The Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) has appointed Teresa Moreno as the new coordinator of the Global Area LIFE. Moreno, who was director of the Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research (IDAEA-CSIC) between 2018 and 2023, joined the subarea coordination of Natural Resources—part of the LIFE Area—in 2023, a position she will continue to hold alongside her new role.
The Global Area LIFE is one of the three major research areas at the CSIC, alongside Society and Materia. It encompasses around 50% of the institution’s research activity and includes disciplines related to biology and biomedicine, the environment, agriculture, and food science and technology. Currently, more than 6,600 people are part of this area, including 1,833 researchers, working across 62 research institutes throughout Spain.
“From my experience, having a broad perspective and working with professionals from very diverse backgrounds is essential to understand science in an integrated way and to coordinate such a cross-cutting area as LIFE, where key issues for the present and future well-being of our society are addressed,” says Moreno.
The Global Area LIFE drives multidisciplinary research in fields as varied as personalized medicine, the study of the brain and memory mechanisms, the interaction between genetics, nutrition and the environment, or the development of synthetic biology for applications in biomedicine, biofuels or environmental conservation. Research lines also focus on sustainable food systems, the responsible use of natural resources, risk analysis related to global change, plant and animal health, the impact of climate change, biodiversity conservation and ecosystem health. In addition, the area explores new technological and industrial solutions related to circular economy and alternative sources of raw materials and food.
