Joana Cardoso da Costa

Experiência

Joana Cardoso da Costa is a Researcher and Lecturer at the Centre for Functional Ecology (CFE), Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, where she co-coordinates the One Health research line. She holds an MSc in Cell Biology and a PhD in Biology (Microbiology) from the University of Coimbra. She is also a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Laboratory for the Sustainability of Land Use and Ecosystem Services (TERRA).
Since 2016, she has been the Director and Technical Manager of FitoLab – the Phytopathology Laboratory of Instituto Pedro Nunes, an Official Laboratory designated by the national plant protection authority and accredited under NP EN ISO/IEC 17025:2018. Her work at FitoLab integrates applied research, diagnostic services and knowledge transfer to support sustainable agricultural systems and strengthen laboratory infrastructures.
Her research focuses on plant health, soil and plant microbiomes, and their role in ecosystem functioning, sustainability and restoration. Within a One Health framework, she also investigates nature-based and biodiversity-informed approaches that link environmental exposure, ecosystem integrity and human well-being. She contributes as an expert to the Bacteriology and Quality Assurance Panels of the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organisation (EPPO).
She has coordinated nationally funded projects and participates in European and national research initiatives, including Horizon Europe projects and COST Actions. She has authored more than 30 SCI-indexed articles, several book chapters and editorials, and currently supervises PhD students and leads a multidisciplinary research team. She has served as evaluator for national and international funding programmes and is actively involved in academic governance at the University of Coimbra.