Cláudia Costa

Claudia Costa is a Phd specialized in innovation, entrepreneurship, and academic training. She worked in the top management schools in Portugal such as Catolica Lisbon and Nova Business School, and was the Scientific Director for the first editions of the EIT Digital summer school. He is currently responsible for the F4S Academy, the area of Food4Sustainability responsible for transferring knowledge to develop, promote and train farmers, professionals, companies and individuals in sustainable agri-food systems for better human health and well-being.

Luis Neves

is a food fermentation researcher at Mendes Gonçalves SA since 2014. He has a degree in Biological Engineer and a MSc degree in Biological and Chemical Processes at Instituto Superior de Engenharia de Coimbra. He is involved in the regenerative agriculture project "Vila Feliz Cidade". He is passionate about the outdoors and nature and has spent the last years searching and studying regenerative agriculture systems.

Dario Peirone

José Ruiz Gámez

is a technical engineer in topography from the University of Valencia, Master in Landscape Architecture from the University of Valencia and Master in Ecological Agriculture and Livestock from the University of Biology of Barcelona. He has worked as a topographer in local companies in Valencia and as a cartographic software designer in mapping companies linked to the Diputación de Valencia for 10 years. And since 2007 he works as a freelance in the design of farms with hydrological design in key line to achieve a more homogeneous distribution of rainwater and thus avoid future erosion problems and regenerate the soil with thousands of hectares in multiple types of crops from grassland regeneration to woody, fruit trees and vineyards in countries such as Spain, Portugal, France and Mexico.

Teresa Lino Neto

Teresa Lino Neto is an Associate Professor at the University of Minho and a member of the CBMA research centre. Her background includes a degree in Applied Plant Biology from the University of Lisbon, a PhD in Sciences (Biology) and an Aggregation in Biology with a specialization in Evolution, Biodiversity and Ecology, both from the University of Minho. Currently, her research focuses on the study of plant-microorganism interactions, especially mycorrhizae, endophytes and PGPR (including rhizobia), with the aim of increasing forest sustainability and plant productivity. She has authored many scientific articles in specialist journals (58), as well as contributing chapters to books. She has coordinated and participated in several scientific projects in interactions between plants and microorganisms, both nationally and internationally. As a supervisor, she has supervised several doctorates (11) and master's degrees (19).

Rita Castelo Branco

Is an agronomist with experience in innovation projects and new business development in the agriculture sector. It is with her boots in the field she feels happy! Has more than one decade dedicated to red fruit production with applied research and supporting the development of more sustainable approaches to production systems, always with the main purpose of doing more with less! Rita is now developing her Phd project dedicated to irrigation water management at university of Lisbon.

Sofia Costa

is a nematode ecologist based at the Centre of Molecular and Environmental Biology at the University of Minho. She obtained her PhD in Biological Sciences at the University of Lancaster, UK, in 2007, and a Post-graduation in Organic Agriculture from the Ponte de Lima School of Agriculture in 2014. Sofia’s research interests follow two main research lines: i) the use of nematode communities as bioindicators of soil-based ecosystem services; and ii) the ecology and control of crop-damaging plant-parasitic nematodes in agroecosystems.

Miguel Viegas

He is a professor of economics and researcher at the University of Aveiro. Between 2014 and 2019, he was a Member of the European Parliament where he integrated the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development. During his mandate he actively participated in the negotiation of the regulations governing the CAP post 2023. He recently published the book "The Common Agricultural Policy Post-2020: The Challenges For Portugal". In addition to his PhD in economics, Miguel Viegas is a veterinarian, having worked for 19 years in the Portuguese agricultural sector.

Sara Rodrigues

is a Soil production specialist at Food4Sustainability. Sara holds a degree in Agronomy at the Agricultural College of Castelo Branco, Portugal, and a course in permaculture design, and believes that biodiversity is necessary for a sustainable and resilient future, and that this is within our reach.

Sofia Pereira

holds a PhD in Biology, a Master in Toxicology and a Degree in Biology from the University of Aveiro. Sofia Pereira is a researcher at the Centro de Biotecnologia e Química Fina and regent of the Mycology course of the Microbiology degree. Her scientific interests focus on the development of bioinocula formulations to increase the growth and resilience of crops under stress conditions, as well as on the use of phytoremediation and phytomanagement strategies for the recovery of environmentally degraded areas.

Paula Baptista

is Assistant Professor at the Polytechnic Institute of Bragança (IPB) and member of “Centro de Investigação de Montanha” (CIMO, http://cimo.ipb.pt/web/). She has a degree in Agricultural Engineering, a Master in Quality Control and a PhD in Science. Her main interests are focused on bio-prospection of biological control agents (microbial antagonist) against pests and diseases in crop ecosystem, on biotic interactions, as well as on the effects of cropping practices on biological control agents.

Margarida Palma

is an Operations Researcher at Food4Sustainability where she works in projects and activities related to knowledge transfer and dissemination, educational and training actions, within the context of soil microbiology and soil health. She holds a PhD degree in Microbiology, and she was a scientific researcher for over 12 years in the field of functional genomics, molecular and cellular biology, and physiology of conventional and non-conventional yeasts with a role in Food and Industrial Biotechnology. She has additional training in Organic agriculture, Integrated agricultural systems, Sustainable agriculture, Agricultural business management, and Apiculture.

Isabel Brito

is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Biology at the University of Évora. Isabel holds a PhD in Biology, and her main research field is the management of native arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) in low input cropping systems, particularly in Mediterranean regions. Key areas of study are the effects of common agronomic practices (weed control, tillage system, crop rotation, cover crops) on AMF functional diversity and the development of strategies to manage indigenous AMF communities within cropping systems, for the bio-protection of cultivated plants. More recent research is also focused on the evaluation of different indicators of soil general microbial activity and diversity.

Elvira Domingo

is a Regional Innovation Programme Manager at EIT Food. She works on the successful implementation of the Regional Innovation Scheme (RIS), a dedicated programme we across Southern Europe including Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece, Cyprus, Malta and Turkey to accelerate agrifood innovation across Southern and Central Eastern Europe, interacting with local players, mobilising and internationalising local networks as well as facilitating the connection among business, academy, research and consumers, but also helping the best startups transform our food system. She is also responsible for EIT Food's first project to Find Innovative Solutions on Water Scarcity, designing and implementing a plan (gathering best expertise, training, community, investment and access to market) to help Southern Europe countries towards a more sustainable water management system.

Alfred Grand

is an organic arable field farmer, market gardener and entrepreneur from Austria. Alfred is a member of three soil-related EIP-Agri focus groups, three EIP-Agri operational groups and several Horizon 2020 projects. Alfred Grand is co-author of the book ‘Biodünger selber machen’ (Make your own fertilizer). In 2019 he was selected as a member of the Mission Board for Soil Health and Food for developing a mission for Horizon Europe. He is also a board member at the Californian initiative Regenerative Organic Alliance.