Academic partners

Maria Concetta Bruzzoniti is a full professor of environmental chemistry at the Department of Chemistry of the University of Turin. She is an expert in water issues (analysis of priority and emerging compounds, remediation, and water reuse). Currently responsible for research units in three international and one regional research projects concerning the characterization, safety, and reuse of water for agricultural purposes.
She has actively collaborated with the Waterwork structures of Turin (Italy) since 1997. Overall, her scientific activity turned out in more than 117 ISI-impacted scientific publications and 6 book chapters (3 international and 3 national chapters).

Luca Rivoira is serving as assistant professor at the Department of Chemistry of the University of Turin. His research activities are mainly focused on the assessment of environmental and food contamination by microplastics, on the synthesis and application of ceramic materials to environmental issues, as well as on the development of analytical methods for the determination of emerging contaminants in environmental and food matrices. Additionally, he also deals with data collection and processing through chemometric approaches and design of experiments. Overall, his scientific activity turned out in more than 48 ISI-impacted scientific publications and 2 book chapters.

Simona Di Bonito is a PhD student in Sustainable Development and Cooperation at the Department of Chemistry of the University of Turin. Her research is focused on the development of cutting-edge chemical and biological strategies for the monitoring and protection ecosystem services, with particular emphasis on water-relevant ecosystem services. Her work aims to assess and enhance the quality of treated wastewater to support its safe reuse through advanced and integrated scientific approaches.

 Dr. José Juan Santana Rodríguez is Professor of Analytical Chemistry at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC). He is author/co-author of more than 176 scientific articles in indexed journals (H-index: 51; Citations: 8316), of 249 communications to international and national congresses, 1 book and 12 book chapters. He has also been Principal Investigator or Investigator of 23 Research Projects in the European, national and regional ambits, Supervisor of 13 Doctoral Thesis (6 European Doctorate and 6 awarded with UPLGC Prize) and Supervisor of more than 30 master and PhD national and international students and postdoc researchers. He is referee of more than 55 international scientific journals and of several international and national Evaluation Agencies. He has also been member of scientific committee of 17 international and national conferences, general chairman of 3 international symposia and invited speaker (plenary and key lectures) in more than 20 international conferences. Also, he has been awarded with the Prize (2019) “Recognition to Scientific Career” at the ULPGC and belongs, as permanent member, to the Royal Sciences Academy of The Canaries (Spain). Currently he is Director of Institute for Environmental Studies and Natural Resources of University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. He has also been visiting professor of more than 15 universities in Europe, United States, Australia, Brazil, Argentina and Japan. His research fields are focused in: - optimization, development and application of new analytical methodologies for the determination of organic contaminants in the environment; - control of organic contaminants in the marine medium; - analysis and control of emerging contaminants in aquatic and terrestrial systems. 

Dr. Tanausú Vega Morales is author of 24 papers published in peer-reviewed international journals (14 in Q1 journals), which have received more than 500 citations (Web of Science), achieving an H-index of 12. He is also author of a book chapter and 4 patents (3 granted and commercially exploited), reflecting a solid track record in analytical chemistry, environmental science, and nutraceutical research.

Dr. Vega Morales has extensive experience in the development of advanced analytical methods based on chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry for the determination of organic micropollutants and bioactive plant metabolites. His early research focused on endocrine-disrupting compounds in wastewater and environmental matrices, contributing to the understanding of their occurrence, transformation, and removal limitations in treatment systems. 

After a decade leading R&D activities in the nutraceutical industry, where he directed laboratories, coordinated multidisciplinary teams, and contributed to the development and industrial scale-up of patented botanical ingredients with global commercialization, he has recently rejoined academia. He is currently a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC) within the WATERPATH project, where he applies his expertise in analytical chemistry and environmental monitoring to the study of contaminants of emerging concern and water reuse strategies. 

He has participated in numerous public-private collaborations and clinical studies, and has experience in knowledge transfer, mentoring, and scientific dissemination, consolidating a multidisciplinary profile at the interface between environmental analytical chemistry and applied life sciences.

Dr.a Sarah Montesdeoca Esponda is an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry. Her research focuses on the optimization and validation of analytical methods for the determination of emerging pollutants in environmental samples. Specifically, she is currently analyzing personal care products, such as UV filters and stabilizers used as ingredients in sunscreens and other cosmetics. Her most recent publications address the processes of bioaccumulation and biomagnification of these pollutants within the marine food chain. Dr. Montesdeoca Esponda is the author of more than 50 indexed scientific articles and four book chapters, and she has participated in 12 research projects. In 2019, she received the Recognition for Outstanding Young Researchers from ULPGC in the field of Sciences. She also directs a collaborative agreement between ULPGC and the City Council of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, leading a team of more than 30 people.  

