MAGICBIOMAT Team

Dr Yuanyuan Chen is a Principal Investigator in the Polymer, Recycling, Industrial, Sustainability and Manufacturing (PRISM) at the Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest. Her expertise includes biopolymer synthesis, processing, modification, biodegradation and recycling. She has secured approximately €14.8 million in competitive research funding from Enterprise Ireland, Science Foundation Ireland, Irish Research Council, European Space Agency, DAFM and European Commission Horizon Europe. Her research has been recognized by the Woman in Research award. Her work to date has resulted in 1 patent, > 20 research publications, 3 book chapters and a white paper on circular waste valorization.

Dr. Emma Murphy is a researcher specializing in inflammation and bioactives, using in vitro organ-on-chip systems to model disease. She holds honours degrees in Bioanalysis and Toxicology and a PhD in Clinical Microbiology.

As lead of the Bioengineering Organ-on-Chip Group at TUS Limerick, she oversees research on tissue engineering, bioactives, and inflammation. She collaborates with national and international companies, from startups to SMEs, on applied research.

Dr Yvonne Cortese is a Research Scientist in the PRISM research of TUS. She is the Principal Investigator of two Enterprise Ireland funded IPP feasibilities and one industry direct funded feasibility study. Additionally, she is a postdoctoral researcher in the Enterprise Ireland funded Meat Technology Ireland (MTI) Technology Centre and European Union Horizon Funded Buddie-Pack and Magicbiomat consortiums. Her current research focuses are reusable, biodegradable, and active packaging as well as biodegradable and antifouling medical devices. She holds a BSc in Toxicology and a PhD in Microbiology.

Dr Romina Pezzoli’s work is dedicated to the development of next-generation sustainable packaging solutions through the development of sustainable materials and manufacturing technologies. As a Principal Investigator at the Applied Polymer Technologies EI Gateway and the PRISM RI at TUS, she actively works on industry-focused packaging innovation projects, leading and collaborating with national and European projects in sustainable packaging approaches which include biodegradable packaging; reusable packaging technologies; flexible packaging production; and end-of-life management. Dr Pezzoli holds a BEng in Materials from the Simon Bolivar University at Venezuela and PhD in Polymer Engineering from TUS.

Declan Devine is the Director of the Polymer, Recycling, Sustainability, Industrial and Manufacturing (PRISM) Research Institute at the Technological University of the Shannon (TUS).
Declan is currently in nattional centres for polymer procesing (Applied Polymer Technologies), Advanced Materials (Amber) and Mrdcial Devices (Cúram). His current research interests centre on the development of sustainable materials for packaging applications, biomedical polymers and polymer based Smart Manufacturing. Declan has published in the fields of controlled release, medical device coatings, 3D printing scaffolds biodegradable polymers, additive manufacturing and bone regeneration.

Rebecca Marsden is the manager of the Forge Design Factory and a researcher at Limerick School of Art & Design, Technological University of the Shannon, TUS. She is a designer with expertise in textiles and fashion and is engaged in research for these sectors through ongoing projects with European partners. She contributes to MA Interdisciplinary Design, L9 Design for Sustainability & Circular Economies and MA Enterprise for Creative Industries at LSAD.

The Forge Design Factory serves the Mid-West & Midlands of Ireland through supporting growth of design ecosystems, fostering collaboration and engagement between designers, students, researchers & industry in the region. Our distributed design factory model ensures our partners have access to research and expertise that spans a broad range of disciplines across our Design Factory network.

Lara Facchini, PhD student working in the Polymer Engineering Group, Department of Industrial Engineering at Padova University. Her research mainly focuses on the development of bio-based polymers with controlled biodegradation rates. Other research topics of interest to her include the characterization and processing of biopolymers and biopolymer blends, as well as the chemical recycling of PA6.

Prof. Lorenzo Favaro, PhD is the Principal Investigator of the Waste to Bioproducts lab, DAFNAE (Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment) at Padova University.

He works also as extraordinary professor of Microbiology at the Microbiology Department (Stellenbosch University, South Africa). He is/was involved in (and coordinated) several international, national and regional research projects on the valorisation of low-cost agricultural and industrial residues into valuable products such as biofuels (bioethanol, biohydrogen and biogas), industrial enzymes and biopolymers. He is co-inventor of two patents, “Biofuels production

” (WO 2011/128712),  and “Enzyme treatment for bioplastic recycling ” (UK2115470.3) on the enzymatic recycling of end-of-life bioplastics.

Leonardo Faggian, PhD student working in the Waste to Bioproducts lab, DAFNAE (Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment) at Padova University. He has a Master in Industrial Biotechnology at the University of Padova.

