Rita Pinheiro Garcia (AC17-30E4-9507)

Curriculum Vitae

Rita Pinheiro Garcia

Rita Garcia holds a PhD in Sustainable Energy Systems (MIT-Portugal Program, Univ Coimbra, 2016) and an MSc in Environmental Engineering, with a specialization in Technology and Environmental Management (Univ Coimbra, 2010). She is currently Environmental Engineer at the Sustainability Section, in Itecons – Institute for Research and Technological Development in Construction, Energy, Environment and Sustainability, performing R&D and consultancy activities, and Invited Assistant Professor at the Univ Coimbra. Previously, she was a Researcher at the Center for Industrial Ecology – Association for the Development of Industrial Aerodynamics (2010-2023), Integrated Member of the Associated Laboratory for Energy, Transports and Aeronautics (2017-2023), and Visiting Researcher at the MIT, USA (2014). R. Garcia has participated in several national and international R&D projects (e.g., H2020-OPTIMA, H2020-UrbanWINS) and has an extensive expertise in life cycle modelling and assessment of energy, mobility, agro-industry, and waste management systems, incorporating environmental and socioeconomic aspects, as well as in material flow analysis (MFA). She has been engaged in the discussion of critical issues in the life cycle assessment (LCA) of these systems (e.g., carbon accounting, multifunctionality, circularity) and the integration of MFA and LCA, and has several articles published in peer-reviewed indexed journals (Scopus h-index: 15). Her research interests include life cycle modeling and assessment of energy and industrial systems, material flow analysis, consequential modeling, dynamic fleet modeling, life-cycle sustainability assessment, and circular economy.

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Identification

Personal identification

Full name: Rita Pinheiro Garcia

Citation names

Garcia, Rita

Author identifiers

Ciência ID: AC17-30E4-9507
ORCID iD: 0000-0002-1653-8249

Websites

https://www.uc.pt/en/adai/cie/ (Professional)

Languages

Language	Speaking	Reading	Writing	Listening	Peer-review
Portuguese	Advanced (C1)	Advanced (C1)	Advanced (C1)	Advanced (C1)
English	Advanced (C1)	Advanced (C1)	Advanced (C1)	Advanced (C1)

Education

	Degree	Classification
2016/03/30 Concluded	Sustainable Energy Systems (Doutoramento) Major in Sem especialidade Universidade de Coimbra Departamento de Engenharia Mecânica, Portugal "Dynamic fleet-based life-cycle assessment: addressing environmental consequences of the introduction of electric vehicles in Portugal" (THESIS/DISSERTATION)	Aprovado com Distinção e Louvor, por unanimidade
2010/09/13 Concluded	Integrated Master in Environmental Engineering (Mestrado) Major in Technology and Environmental Management Universidade de Coimbra Departamento de Engenharia Mecânica, Portugal "Avaliação comparativa de instrumentos de gestão ambiental de ciclo de vida aplicados a dois sistemas com biomassa: painéis e electricidade / Comparative assessment of life-cycle-based environmental management tools applied to biomass-based systems" (THESIS/DISSERTATION)	17 (out of 20)

Affiliation

Science

	Category Host institution	Employer
2019/04/01 - 2023/05/31	Contracted Researcher (Research)	Associação para o Desenvolvimento da Aerodinâmica Industrial, Portugal

2017/06/01 - 2019/03/31	Postdoc (Research)	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Portugal
	Associação para o Desenvolvimento da Aerodinâmica Industrial, Portugal
2016/06/20 - 2017/05/31	Postdoc (Research)	Universidade de Coimbra, Portugal

2010/06/01 - 2016/06/19	Researcher (Research)	Associação para o Desenvolvimento da Aerodinâmica Industrial, Portugal

2014/06/01 - 2014/08/31	Visiting Researcher (Research)	Massachusetts Institute of Technology, United States

Teaching in Higher Education

	Category Host institution	Employer
2022/09/01 - Current	Invited Assistant Professor (University Teacher)	Universidade de Coimbra, Portugal

2021/09/01 - 2022/02	Invited Assistant Professor (University Teacher)	Universidade de Coimbra, Portugal

2020/09 - 2021/02	Invited Assistant Professor (University Teacher)	Universidade de Coimbra Faculdade de Ciencias e Tecnologia, Portugal

2019/09/01 - 2020/02/03	Invited Assistant Professor (University Teacher)	Universidade de Coimbra, Portugal
	Universidade de Coimbra Departamento de Engenharia Mecânica, Portugal

