As integrated member of the Institute for Research in Marine Sciences (IICM) – OKEANOS at the University of the Azores, I serve as an assistant researcher at the Aquaculture Experimental Laboratory (AquaLab). My academic journey commenced with a Biology degree, specializing in Ecology, obtained from the University of Padua (ITA). My thesis focused on the fisheries and biology of fishes in the Venetian lagoon. Following this, I completed my PhD in Marine Sciences at the University of the Azores, expanding my expertise in genetics through collaborations with the genetics and molecular biology laboratories of the Universities of Jyväskylä (FIN) and Trieste (ITA).
Since 2008, I have been deeply engaged in AquaLab's research activities, contributing across various domains of the laboratory's functions. This involves conceptualizing and developing experimental structures, supervising technical tasks related to algae and marine invertebrate cultivation, coordinating fieldwork, mentoring students, and leading the planning, design, and execution of numerous experiments primarily focused on the reproduction, feeding, and growth of marine invertebrates such as barnacles, abalone, sea cucumbers, and more recently, limpets of the genus Patella.