Joaquim F. Pinto completed his degree in Biotechnology from the Polytechnic University of Coimbra in 2020. During their undergraduate studies, they undertook a voluntary internship during 3 months at ESAC's Micropropagation Laboratory. This hands-on experience involved working with in vitro plant micropropagation and mycorrhizal fungi cultures within the R&D projects FitoMicorrizas (FEDER-031718) and the Medronheiro genetic resources project (PDR2020-784-042742). During his curricular internship, he was awarded a competitive Research Initiation Scholarship under the “Summer with Science" program, where he strengthened his molecular biology skills and techniques, namely DNA extraction, qPCR and Electrophoresis. Joaquim concluded the internship with the public defence of his report “Optimization of DNA Extraction Methods in Arbutus unedo”, achieving a remarkable final grade of 20/20. After finishing his bachelor's degree, he joined a research project as a Research Fellow focused on large-scale DNA extraction from eucalyptus biomasses, multiplex PCR, and LiCor-based DNA fingerprinting. This work led to a peer-reviewed publication (The Genetics and Ecology of Post-Fire Eucalyptus globulus Recruitment in an Isolated Stand in Central Portugal) published in a Q1 journal (Forests) and a poster presentation at NeoBiota 2022 (Tartu). He also collaborated with RAIZ – Forest and Paper Research Institute within a project in collaboration with the Polytechnic University of Coimbra, providing specialized molecular biology services until November of 2024. Joaquim completed a MSc in Biochemistry at the Faculty of Sciences and Technologies of the University of Coimbra (FCTUC) in September of 2024, where he conducted his dissertation “Screening of bacteria with potential to produce added-value bioproducts from agro-industrial waste”, under the supervision of Professors Jorge Pereira and Paula Morais. This research provided him with extensive experience in microbial screening, optimization of production, and extraction of biosurfactants and pigments. Recently, he submitted his first book chapter as first author (Marine Biomasses as Sustainable Sources of Lipids) to the Royal Society of Chemistry. Since December 2024, he has been working as a researcher at the Chemical Engineering Department (FCTUC), contributing to the TyrPlus 2.0 project in collaboration with SilicoLife. His role focuses on selective separation and downstream processing of high-value molecules. Beyond science, Joaquim has also been engaged in several entrepreneurial initiatives, including the European Innovation Academy 2022 and Sustenta UC by University of Coimbra where he earned second place. Moreover, he contributed to multiple award-winning initiatives including: DyeLoop (Arrisca C 2024, Acelera@UC 2024), MarineBioTex (Blue Bio Value Ideation 2024) and AgroBioTex (BioRural Innovation Challenge 2024 regional winner, finalist in Brussels 2025). He has also participated in science outreach initiatives such as European Researchers’ Night 2024 and Chemical Engineer for a Day a DEQ-led activity that gives high school students hands-on lab experience, contributed to the training of undergraduate students and organized the international congress Iberoamerican Meeting on Ionic Liquids – IMIL2024.