Peter Desmond

RWTH-Aachen University, Biofilm Engineering

Since 2021, Dr. Peter Desmond is a Research Group Leader in Biofilm Engineering at RWTH-Aachen University and a recipient of the German University Excellence Initiative (JPI) fellowship. He is also Visiting lecturer at RWTH-daughter University, German University of Technology, Oman. At RWTH-Aachen, Dr. Desmond leads the Biofilm Engineering group (www.biofilmresearch.com), where research efforts focus on; (i) compositional-structural-mechanical characterization of co- and counter-diffusional biofilms, (ii) system integration of biofilm processes in novel platform reactor technologies (e.g., membrane biofilm reactors (MBfRs), membrane bioreactors (MBRs)), (iii) Mechanisms of solute transport in dense membranes (e.g., membrane contactors, NF/RO) applied to water treatment and resource recovery. At GU-Tech Oman, Dr. Desmond translates fundamental research findings from his group at RWTH into regional-specific solutions for the Sultanate of Oman and the GCC. Dr. Desmond receive his Ph.D. from ETH Zurich in 2018 at the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology. Before moving to RWTH-Aachen, Dr. Desmond was head of Research and Process development for MMS AG membrane systems, Switzerland where he led numerous international consultancy projects relating to industrial separation processes using advanced membrane processes spanning food/beverage, chemicals and waste2resource applications.

George Wells

Northwestern University, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

George Wells is an Associate Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Northwestern University, where he directs the Environmental Biotechnology and Microbial Ecology Laboratory. The goal of his research is to deepen knowledge of the microbial world so as to inspire innovative microbial community management strategies to clean water, generate energy, and recover resources from societal waste streams. Primary research thrusts in his research program include biofilms and biofilm reactors, molecular microbial ecology of engineered and impacted aquatic systems, microbial nitrogen and phosphorus cycling, and resource and energy recovery from wastewater and other urban “waste” streams. His approach to these research thrusts involves an interdisciplinary integration of cutting-edge microscopy and molecular biology (‘omics’) tools; environmental bioprocess modeling, development, and testing; ecological theory; and classical microbiology techniques. George received his B.S. in Chemical Engineering and B.A. in Environmental Engineering from Rice University in 2004, and MS (2006) and PhD (2011) in Environmental Engineering at Stanford University. He subsequently was a postdoctoral scholar at EAWAG- the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology for 2.5 years before joining Northwestern in 2013. George has authored >50 peer reviewed journal articles and serves on the leadership committees of the International Water Association (IWA) Microbial Ecology and Water Engineering Specialist Group and the IWA Nutrient Removal and Recovery Specialist Group. He also serves on the editorial boards of Frontiers in Microbiology, Journal of Applied Microbiology, and Microbial Biotechnology, and is currently editing a special issue of Resource, Conservation, and Recycling on resource recovery and extraction from water.

Olivier Habimana

The University of Hong Kong, School of Biological Sciences

Since obtaining his PhD degree in 2009 in microbiology from the University of Paris Sud (Orsay-France), Prof. Olivier Habimana interest in biofilmology has led him to study microbial biofilms in the context of food- and environmental microbiology, specialising in microbial ecosystems on inert surfaces, explicitly dealing with dynamics behind microbial adhesion, biofilm formation and detachment. In recent years, he has been involved in several biofilm research project initiatives to understand microbial communities' ecology, gene expression and metabolite profile within biofilms. Since 2016, his efforts have been focused on developing an experimental mixed-species biofilm model for fundamental studies targeted at characterizing the change in diversity and functions of bacterial communities and their reactivity to a host of environmental pollutants. His most recent work is among the very few in the biofilm research area, showcasing the necessity of employing multispecies models to answer fundamental questions related to a broad spectrum of treatments and different environmental scenarios. His work has been recognized internationally, as reflected by his publication record of more than 60 peer-reviewed papers in renowned journals and 2300 citations and an h-index of 25 and i10-index of 41 (Google Scholar).