Speakers

Speech Title : Exploiting the potential of FT-NIRS as innovative methods in marine science, with a focus on fish research

Karolina Jonko-Sobus: graduate of the Faculty of Oceanography and Geography at the University of Gdańsk, employed at the National Marine Fisheries Research Institute in Gdynia since 2017 and currently a PhD candidate. She participated in the BONUS MicroPoll project on microplastics and pollutants in the Baltic Sea and the PopHerr project on herring populations from Polish fishing grounds. These experiences inspired her research on the use of Near-Infrared and FT-IR spectroscopy in fish science. Her current work focuses on distinguishing fish populations, identifying similar species, and classifying microplastic pollution in the marine environment.

Speech Title : The Benefits of Marine Resources: The Role of Macroalgal Bioactivities in the Blue Economy and Ecosystem Health

Prof. Dr. Ana Marta Gonçalves is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Portugal. She holds a PhD in Biology from the University of Coimbra, completed in collaboration with Ghent University, Belgium. With 129 peer-reviewed publications, over 7,700 citations, and a Scopus h-index of 45, she has established an extensive international research profile. Her research focuses on aquatic ecology, ecotoxicology, marine biotechnology, environmental stressors, climate change, and the valorisation of marine resources for applications in food, biomedicine, pharmaceuticals, and agriculture. Prof. Gonçalves has coordinated and participated in numerous national and international research projects and has supervised more than 160 graduate and postgraduate students. She is also actively involved in scientific societies, editorial boards, international committees, education, and ocean literacy initiatives. Since 2025, she has been recognized among the Top 1% Highly Cited Researchers by Clarivate, and since 2024 among the World’s Top 2% Scientists by Elsevier and Stanford University. Her work has also received several awards and distinctions for scientific and international research impact.