Dr. Vincent Hill (Center for Diseases Control and Prevention, USA)
Vincent Hill. Dr. Hill is the Chief of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Waterborne Disease Prevention Branch (WDPB). Dr. Hill joined the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2003 to establish the Environmental Microbiology Laboratory for waterborne disease outbreak investigations and emergency preparedness. In 2016, Dr. Hill began serving as Chief of WDPB, overseeing the Branch’s programs in global and domestic WASH epidemiology and disease prevention science, health communication, water-related emergency preparedness, environmental science and engineering, and laboratory surveillance and diagnostics.
Dr. Liping Ma (East China Normal University, China)
Dr. Liping Ma is a professor in the School of Ecological and Environmental Sciences at East China Normal University in Shanghai, China. Her research interests mainly focused on environmental microbiome engineering, antibiotic resistance genes, metagenomics, and bioinformatics. Dr. Ma was awarded the “Shanghai Eastern Scholar” and “Shanghai Pujiang Talents”, and has published over 50 scientific articles on peer-reviewed journals with >5500 citations. She serves as an Editor of Environmental Technology & Innovation.
Professor Thomas P Curtis (Newcastle University, United Kingdom)
Professor Curtis is a Professor of Environmental Engineering in the School of Engineering at Newcastle university. His research interests focus on application of ecological theory, engineering design, and state-of-the-art microbiological methods to characterize and manage microbial communities in engineered water systems. Professor Curtis’ contribution have been recognized by several national and international awards, such as the EPSRC Dream Fellowship, the IWA-ISME BioCluster Grand Prize, and Ardern Lockett Award. He served as MEWE Chair (2013-2019) and continues to serve on the Management Committee.
Professor Katherine (Trina) McMahon (University of Wisconsin Madison, USA)
Professor Katherine (Trina) McMahon is a Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, holding a split appointment in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and in the Department of Bacteriology. Her research group studies the microbial ecology of natural and engineered system using molecular tools to investigate microbial community structure and functions in activated sludge and lakes. She was awarded the ARCADIS/AEESP Frontier in Research Award by the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors, IWA-ISME BioCluster Award Grand Prize and was elected as a Fellow in the American Academy of Microbiology in 2018. Trina is a Senior Editor for the ASM Journal mSphere. She served as MEWE Secretary (2009-2013) and continues to serve on the Management Committee.
Dr. Miriam Peces Gomez (Aalborg University, Denmark)
Dr. Miriam Peces is an Assistant Professor at the Center for Microbial Communities at Aalborg University, Denmark. Her research expertise and interests include integrating molecular methods, ecological concepts, and modelling to understand how microbial community structure and dynamics influence the function of engineered ecosystems. As an early-career researcher, Dr. Peces was awarded a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowship and has conducted high-quality research across Australia, Spain, and Denmark, publishing over 45 peer-reviewed articles and contributing to more than 40 conference communications. Miriam is an active contributor to the MiDAS (Microbial Database for Activated Sludge) Field Guide and collaborates closely with full-scale treatment plants to bridge the gap between research and application.
Dr. Thobela Precious Biyela (Durban Institute of Technology, South Africa)
Dr. Thobela Precious Biyela specializes in biotechnology and environmental sciences. She earned her Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Biotechnology from the Durban University of Technology (DUT). Following her doctoral studies, Dr. Biyela joined the Institute for Water and Wastewater Technology (IWWT) at DUT as a Postdoctoral Fellow. Her research focuses on the microbiomes of wastewater treatment systems, particularly the profiling of emerging pathogens, antibiotic resistance genes, virulence factors and mobile genetic elements in biological wastewater treatment plants. Her work aims to enhance the understanding of microbial communities in wastewater and their implications for public health. In addition to her research, Dr. Biyela is actively involved in promoting women leadership in science, technology, engineering, arts, mathematics, and innovation (STEAMI).
Dr. Cresten Mansfeldt (University of Colorado, Boulder)
Dr. Cresten Mansfeldt is an Assistant Professor at the University of Colorado Boulder in the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Architectural Engineering and the Environmental Engineering Program, where he has been a faculty member since 2019. Dr. Mansfeldt earned his PhD at Cornell University. His research is driven by the dynamic interplay between natural and built environments, with a particular focus on water reuse, the built environment microbiome, and the impacts of natural disasters like wildfires on urban systems. His past research projects include monitoring SARS-CoV-2 in campus wastewater, evaluating the risks associated with synthetic biology products, and exploring the bioethics of emerging biological innovations in environmental engineering. His current research projects explore tracking synthetic biology products in the environment and strengthening our understanding of direct and de facto water reuse.