Scientific council

Researcher of the Institute of Food Production Sciences (ISPA)

Milena
Brasca

Graduated in Agricultural Sciences at the University of Milan. Her scientific activity focuses on agro-food microbiology in particular on the dairy supply chain and the characterization of microbial populations of food. She also dealt with the metabolic activities of lactic acid bacteria for the improvement of food quality, safety and functionality. She participated in and coordinated several national and international projects and is author and co-author of over 170 scientific papers, whose 70 published in ISI international journals, and 12 book chapters.

Full Professor of Entomology in University of Palermo

Stefano
Colazza

Over the last two decades, he developed fundamental and applied researches on the ecology of multi-trophic systems of plants (leguminous and solanaceous), herbivore insects (true bugs) and their natural enemies (egg parasitoids). His Research on host selection focuses on the behavior of hymenoptera egg parasitoids that includes the isolation and identification of cues from the hosts food or habitat, the host, and associated organisms. He settled several international collaborations (Scopus reports 32 International Co-authors), lead a research group with a wide range of interests, supervise undergraduate and post-graduate students, teach undergraduate and post-graduate modules in several subjects, manage research budgets and carry out editorial and administrative activities.

Full Professor of Plant Physiology at the Biomedical Campus University of Rome

Laura
De Gara

Full Professor of Plant Physiology and Dean of the Department of Sciences and Technologies for Man and the Environment. Secretary General of the Federation of European Societies of Plant Biology (FESPB) for the period 2018-2022. President of the Italian Society of Plant Biology for the period 2019-2021. Member of the CREA Scientific Council and President of the Evaluation Committee of the same Body. Author of 144 scientific publications.

 

Senior Researcher at the Institute of Biosciences and Bioresources (IBBR)

Roberto Defez
Roberto Defez

He leads the microbial biotechnology laboratory at the Institute of Biosciences and Bioresources in Naples. It deals with nitrogen fixing between soil bacteria and plants. He has published over 50 papers in scientific journals and since 1998 he has been involved in the public debate on the validity of GMOs in agriculture, on aspects of agriculture research and development policy. He is a member of the National Academy of Agriculture, of the Ethics Committee of the Umberto Veronesi Foundation. For the disclosure he wrote “Il Caso OGM”, Carocci publisher, second classified at the Premio Galileo 2015 while in 2018 he wrote “DISCOVERY, how scientific research can help change Italy”, Codice Editore, first classified in the social, economic and legal sciences section of the National Award for Scientific Dissemination Giancarlo Dosi 2018 and third place in the Galileo Award 2019.

Full Professor of Arboriculture and Arboreal Cultivations at the University of Florence

Francesco
Ferrini

He published about 300 scientific papers and presented the results of his research in over 200 national and international conferences with scientific or technical-dissemitating reports. He held the position of President of the Italian Arboriculture Society from February 2005 to February 2011 and from 2005 to 2016 he was a member of the Board of Directors of the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA). He is also editorial Director of the Advances in Horticultural Science Journal and received several national and international awards including the Award of Merit of the International Society of Arboriculture in 2019.