42nd International Conference on Environmental & Food Monitoring ISEAC-42

Christian Laforsch (Uni Bayreuth)

Prof. Dr. Christian Laforsch holds the Chair of Animal Ecology I at the University of Bayreuth. He studied biology at LMU Munich, where he earned his doctorate in 2003 summa cum laude. He then did postdoctoral research at the University of Leipzig and Lancaster University (UK), completed his habilitation in evolutionary ecology at LMU, and headed the Seeon Limnological Research Station. He has held his chair in Bayreuth’s Faculty of Biology, Chemistry and Earth Sciences since 2012. Laforsch’s research focuses on zoology and evolutionary ecology, particularly phenotypic plasticity and the adaptation of animals to environmental change. He also works on coral reef ecology, the impact of multiple stressors on ecosystems, and above all the effects of microplastics on human and environmental health. Since 2019, he has been spokesperson for the DFG-funded Collaborative Research Centre (SFB) 1357 “Microplastics”, which studies the mechanisms and processes behind the biological effects, transport, and formation of microplastics, from models to complex systems, as a basis for new solutions.

Chris Slootweg (UvA)

Chris Slootweg is Professor of Circular Chemistry at the University of Amsterdam. He studied at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, earned his PhD in 2005 under Koop Lammertsma, and did postdoctoral work with Peter Chen at ETH Zürich. He began his independent career at VU Amsterdam in 2006, became Associate Professor in 2014, moved to the UvA in 2016, and has held a full professorship since September 2024. Chris coined the concept of circular chemistry, which replaces the linear “take–make–dispose” model with processes that use waste as a resource. His group combines synthetic chemistry, mechanistic design, and computational methods to develop sustainable chemistry, with a focus on phosphorus, boron, and hydrogen. The group is also known for studying single-electron processes in main-group (photo)chemistry, which enable the homolytic activation of challenging small molecules. His work follows safe-by-design principles and aims at reuse, recovery, and recycling across chemical value chains.

Tomas Pluskal (IOCB Prague)

Tomáš Pluskal is a group leader at IOCB Prague, where he heads the Biochemistry of Plant Specialized Metabolites research group (www.pluskal-lab.org). Building on his Ph.D. training from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology and a postdoctoral fellowship conducted at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, he develops new computational and biochemical approaches to discover, characterize, and synthesize bioactive plant molecules. He co-authored the widely used metabolomics software platform mzmine and recently introduced the AI-driven DreaMS model for identifying unknown compounds from mass spectrometry data. As a highly visible member of the computational metabolomics community, he often organizes international workshops on this topic. Tomáš is a recipient of the Neuron Award for Promising Scientists and an ERC Consolidator Grant, is a member of the EMBO Young Investigator Programme, and served as a board member of the international Metabolomics Society.

Ron Heren (Maastricht University)

Elena Ibañez (Institute of Food Science Research, CIAL-CSIC)

Prof. Dr. Elena Ibañez is a Full Research Professor at the Institute of Food Science Research (CIAL) belonging to the CSIC in Madrid, Spain. She received her PhD in Analytical Chemistry at the UAM, Spain and carried out her postdoctoral training at Brigham Young University, USA and at the University of California at Davis, USA. Elena’s main activity includes the study and development of new green extraction processes based on the use of compressed fluids to isolate and analyze bioactive compounds from natural sources such as food and agricultural by-products, plants and algae. She has participated in 54 research projects with competitive financial support from governmental organizations and private companies; she has led 15 projects (2 EU projects). She has received different national and international awards, co-authored more than 370 publications, 39 book chapters and 10 patents. Awarded as one of the 50 top women in Analytical Chemistry (2016 Power List, the Analytical Scientist, October, 2016), one of the 10 Top 10s in Analytical Chemistry in the category of Public Defenders (2017 Power List, the Analytical Scientist, October, 2017) and included in The Analytical Scientist Power List 2023, celebrating 10 Years of Excellence and Impact in the field (category Leaders and Advocates). Awarded with the XIX COLACRO Medal in 2024. She has co-supervised 17 PhD thesis and supervised more than 50 foreigner students and postdocs. She is Editor of Journal of Supercritical Fluids, Contributing Editor of TrAC-Trends in Analytical Chemistry and Specialty Chief Editor of Frontiers in Nutrition (Nutrition and Food Science Technology) and Editor-in-Chief of Exploration of Foods and Foodomics.

More to be announced soon.