Projects

Grant

	Designation	Funders
2016/06/01 - 2017/05/31	Urban metabolism accounts for building waste management innovative networks and strategies 690047 Post-doc Universidade de Coimbra, Portugal Câmara Municipal de Leiria, Portugal CEIFAcoop, Portugal Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Portugal Centre Tecnològic de Manresa, Spain Comune di Cremona, Italy Fondazione Ecosistemi, Italy Università Iuav di Venezia, Italy Chalmers tekniska högskola, Sweden Ecoteca, Romania Sustainable Europe Research Institute, Austria	Horizon 2020 Ongoing

Contract

	Designation	Funders
2014/11/01 - 2015/12/31	Sustainable mobility: Perspectives for the future of biofuel production PTDC/EMS-ENE/1839/2012 Research Fellow Associação para o Desenvolvimento da Aerodinâmica Industrial, Portugal Laboratório Nacional de Energia e Geologia, Portugal	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia Concluded
2012/05/06 - 2015/09/30	Extended “well-to-wheels” assessment of biodiesel for heavy transport vehicles (BioHeavy) PTDC/SEN-TRA/117251/2010 Researcher Associação para o Desenvolvimento da Aerodinâmica Industrial, Portugal Associated Laboratory for Energy Transports and Aeronautics, Portugal Universidade de Coimbra Instituto de Engenharia de Sistemas e Computadores de Coimbra, Portugal	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia Concluded
2010/10/18 - 2014/04/17	Economic and Environmental Sustainability of Electric Vehicle Systems MIT/MCA/0066/2009 Researcher Universidade de Coimbra Instituto de Engenharia de Sistemas e Computadores de Coimbra, Portugal Associação para o Desenvolvimento da Aerodinâmica Industrial, Portugal	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia Concluded
2010/06/01 - 2010/10/31	Biofuel systems for transportation in Portugal: An "well-to-wheels"integrated multi-objective assessment PTDC/TRA/72996/2006 Research Fellow Associação para o Desenvolvimento da Aerodinâmica Industrial, Portugal	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia Concluded

Other

	Designation	Funders
2022 - Current	Better Plastics - Plastics in the Circular Economy - Researcher Associação para o Desenvolvimento da Aerodinâmica Industrial, Portugal	Ongoing
2021/09 - Current	WalNUT - Closing waste water cycles for nutrient recovery 101000752 Researcher Universidade de Coimbra, Portugal	European Union Ongoing
2018/09/01 - Current	Optimised Pest Integrated Management to precisely detect and control plant diseases in perennial crops and open-field vegetables info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/EC/H2020/773718/EU Post-doc Center for Industrial Ecology - University of Coimbra, Portugal	European Commission Ongoing
2016/06/01 - 2019/12/31	Sustainability assessment of forest sector management strategies in the context of a bioeconomy PTDC/AGR-FOR/1510/2014 Researcher Universidade de Aveiro, Portugal Associação para o Desenvolvimento da Aerodinâmica Industrial, Portugal	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia Concluded
2013/04 - 2015/09	Energy and Mobility for Sustainable Cities CENTRO-07-0224-FEDER-002004 PhD Student Fellow Universidade de Coimbra, Portugal Associação para o Desenvolvimento da Aerodinâmica Industrial, Portugal	Concluded

