Laura Mendonça (LM) has a BSc in Biology and a MSc in Biodiversity and Vegetal Biotechnology, both from the University of Coimbra. During her years of study, she had the opportunity to do several internships in the field of plant biology and medicinal plants, namely the Ethnomedic and etnobotanic research in aromatic and medicinal plants of Côa Valley, participating in botanic expeditions to harvest plants for herborization and extraction of bioactive compounds in the context of the project CôaMedPlants. LM sought to get involved in associativism by joining the Department of Biology Students Group of Coimbra Academic Association (NEB/AAC) in the departments of communication and image and pedagogy, gaining numerous soft skills, and organizing scientific events, such as the XXIII National Meeting of Biology students. As part of her MSc, she developed a thesis entitled The Medical Herbarium of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra (19th century): the plants in the basis of drug development, which aimed to create awareness for medicinal plants as a source of bioactive molecules useful in drug development and the importance of biological collections and biodiversity conservation. She published an article and an encyclopaedia entry about the Lamiaceae family in the process of skin healing and an article and an encyclopedia entry about nanotechnology-based topical delivery of natural products for the management of Atopic Dermatitis. LM is co-organizer of the ScienTEAfic Talks (cycle of round tables about medicinal plants) and the exhibition "De onde vêm os medicamentos? 12 exemplos de plantas bem-sucedidas".