Knowledge Based Bio-Economy towards 2020

 

Mrs. TONELLI CHIARA

Professor of Genetics at the University of Milan, Italy

Leader of the Plant Molecular Genetic Group of the Department of Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology at Milan

 

Biography

Chiara Tonelli is Professor of Genetics at the University of Milan, Italy, and leader of the Plant Molecular Genetic Group of the Department of Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology at Milan. She is a member of the European Molecular Biology Organisation (EMBO).

 

Her scientific interests range from fundamental aspects of plant biology to biotechnological applications. The major aim of her studies is to decipher the logic of transcriptional control and gene regulation in plants both during development and in interactions with the environment. She contributed to the identification and molecular characterization of regulatory gene families responsible for the coordinated control of flavonoid and anthocyanin metabolic pathways in plants.

More recently she discovered the first transcription factor specifically regulating stomata movements in plants, a finding that opens up new possibilities for improving crop survival and productivity in water scarcity conditions. Chiara has served on numerous scientific committees and science advisory boards in Italy and elsewhere.

 

Currently she is a member of the Advisory Group for Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, and Biotechnology of the European Commission, and of the Expert Group for Food and Health Research, a board member of the European Plant Science Organisation (EPSO), and a member of the Research and Technological Transfer Committee of the University of Milan.

She serves as a reviewer for several scientific journals and grant-awarding agencies. Since 2005 Chiara has been Secretary General of the World Conference on the Future of Science, a cycle of science and society international conferences.

 

Programme

Rapporteur, Part III Working together to address the needs - Session 3: Innovative Food Production

 

Part IV Views, vision and policies on the way forward - Panel session: Views, vision and policies on the way forward (Moderated by Alex Puissant)