteer projects that aim to educate people to prevent future problems, such as water scarcity and water pollution. I also fully believe in the concept of sustainability and all its applications and meanings. I move my life to try to live, disseminate and use my knowledge in favor of this idea.

Lígia Faria de Sousa graduated in Biology in 2012 in the Sciences Faculty of Lisbon University (FCUL) and has a Master degree in Scientific Illustration achieved in 2015. She works in the description of the morphology of decapod crustacean larvae, and has been collaborating in the Portuguese citizen science program GelAvista since 2016.

Maria Lígia Sousa graduated in Applied Biology from University of Minho in 2009, receive her MSc (2009) and PhD (2020) from University of Porto. She is developing her research at Blue Biotechnology and Ecotoxicology Laboratory (CIIMAR). Her main research interests are the discovering of new pharmaceuticals or nutraceuticals from marine origin and deciphering the role of these newly found compounds when exposed to human cells, regarding its molecular mechanism from genomics to protein expression, using in particular microtumor models.

Liliana is a PhD student in Environmental Toxicology and Contamination at Abel Salazar Biomedical Sciences Institute – University of Porto. Her academic career comprises a BSc in Environmental Health from the School of Health of Polytechnic Institute of Porto (ESS|P.Porto) and a  MSc in Microbiology at the University of Aveiro. Liliana’s primary research interests lie at the intersection of Environmental Sustainability and Microbiology.

Graduated in Environmental Sciences and Technology by the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto in 2019, currently taking a master's degree in Biology and Water Quality Management in the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto. Interested in the interactions between soil and water and its effects.

Liliana Silva graduated in Biochemistry in 2009 and obtained her Master degree in Biochemistry in 2014 by, the Faculty of Sciences of University of Porto. She is currently a PhD student in the Evolutionary Genomics and Bioinformatics group at CIIMAR. Her main research interests are related with evolution of sensorial systems and environmental adaptation.

Lisa P. Sousa holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Science and Engineering from the University of Aveiro. Her work has focused on spatial planning and management, particularly of marine and coastal areas. She has been involved in several national and international research projects, but also in technical studies for governmental administrations, focusing on maritime spatial planning, transboundary cooperation, cumulative impacts, adaptation to climate change, coastal and estuarine ecosystem services. She also has skills in Geographic Information Systems and spatial analysis, stakeholders’ involvement, and scientific knowledge-transfer. Currently she is responsible for the NETTAG+ project management.

A geographer specialized in public policies with a focus on Human Rights and Culture, Paz is a PhD candidate in Marine Biotechnology and Aquaculture. She has experience in Python programming, remote sensing, satellite image processing, and mastery of the use of ArcGIS. The analytical approach she employs in her research is biogeographical, involving data analysis and processing. Additionally, she possesses knowledge and experience in climate change issues, data modeling associated with species distribution, climate alterations, and the design of programs aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Nature-Based Solutions (NBS).

Lourenço Ramos Pinto holds a Biology degree from the University of Aveiro (2012), a Master’s in Marine Sciences from ICBAS-UP (2015), and a PhD in Animal Sciences (Nutrition) from ICBAS-University of Porto (2020). He researched fish immunonutrition within the Fish Nutrition and Immunobiology Group of CIIMAR, focusing on immune modulation under the SANFEED program funded by FCT and SPAROS Lda. Lourenço’s current interests lie in sustainable aquaculture optimization through nutrition and immune system modulation. He participated in the H2020 project AQUACOMBINE, exploring halophytes’ potential as fish and shrimp immune-modulators, and is Co-PI in the national project AQUAVIP for enhancing fish antiviral responses. Engaged in projects like IMMUNAA, INFLAMMAA, ATLANTIDA, BREEDFLAT and MICROBOOST, he also collaborates with industrial partners like BIOMAR, PHILEO, and SPAROS for immune-stimulating additives and vaccine efficacy. Presently in the A2S team for the GRINNAQUA project, Lourenço focuses on functional feed research to enhance fish and shrimp well-being.

Luana Ramos graduated in Biology in 2012 and obtained her master’s degree in Biodiversity, Genetics and Evolution in 2014, by the Faculty of Sciences of University of Porto. She did an ERASMUS+ internship at the Senckenberg Research Institute in Frankfurt, Germany in 2015 and is currently a PhD student in the Evolutionary Genomics and Bioinformatics group at CIIMAR. Her main research interests are population genetics, conservation, bioinformatics and evolutionary genomics. Her current work is focused on the evolution of reproductive traits in vertebrates.

PhD Student in the Graduate Program in Biotechnology at the Federal University of São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil. Work on microalgae prospecting to obtain compounds of biotechnological interest, focusing on obtaining biomolecules and secondary metabolites. At CIIMAR, it aims to prospect molecules with anti-obesity, anti-inflammatory, antidiabetes and antisteatosis activity in different extracts of Brazilian freshwater microalgae.