The last project he was involved in focused on the development of novel enzymatic solutions for bioplastic breakdown in anaerobic digestion (AD) plants. He developed expertise in AD and the production of recombinant enzymes in yeast systems. He would like to deepen my expertise in the scale up and optimization of enzyme production to advance the technology towards industrial application.

Dr. Marthinus Wessel Myburgh is a passionate researcher and innovator dedicated to advancing enzymatic solutions for sustainable waste management, with a particular focus on bioplastic recycling. His research centres on designing recombinant yeast systems to hydrolyze bioplastics and convert them to high-value products, directly addressing global challenges in the sustainable end-of-life processing of bioplastics. He has co-authored 7 impactful publications and 3 technical reports on enzyme applications in biofuels and bioplastic recycling and his findings has been presented in 18 international conference outputs.

Hilal Macit holds a master’s degree in Polymer Science and Chemistry from Istanbul Technical University (İTÜ) and is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Polymer Science and Chemistry. She works as a Research and Development Specialist at Organik Kimya, where she has contributed significantly to several innovative R&D projects.

During her time at Organik Kimya, Hilal has focused on the development of advanced polymer solutions, working specifically on pressure-sensitive adhesives (PSAs) & Paper Solutions and sustainable formulations. She has been involved in the synthesis and characterization of new polymer materials, optimizing their performance for industrial applications. Her work also includes leading efforts to enhance the environmental sustainability of products and processes, in line with the company’s innovation goals.

Zeynep Alpay holds a Master’s degree in Chemistry from Istanbul Technical University (İTÜ) and serves as the R&D Manager for PSA & Paper Solutions at Organik Kimya. With a background in microbiology and chemistry, she leads various research and development projects at Organik Kimya.
In addition to her R&D role, Alpay has shared her professional journey as an R&D leader on platforms such as “Gelecek Daha Net.”

Under her leadership, Organik Kimya continues to advance its innovation strategy, focusing on pressure-sensitive adhesives (PSAs) and paper solutions, making significant contributions to the company’s ongoing research and development efforts.

Cansu Akarsu Dülgar graduated with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Istanbul Technical University, where she also earned her master’s and Ph.D. in Polymer Science and Technology. Her research on emulsion polymerization and adhesives has resulted in multiple academic publications and patents. During her master’s degree studies, she conducted research at WACKER-Chair of Macromolecular Chemistry at the Technical University of Munich. With 15 years of industrial experience, she has held various roles in R&D and Innovation; and currently serves as an R&D Platform Manager at Organik Kimya Sanayi ve Ticaret A.Ş. Her expertise includes advanced characterization techniques, polymer synthesis, and analysis, with a particular focus on water- and solvent-borne polymer systems, as well as their industrial applications. Cansu has also contributed to several Horizon BBI and TÜBİTAK-funded projects, with a focus on developing sustainable solutions. Committed to fostering young talent, she actively mentors researchers through initiatives like the Chemistry of Youth social responsibility program.

With over 38 years of experience in polymer technologies, research, and development, Sibel Altınok serves as the Chief R&D and Polymer Technology Officer at Organik Kimya. She holds a degree from the Middle East Technical University (ODTÜ) and has specialized in innovative polymer materials, water-based dispersions, and sustainable chemical solutions. Throughout her extensive career, Altınok has been a driving force behind the development of next-generation polymers and materials, playing a key role in strengthening the collaboration between industry and academia.

Altınok has successfully led numerous R&D projects that have resulted in new innovations in polymer science, focusing on sustainable practices and reducing environmental impact. Her leadership has fostered a strong connection between Organik Kimya’s R&D center and academic institutions, ensuring that cutting-edge research is applied to industrial applications. She is also an active participant in sustainability efforts, particularly in the areas of low-carbon economy and sustainable production.

Additionally, Altınok is a member of the scientific committee for the Paintistanbul Turkcoat Congress, where she contributes her expertise to advancing the knowledge of coating technologies. As part of her leadership at Organik Kimya, she has significantly contributed to the development of sustainable chemical solutions that align with global industry trends.

Esin Akdeniz plays a pivotal role in leading and managing various R&D projects. Her expertise lies in coordinating cross-functional teams and ensuring the successful execution of projects from concept to completion. She collaborates with both internal and external stakeholders to drive innovation processes, aligning project goals with the company’s strategic objectives. Esin is responsible for overseeing the development of new products, optimizing existing formulations, and ensuring projects are completed on time and within budget.

Sercan İlgin works as an R&D Senior Technician at Organik Kimya, where he plays a key role in supporting the company’s research and development processes. With 15 years of experience in the field, Sercan specializes in conducting laboratory experiments, analyzing data, and collaborating with the R&D team to enhance existing products and develop new ones. His expertise spans a wide range of applications, including textiles, paper, and adhesives. Sercan’s contributions are vital to optimizing product performance and advancing innovation across various sectors.

