Dr. Dimitris Tsaltas is a Professor in the Department of Agricultural Sciences, Biotechnology and Food Science at the Cyprus University of Technology (CUT) and has been a founding member of the Foundation since its establishment in 2007. He is a graduate of the Agricultural University of Athens, where he completed his studies in Agricultural Sciences and obtained a master’s degree in Plant Protection. He received his PhD in Molecular Plant Pathology from Imperial College London and subsequently conducted postdoctoral research in Molecular Microbiology at the University of Connecticut (USA). He has also worked at the Agricultural Research Institute (Cyprus) as a Research Consultant in the Plant Protection Department.
He served as Cyprus’ representative and expert on the Program Committee for the 7th Framework Program for Food, Agriculture, Biotechnology, and Fisheries, and as a member of the COST Committee in the field of Food and Agriculture. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Mediterranean Phytopathological Union (MPU) and the Phytomedical Society of Greece, national representative to the ISEKI Food Association, ambassador to the Global Harmonization Initiative – GHI, and ambassador and international mentor of the American Society for Microbiology (ASM). He heads the Agricultural Microbiology and Biotechnology Group at CUT, which focuses on research into microbial ecology in agri-food systems and the application of biotechnology to food production, promoting the principles of One Health.