Outputs

Publications

Book chapter	Filipa Figueiredo; Garcia, Rita; Castanheira, Érica; Malça, João; Freire, Fausto; Miguel Brandão; Frank, E.D; et al. "Sustainability and Life-Cycle Assessment of Algal Bioenergy". In State of Technology Review – Algae Bioenergy, 82-94. -: IEA Bioenergy, 2017. Published Silva, Diogo Aparecido Lopes; Ometto, Aldo Roberto; Garcia, Rita; Freire, Fausto; Varanda, Luciano; André Christoforo. "Life Cycle Assessment of Wood-Based Composites: State-Of-The-Art and Opportunities for Reducing Environmental Impacts". In Non-conventional building materials based on agro-industrial wastes, 143-178. Bauru, SP, Brazil: Tiliform, 2015. Published Silva, Diogo; Garcia, Rita; Freire, Fausto; Ometto, Aldo; Varanda, Luciano. "Avaliação do Ciclo de Vida (ACV) de painéis de madeira: uma revisão bibliográfica com foco sobre a importância e as necessidades para o contexto brasileiro". In Painéis de Partículas de Madeira e de Materiais Lignocelulósicos, 123-164. São Paulo, Brasil, Brazil: EESC-USP, 2013. Published
Journal article	Bastos, Joana; Prina, Matteo Giacomo; Garcia, Rita. Corresponding author: Garcia, Rita. "Life-cycle assessment of current and future electricity supply addressing average and marginal hourly demand: An application to Italy". Journal of Cleaner Production 399 (2023): 136563. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.136563. Published • 10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.136563 Gonçalves, Mariana; Freire, Fausto; Garcia, Rita. "Material flow analysis of forest biomass in Portugal to support a circular bioeconomy". Resources, Conservation and Recycling 169 (2021): 105507. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2021.105507. Published • 10.1016/j.resconrec.2021.105507 Garcia, Rita; Alvarenga, Rodrigo A.F.; Huysveld, Sophie; Dewulf, Jo; Allacker, Karen. "Accounting for Biogenic Carbon and End-of-Life Allocation in Life Cycle Assessment of Multi-Output Wood Cascade Systems". Journal of Cleaner Production (2020): 122795. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.122795. Published • 10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.122795 Saez de Bikuña, Koldo; Garcia, Rita; Dias, Ana Cláudia; Freire, Fausto. "Global warming implications from increased forest biomass utilization for bioenergy in a supply-constrained context". Journal of Environmental Management 263 (2020): 110292. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2020.110292. Published • 10.1016/j.jenvman.2020.110292 Quina, M.J.; Garcia, Rita; Simões, Ana S.; Quinta-Ferreira, Rosa M.. "Life cycle assessment of lightweight aggregates produced with ashes from municipal solid waste incineration". Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management (2020): Published • 10.1007/s10163-020-01079-2 Garcia, Rita; Figueiredo, Filipa; Brandão, Miguel; Hegg, Marika; Castanheira, Érica; Malça, João; Nilsson, Astrid; Freire, Fausto. "A meta-analysis of the life cycle greenhouse gas balances of microalgae biodiesel". The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment (2020): Published • 10.1007/s11367-020-01780-2 Marques, Pedro; Garcia, Rita; Kulay, Luiz; Freire, Fausto. "Comparative life cycle assessment of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles addressing capacity fade". Journal of Cleaner Production 229 (2019): 787-794. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.05.026. Published • 10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.05.026 Kabayo, Jeremiah; Marques, Pedro; Garcia, Rita; Freire, Fausto. "Life-cycle sustainability assessment of key electricity generation systems in Portugal". Energy 176 (2019): 131-142. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2019.03.166. Published • 10.1016/j.energy.2019.03.166 Pedro Augusto Marques; Jeremiah Kabayo; Rita Garcia; Fausto Freire. "Avaliação Ambiental de Ciclo de Vida dos principais sistemas de geração de eletricidade em Portugal". LALCA: Revista Latino-Americana em Avaliação do Ciclo de Vida 2 2 esp. (2018): 110-127. https://doi.org/10.18225/lalca.v2iEspec.4467. 10.18225/lalca.v2iEspec.4467 Soares, N.; Martins, A.G.; Carvalho, A.L.; Caldeira, C.; Du, C.; Castanheira, É.; Rodrigues, E.; et al. "The challenging paradigm of interrelated energy systems towards a more sustainable future". Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 95 (2018): 171-193. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2018.07.023. 10.1016/j.rser.2018.07.023 Garcia, Rita; Freire, Fausto; Clift, Roland. "Effects on Greenhouse Gas Emissions of Introducing Electric Vehicles into an Electricity System with Large Storage Capacity". Journal of Industrial Ecology 22 2 (2018): 288-299. Published • 10.1111/jiec.12593 Garcia, Rita; Freire, Fausto. "A review of fleet-based life-cycle approaches focusing on energy and environmental impacts of vehicles". Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 79 - (2017): 935-945. Published • 10.1016/j.rser.2017.05.145 Garcia, Rita; Freire, Fausto. "Marginal Life-Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions of Electricity Generation in Portugal and Implications for Electric Vehicles". Resources 5 4 (2016): 41. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/resources5040041. 10.3390/resources5040041 Domingues, Ana Rita; Marques, Pedro; Garcia, Rita; Freire, Fausto; Dias, Luís C.. "Applying Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis to the Life-Cycle Assessment of vehicles". Journal of Cleaner Production 107 - (2015): 749-759. http://hdl.handle.net/10316/43164. Published • 10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.05.086 Garcia, Rita; Gregory, Jeremy; Freire, Fausto. "Dynamic fleet-based life-cycle greenhouse gas assessment of the introduction of electric vehicles in the Portuguese light-duty fleet". The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment 20 9 (2015): 1287-1299. Published • 10.1007/s11367-015-0921-8 Garcia, Rita; Freire, Fausto. "Carbon footprint of particleboard: a comparison between ISO/TS 14067, GHG Protocol, PAS 2050 and Climate Declaration". Journal of Cleaner Production 66 - (2014): 199-209. http://hdl.handle.net/10316/27168. Published • 10.1016/j.jclepro.2013.11.073 Faria, Ricardo; Marques, Pedro; Garcia, Rita; Moura, Pedro; Freire, Fausto; Delgado, Joaquim; de Almeida, Aníbal T.. "Primary and secondary use of electric mobility batteries from a life cycle perspective". Journal of Power Sources 262 . (2014): 169-177. http://hdl.handle.net/10316/27930. Published • 10.1016/j.jpowsour.2014.03.092 Garcia, Rita; Marques, Pedro; Freire, Fausto. "Life-cycle assessment of electricity in Portugal". Applied Energy 134 - (2014): 563-572. Published • 10.1016/j.apenergy.2014.08.067 Silva, Diogo Aparecido Lopes; Lahr, Francisco Antonio Rocco; Garcia, Rita Pinheiro; Freire, Fausto Miguel Cereja Seixas; Ometto, Aldo Roberto. "Life cycle assessment of medium density particleboard (MDP) produced in Brazil". The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment 18 7 (2013): 1404-1411. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11367-013-0583-3. Published • 10.1007/s11367-013-0583-3 Garcia, Rita; Freire, Fausto. "Environmental assessment of wood-based panels: a comparison of life-cycle-based tools". International Journal of Sustainable Construction 1 1 (2012): 63-71. http://ijsc.greenlines-institute.org/volumes/2012/IJSC_2012_V01_01_08_Garcia_63_71.pdf. Published Garcia, Rita; Freire, Fausto. "Modelação Energética e Ambiental do Ciclo de Vida de Painéis Aglomerados de Partículas". Construlink 9 28 (2011): 22-30. Published
Report	Leonardo Rosado; Dívia Jimenez; Bastos, Joana; Garcia, Rita; Freire, Fausto. 2019. Urban Metabolism Case Studies. Bastos, Joana; Garcia, Rita; Freire, Fausto. 2019. Indicators for waste prevention and management: measuring circularity. Garcia, Rita; Lídia Vendrell; Mireia Mesas; Florina Stan; Adriana Gheorghe; Alexandra Ghenea; Linda Spatzierer; Stefan Schweiger; Harald Mattenberger. 2017. State of the Art of Waste Prevention and Management Strategies in “Urban_Wins” Countries and Municipalities. https://www.urbanwins.eu/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/UrbanWINS-D1.1.-State-of-the-art-of-waste-prevention-and-management.pdf.
Thesis / Dissertation	Garcia, Rita Pinheiro. "Dynamic Fleet-Based Life-Cycle Assessment: Addressing Environmental Consequences of the Introduction of Electric Vehicles in Portugal". PhD, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10316/30192. Garcia, Rita. "Avaliação comparativa de instrumentos de gestão ambiental de ciclo de vida aplicados a dois sistemas com biomassa: painéis e electricidade". Master, Universidade de Coimbra Departamento de Engenharia Mecânica, 2010.