My name is Lucia Ivorra and I am doing a co-tutele PhD programme between ICBAS (University of Oporto) and ISE (Institute of Science and Environment, University of Saint Joseph (Macao)). I am enrolled in the Biomedical Science  programme from ICBAS, and the title of my project is “Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) in a mangrove system: from an environmental evaluation to a cellular-based approach.” This research includes environmental characterization of OCPs in Macao’s mangrove environment, in order to compare areas with and without vegetation; and laboratory experiments focused in dicofol (an OCPs related with DTT) bioaccumulation by clams, in order to evaluate possible cellular and physiological alterations produced by the pesticide.

Lúcia Vieira graduated in Aquatic Sciences in 2019 and obtained her Msc in Aquatic Biological Resources, from the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto in 2022. Currently, she is working on her PhD, aiming to valorize agro-industrial by-products through novel biotechnological approaches to increase fish growth performance, and to control aquaculture diseases. Her main interest topics are aquaculture, fish nutrition and immunology, and biotechnology.

Luciana das Neves holds a PhD degree in Civil Engineering from the UPorto. She is an Engineer-Advisor at IMDC nv – Belgium and a Guest Assistant Professor at UPorto – Faculty of Engineering in the fields of hydraulic engineering and fluid mechanics. She is an experienced project manager having managed and carried out numerous projects around the world related to coastal climate risk and resilience and marine engineering. Luciana specialises in designing and implementing projects concerned with coastal protection and defence structures and strategic coastal planning and management. Her research interests involve climate change adaptation, resilience in development strategies and nature-based solutions in flood- and coastal-risk management.

Luciana has a degree in Biochemistry and a PhD in Biomedical Sciences since 2015. She is currently a researcher at Center for Study of Animal Science (CECA/ICETA) that integrates the new associate laboratory AL4animals, and at the group of “Lysosomal Storage Disorders (LSDs)” of the National Institute of Health Ricardo Jorge (INSA). Her work is focused on developing nucleic acid-targeted therapies (CRISPR/Cas9, siRNAs and antisense oligonucleotides) and respective cellular and animal models of LSDs to evaluate them. At CIIMAR she aims to generate new in vivo models (zebrafish) for some LSDs using gene editing.

Luciano Santos is a young researcher with a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Biochemistry, dedicated to scientific research in the Feed and Seafood Quality (LANUCE) research team. Currently, he is enrolled in the doctoral program in Animal Science at the Abel Salazar Institute of Biomedical Sciences (ICBAS). His thesis proposal aims to explore the bioactive potential of hydrolysates derived from byproducts of the agri-food industry, to produce innovative aquafeeds with the capacity to enhance the robustness of farmed fish to environmental challenges and infections, as well as to improve the quality and nutritional value of fish flesh.

PhD Student at the Coastal Biodiversity Laboratory and the Microbiome Ecology and Biogeochemistry team at CIIMAR, with a master’s degree in Applied Marine Biology from the University of Aveiro. Since 2019, his research has been carried out in cetacean ecology, now mainly focusing on the development and application of environmental DNA tools to study these animals.

L. Gabriel Barboza is an environmental scientist and ecotoxicologist by training. He obtained a BSc degree in Environmental Management (UTFPR-Brazil), a Master’s degree in Environmental Sciences (UEM-Brazil), and received his PhD in Biomedical Sciences from the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences (ICBAS, University of Porto) in 2019. He is currently Junior Researcher at CIIMAR under the FCT-CEEC contract and also invited Assistant Professor at ICBAS-UP. He is also member of the FAO expert group on microplastics in food. His current research interests focus on the implications of microplastics and other emerging contaminants within the One Health approach.

Luis Rangel holds a PhD in Biology from the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto. He is an assistant researcher at CIIMAR, in the Animal Parasitology and Pathology group. He studies parasites of fish and other aquatic organisms, including Myxozoa, Apicomplexa, Platyhelminthes, and Nematoda. His studies include the description of new species, the unraveling of their life cycles, and the zoonotic potential of some parasites when consumed alive or dead (allergies) by humans.

As a PhD student in biology I focus marine species physiological responses to thermal stress. By conducting trials that evaluate how the marine heat waves could affect intertidal communities, I try to detect different resilience between populations of the same species to cope with this events. With a degree electrotechnical and computer engineering, I develop tools that allow long term experiments with tides, water and atmosphere temperature control. My goal is to perform experiments that could help predict and macro-ecological consequences of local adaptation to climate change.

Luís Pereira is a student in the Master’s program of Applied Marine Biology at the University of Aveiro. His focus lies in the ecology, conservation, monitoring, and assessment of fish populations, particularly diadromous fish. Currently, he is working on his dissertation with the theme “Biology and ecology of diadromous fishes in the Rio Lima estuary.” Since 2020, he has been involved in projects at the Aquamuseu do Rio Minho and at the Department of Biology of the University of Aveiro (DBio). He is the author of an indexed publication and a book.