Dr. Rayco Guedes Alonso is an Associate Professor at the Department of Chemistry, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), and a researcher specialising in analytical methods for environmental monitoring and the study of emerging pollutants. His work focuses on developing and applying advanced chromatographic and sample-preparation techniques to detect steroid hormones, endocrine disruptors and other contaminants in complex environmental matrices such as wastewater, reclaimed water, sediments and biota. He has participated in numerous regional, national and European research projects focused on the occurrence, monitoring and removal of emerging pollutants in environmental systems. Dr. Guedes Alonso has authored over 35 peer-reviewed scientific publications and has presented his research at more than 60 international conferences. He recently served as Principal Investigator on a national research project funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation on emerging pollutant elimination mechanisms in natural wastewater treatment systems, including microplastics, and maintains active international research collaborations and training activities.  

Dr.a Hyun Suk Shin is a Distinguished Researcher (Beatriz Galindo Program) at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Spain). She obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Marine Biotechnology from Korea Maritime and Ocean University (South Korea). 

Her research focuses on quantitative genetics and genomic selection in aquaculture species, with particular emphasis on improving breeding programs through advanced statistical and genomic tools. 

Dr. Shin has published more than 40 peer-reviewed indexed articles, serving as lead author in 16 publications. She holds an H-index of 21 and an i10-index of 36. 

She has participated in 11 competitive research projects at international, European (EU), national, and regional levels, taking on leading roles in key tasks and serving as Co-Principal Investigator in projects such as MELUSA. In addition, she has actively promoted knowledge transfer to industry, working as Technical Research Director at BIOGEMAR (Ecuador).   

 Prof. Zoraida Sosa Ferrera is Full Professor of Analytical Chemistry at the Department of Chemistry of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Spain). She has more than 30 years’ experience in Analytical and Environmental Chemistry, focusing on the development of advanced analytical methodologies for the determination of persistent and emerging contaminants, including microplastics, in water, soils and sediments, as well as on the assessment of their environmental impact. 

She is co-founder and co-director of the Environmental Chemical Analysis Research Group. She has participated in more than 25 regional, national and European research projects, serving as principal investigator in several of them. 

Author of more than 160 papers published in peer-reviewed journals indexed in JCR, her publications have received over 3,700 citations, achieving an h-index of 41 (Scopus). She has supervised numerous PhD theses and has extensive experience in leading competitive research projects and training early-stage researchers. 

Professor María Teresa Tejedor-Junco is the author of 66 papers published in indexed “peer reviewed” journals, achieving an H-index 23. She has participated in various research projects at the Autonomic, National and International levels, both as principal investigator or as member of the Research Team. Se has presented over 100 communications to Congress. 

Her main lines of research are: 1) Antimicrobial resistance in strains of human, animal and environmental origin. 2) Animal Trypanosomiasis. 3) Clinical veterinary Microbiology, especially focused on ruminants and camelids and 4) Health-related aspects of wastewater reuse.  

In the field of antimicrobial resistance, for example, we have studied the antimicrobial resistance patterns and the molecular basis of resistance, in microorganisms obtained from camels or wild vultures. 

She is a member of the Editorial Board of “Veterinary Quarterly”, one of the leading journals on the field of Veterinary Sciences. She has also reviewed manuscripts for several indexed journals. 

In addition, she frequently publishes in “The Conversation” contributing to the dissemination of knowledge about Microbiology  to the wider public. 

María Esther Torres Padrón is an associate professor in analytical chemistry at the Department of Chemistry of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. Her research activities are mainly focused on the application of clean methodologies for the extraction/preconcentration and determination of organic pollutants and contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) of environmental interest and monitorization of these compounds in the marine environment. 

She has published in more than 40 ISI-impacted scientific publications like coauthor in analytical chemistry and environmental sciences journals. She has participated in different international, national and regional research projects and in a collaborative agreement with the city council of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria related with the marine area of El Confital Bay. 

She has been part of the organizing and scientific committees of the International Symposium of Marine Sciences (ISMS), held in 2018 (Vigo), 2020 (Barcelona), 2022 (Las Palmas de Gran Canaria), and 2024 (Valencia). 

She has recognized three research six-year periods (2001-2007, 2008-2013, 2014-2019) and she have applied to obtain a new period (2020-2025). 

Full Professor Margarita Rosa González-Martín is Biologist Specialist in Microbiology and Parasitology. She is the author of 34 papers published in indexed “peer reviewed” journals. She has participated in various research projects at the Autonomic, National and International levels.

Research lineages: (1) Antimicrobial resistance in strains of human, animal and environmental origin. (2) Animal Trypanosomiasis. (3) Zoonosis. (4) Health-related aspects of wastewater reuse. (5) Divulgation of Microbiology and the problem of antimicrobial resistance at non-university levels. 

Her research focuses mainly on identifying bacteria from human, animal and environmental samples and detecting resistance mechanisms and virulence factors. Another important line of research is related to the identification, resistance and epidemiology of Trypanosoma evansi and other trypanosomes of human and animal interest.