Activities

Supervision

	Thesis Title Role	Degree Subject (Type) Institution / Organization
2019 - Current	Material Flow Analysis integrated wit Life Cycle Assessment to support the Circular Economy of Plastics in Portugal Co-supervisor	Sustainable Energy Systems (PhD) Universidade de Coimbra, Portugal
2019/02 - 2019/09/27	Análise de Fluxos Materiais aplicada à Biomassa Florestal em Portugal Supervisor	Universidade de Coimbra Departamento de Engenharia Mecânica, Portugal
2019/02 - 2019/09	Avaliação do ciclo de vida da geração de electricidade numa central termoelétrica a carvão convertida para biomassa florestal Supervisor	Environmental Engineering (Master) Universidade de Coimbra Faculdade de Ciencias e Tecnologia, Portugal

Event organisation

	Event name Type of event (Role)	Institution / Organization
2019/05/25 - Current	Energy for Sustainability Research Day at UC (2019/05/25) Conference (Member of the Organising Committee)	Energy for Sustainability Initiative of the University of Coimbra, Portugal
2018 - 2018	Energy for Sustainability Research Day Conference (Other)
2015 - 2015	2nd Discussion Forum on Industrial Ecology and Life-Cycle Management Workshop (Other)	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Portugal
2014 - 2014	1st Discussion Forum on Industrial Ecology and Life-Cycle Management Workshop (Other)	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Portugal

Committee member

	Activity description Role	Institution / Organization
2017/01 - Current	Membro do Comité para a Investigação Científica e Ligação às Empresas (CICLE) da Iniciativa Energia para a Sustentabilidade (EfS) / Member of the Committee for Scientific Research and Outreach of the Energy for Sustainability (EfS) initiative Member	Universidade de Coimbra, Portugal

Conference scientific committee

	Conference name	Conference host
2018/06/26 - 2018/06/26	Scientific Meeting on Circular Economy and Waste Management	Universidade de Coimbra
2018/06/25 - 2018/06/25	Conferência nacional em economia circular e gestão de resíduos: a experiência do projeto UrbanWINS	Universidade de Coimbra