Maurício Watanabe holds a PhD and a master’s degree in Science (Botany) from the University of São Paulo (USP), and a teaching degree (Licenciatura) in Biological Sciences from the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA) (2005). He completed a sandwich doctorate at the Field Museum of Natural History. As a researcher at ITV DS, Watanabe focuses on taxonomy, systematics, molecular phylogeny, and morphometry, especially in the Eriocaulaceae family.

Cecílio Caldeira holds a PhD in Integrative Plant Biology from the Université de Montpellier/SupAgro (2013), a master’s degree in Plant Physiology from the Federal University of Lavras (UFLA), and is an agronomist from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG). As an assistant researcher at ITV DS, he has experience in plant physiology and nutrition, large-scale phenotyping, analysis of large databases, and transcriptomics. He co-supervises students in Brazil and France.

Valéria Tavares holds a PhD in Biology (Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics) from the City University of New York / American Museum of Natural History (CUNY/AMNH), a master’s degree in Ecology, Conservation and Wildlife Management from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), and a bachelor’s degree in Zoology from the same university.
As a full researcher at ITV DS, she leads the Biodiversity and Environmental Solutions group. A lecturer and advisor in graduate programs at various institutions, she has experience in phylogenetic systematics, taxonomy, mastozoology, ecology, and conservation, with a focus on bats (Chiroptera), geographic diversity, faunal monitoring, and community ecology analyses.

Rafael Assis holds a PhD in Ecology and Natural Resource Management from the Norwegian University of Life Sciences, a master’s degree in Botany from the National Institute for Amazonian Research (INPA), and a degree in Biological Sciences from the State University of Londrina (UEL). He was a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oslo, where he coordinated the Biodiversity Research Consortium Brazil-Norway. Currently, as an assistant researcher at ITV DS, he works on the ecology of Amazonian ecosystems, forest dynamics, ecological succession, and phytosociology, with an emphasis on soil-plant interactions and tree regeneration.

Juliana Galaschi holds a PhD in Entomology from the University of São Paulo (USP), a master’s degree in Biosciences (Zoology) from the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), and a degree in Biological Sciences from PUCRS. As a researcher at ITV DS, she works in Zoology with an emphasis on Entomology, focusing on geometric morphometrics, chemical and molecular markers, and pollinators, particularly stingless bees.

Tereza Giannini holds a PhD in Ecology from the University of São Paulo (USP) and is a biologist at the same university’s Institute of Biosciences, having worked at the Naturalis Museum in Leiden, Holland, and at the Center for Ecology and Hydrology in Edinburgh, Scotland. As an associate researcher at ITV DS, she completed a postdoctoral fellowship in biodiversity databases at USP’s Polytechnic School, including a research period at the University of Rio Negro in Bariloche, Argentina.

Santelmo Vasconcelos holds a PhD in Plant Biology, a master’s degree in Genetics, and a bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences, all from the Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE). He completed internships at the Missouri Botanical Garden and the Royal Botanic Gardens (Kew). He has been an adjunct researcher at ITV DS since 2015, with experience in genetics, molecular biology, metagenomics, phylogenetic systematics, and genomic evolution, focusing on vascular plants and cave-dwelling invertebrates from the Amazon.