Debolina Paul is a business developer for European market. She has been awarded the designation Certified ScrumMaster® in May 2020 and Certified Scrum Product Owner® in June 2020. She has more than five years of international experience of working in India, France, and Estonia. Previously, she had worked as a Project Management Officer within the strategy execution and integration team of CEO Office of Amadeus. As a part of her role, she performed KPI monitoring, cost-benefit analysis, and organized stakeholder workshops ensuring milestone handovers in Madrid and Nice. Debolina worked as a Project Manager on Digital Technologies in Salomon where she benchmarked five commercial SaaS solutions, managed implementation of an internal Salomon SaaS Platform, coordinated project milestones, and budget. Prior to that, she has been a Product Manager in Future Tech Lab in India analysing Digital Transformation for Indian market and co-organizing international marketing events. In addition to these roles, Debolina is proficient in CRM and 360-degree marketing strategy development. She has an MBA from IAE Nice, France.

Maria is Sustainability Expert at Digiotouch performing Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment on research and industrial processes. She is currently working on several EU-funded projects including upPE-T, ZeroW, and DIVINE. She has an MSc in Environmental Engineering from Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II in Italy.

Soumya is the Founder and CEO of Digiotouch. He has 13+ years of R&D and business development experience on AI, Cybersecurity, and Cloud Computing. He has previously contributed to the technical excellence of many French national (FUI and ANR), EIT Digital projects. Soumya has also acted as Technical Manager in several EU H2020 research projects and cascade funding projects (including F-Interop, Fed4FIRE+).

He demonstrated his high impact R&D at reputed international events like WF-IoT (2014-2020), IoTWeek (2017-2019), TRA Conference (2018), ETSI M2M Workshop (2016, 2017). He has published more than 90 research papers in IEEE and ACM conferences, magazines, journals. His papers have been cited 4437+ times in peer-reviewed publications with his h-index is 34 and i10-index is 68. Soumya is a Senior Member of the IEEE and has received many awards from IEEE WF-IoT 2019 (Ireland), EU Datathon 2018 (Belgium), IEEE TenSymp 2018 (Australia), IEEE ISCE 2017 (Malaysia), and IEEE GCCE 2015 (Japan) for his research and leadership in the IoT. Previously he also performed technology transfer to two French SMEs Mios and SunPartner which showcased the delivered technical innovation in Mobile World Congress 2015.

Currently, he is an external reviewer for EU H2020 projects. He consistently delivers Keynote and Industrial Talks in international technical and business conferences. He has been actively contributing to the W3C Web of Things Working Groups leading to standardization of WoT architecture and Things Description. Soumya graduated with an M.Sc. in Communications and Computer Security from Telecom ParisTech, France and undertook an Executive Education course on XR from MIT Sloan School of Management.

Catherine Colin is research program manager at the French Technical and Industrial Center for Plastics and Composites, IPC, since 2022. She leads 2 research thematic: solutions at low environmental impacts and health + ecosystems. She is chairperson of CEN/TC 462 on regulated chemicals in products. She is a mechanical systems engineer from Université de Technologie de Compiègne, UTC. She worked for 20 years within Schneider Electric, where she gained an operational expertise in environment with the management of Schneider Electric environment program for 6 years. At ease with complexity, she managed projects with high stakes in international contexts: portfolio of 7 billion € for Schneider Electric, budget of 6.5 million € at LEM. One of her greatest professional successes was the deployment of Schneider ecolabel from 0% to 80% of the products portfolio. She managed cross-functional teams with over 20 persons in Europe, China, India, USA, and Canada. She likes to create links and federate. She speaks French, English and German. She was member of Energie Partagée Supervisory Board for 5 years to contribute to the development of renewable energies.

Justine Jacquin is a professional engaged in the fields of microbiology and the environment. She holds a Master’s degree in fundamental and applied microbiology and obtained a PhD in marine microbiology from Sorbonne University in 2020. Her thesis, entitled “Microbial Ecotoxicology of Plastics at Sea: Colonization and Biodegradation by the Plastisphere,” was published in 2020. She has been working at IPC as a project manager since 2020 and has studied the biodegradation of plastics in the sea, freshwater, industrial compost, and domestic compost. A TUV Austria-certified laboratory was established at IPC in 2022. Justine also works in the field of microbiology and studies the many interactions that can occur between plastic and bacteria.

Juliette Brunet is a polymer scientist currently working at IPC as a Circular Economy Program Manager within the R&D team. Her work focuses on biobased plastics and reuse strategies. She graduated with a master’s degree in Polymer and Formulation from the School of Chemistry, Biology and Physics of Bordeaux, France in 2016. She finished her PhD in Polymer science in 2019 from the University of Lyon, France. Her doctoral research includes work on dynamic polymer networks, particularly organoboron-based polymeric systems. She developed expertise ranging from polymer synthesis to advanced characterization techniques. Following her PhD, she gained 5 years of industrial experience contributing to innovation projects centered on biodegradable materials and polyester recycling.

Julia Bourquin is a plastics engineer specializing in eco-design and life cycle assessment (LCA). She graduated from INSA Strasbourg in 2021 and went on to complete a specialized master’s degree in “Change Management and Sustainable Innovation” at the Arts et Métiers Institute in Chambéry.
She began her career in the industrial sector, where she initiated and structured an eco-design approach, using LCA as a key tool, integrated into product development processes, to anticipate the sector’s regulatory and environmental challenges.

As an LCA and eco-design project manager at IPC, she applies her expertise in LCA and her knowledge of the plastics industry to support European research projects.

Lucas Aine holds a Master’s degree in Chemistry and Materials Analysis from Lyon and is currently pursuing a PhD in collaboration with the University of Clermont Auvergne. His research focuses on the “Study of Microplastic Release During the Use Phase of Products from the Plastics Industry.”

A central objective of this work is the development of new methodologies for quantifying microplastics across various matrices. To address the specific challenges and experimental biases inherent to this field, a dedicated method for the extraction and quantification of microplastics has been established.

As a project Manager at IPC, he is involved in various european projects on the topic of microplastics.

•Expertise in integrated coastal zone management, coastal erosion control, coastal adaptation to climate change, marine litter, participatory decision-making, peace-building, blue growth, gender issues.
•Expert Project Manager: over 25 years of experience in coordinating and managing European projects
•First Cypriot Member of the UN’s International Expert Compliance Committee for the Barcelona Convention and its Protocols.
•Member of the UN SDSN Cyprus Leadership Council.
•Awarded the title of ‘Ambassador of Mediterranean Coasts 2019’.
•Acted as the Greek Cypriot Chairperson of the Technical Committee on Gender Equality within the peacebuilding negotiations in Cyprus (appointed by the President of the Republic).
She is the author/co-author of over 40 published papers in Scientific Journals and International Conferences, of books and of over 100 published Technical Reports.

Demetra Orthodoxou is a Biochemist (Worcester Polytechnic Institute, MA, USA) with an MSc in Environmental Engineering from Imperial College London. She heads ISOTECH’s Department of Applied Environmental Research. Since joining ISOTECH, Demetra has managed several projects on the topics of waste management, marine litter, the bio-economy, sea level rise and sustainability. She has significant experience with participatory decision support systems and methods, working closely with Isotech colleagues to implement the DeCyDe-4 method for a range of topics related to the environment and sustainability.  Her work to date has resulted in >10 peer reviewed publications and several technical reports. She is a proposal reviewer for the European Commission.

Eleni Panayiotou is a journalist and communications specialist with over 15 years of experience in media, strategic engagement, and international project management. She has worked as an editor, writer, and interviewer, covering defence, security, and policy issues. Her expertise extends to project coordination, successfully managing EU-funded initiatives, newsroom engagement programs, and media capacity-building efforts.

Joanna is a Professor of English Language and Literature and is centrally interested in the relationships between language, cognition, and the environment. She has worked on several large-scale multi-disciplinary and interdisciplinary projects, engaging with a range of major national and international partners, using cognitive linguistics to formulate real-world solutions for environmental problems. She was a Co-Investigator on the projects Plastics: Redefining Single Use (funded by the EPSRC, 2018-2019) and Many Happy Returns: Enabling Reusable Packaging Systems (funded by the NERC, 2020-2024), both of which aimed to produce multidisciplinary solutions to single-use plastic pollution. She is also the Principal Investigator on a project to set up the UK’s first Biobased and Biodegradable Materials Regulatory Network (BB-REG-NET), funded by Innovate UK in 2024.

Nicola’s research investigates drivers of behaviour, and ways to increase engagement in healthy and sustainable behaviours. Her research areas are in the psychology of eating behaviour and weight management, including dietary and psychological strategies for appetite control, weight management and weight stigma. She is also interested in and has led research projects investigating ways to encourage environmentally sustainable behaviours, such as reducing dietary meat intake and encouraging sustainable waste behaviours. She is currently leading the behavioural workstream of an industry-academic consortium on compostable packaging (funded by UKRI Innovate UK). A main theme of Nicola’s research is investigating individual variability – understanding the psychological characteristics which contribute to why some individuals are more or less likely to engage in health or pro-environmental behaviours, and the implications of this for individually-tailored interventions.