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2 AGENDA FERNS MARIE CURIE TRAINING SCHOOL EVENT EUROPE ON CIRCULAR DESIGN, LOW-IMPACT MATERIALS, AND ECO-MANUFACTURING. SEPTEMBER 30TH, 2026, TYNDALL NATIONAL INSTITUTE, UCC, CORK, IRELAND. 10.00 AM – 10.10 AM: WELCOME & INTRODUCTIONS 10.15 AM –11.00 AM: BITE-SIZED CIRCUITS: THE DELICIOUS FUTURE OF EDIBLE ELECTRONICS. DR CONOR S. BOLAND, DCU, DUBLIN, IRELAND. 11 AM – 11.30 AM: TEA/COFFEE BREAK 11.40-AM – 12.20 PM: ALGAIA INTERESTS IN DEVELOPMENT OF NOVEL SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS AND FABRICATION PROCESSES FROM SEAWEEDS DR BENOÎT QUÉGUINEUR, ALGAIA- JRS GROUP, BRITTANY, FRANCE. 12.20 PM – 12.45 PM: QUESTIONS FROM THE AUDIENCE FOR SPEAKERS 12.45 PM – 2.00 PM: LUNCH 2.00 PM – 2.40 PM: GENERATION, CHARACTERISATION AND APPLICATIONS OF CHITIN, CHITOSAN AND CHITOSAN-OLIGOSACCHARIDES FROM MARINE RESOURCES DR MARIA HAYES, FOOD BIOSCIENCES DEPARTMENT, TEAGASC ASHTOWN, D15, IRELAND. 2.40 PM – 3.00 PM: ENGINEERING OF BIOPOLYMER ARCHITECTURES— SPECIFICALLY DENSE CONTINUOUS FILMS FROM NATURAL RESOURCES DR SHIVANI PATHANIA, TEAGASC, DUBLIN 15, IRELAND 3.00 PM – 3.15 PM: QUESTIONS FROM THE AUDIENCE & CLOSE & DINNER

3 SPEAKER PROFILES AND PRESENTATIONS Presenter: Dr. Conor S. Boland, School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, DCU, Dublin, IRELAND. Contact: conor.boland@dcu.ie Title: Bite-Sized Circuits: The Delicious Future of Edible Electronics Biography: Dr Conor S. Boland is an Assistant Professor of Materials Science in the School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering at Dublin City University, and Deputy Director of Innovation at the RAPID Institute. His research focuses on liquid processed nanomaterials, printable and stretchable electronics, and soft sensor systems for applications in healthcare, sustainability and advanced manufacturing. His group develops materials processing routes that connect nanoscale structure to macroscopic device performance, with a particular interest in scalable, low waste approaches to functional electronic materials. Presentation abstract: Edible electronics is often presented as a route to devices that can be consumed, but its broader significance lies in something much more useful: if a material is safe enough to eat, it also represents an unusually strong starting point for biodegradable, biocompatible and low-impact electronics. This talk will explore how food-derived and naturally sourced materials can be engineered into functional electronic components, moving from the wider landscape of edible electronics to our recent work with seaweed-derived materials for functional films and encapsulating structures. I will then introduce our latest work on a soft, conductive “EcoPutty” made from activated carbon and food-compatible eutectic components, designed as a deformable platform for sensing. Together, these examples show how alternative materials can do more than replace conventional plastics. They offer a route towards

4 electronics designed from the outset to be temporary, sustainable and compatible with the environments in which they are used. Presenter: Dr Benoît Quéguineur, Algaia-JRS group, Brittany & Normandy, FRANCE. Contact: Benoit.Queguineur@algaia.fr Title: ALGAIA interests in development of novel sustainable materials and fabrication processes from seaweeds Biography: Dr Benoît Quéguineur, originally from Brittany and educated in part, in Ireland (NUI Galway) and Spain (CSIC). currently is the EU and international partnership manager at ALGAIA-JRS Group. This company is headquartered in Lannilis, Brittany with its Research and Innovation Centre in Saint Lô, Normandy and specialises in the manufacture, sale and sustainably development of a variety of products derived from seaweeds and other natural biomass resources. Algaia-JRS group has a particular interest in hydrocolloids and their use and application as sustainable materials, including textiles, for use in everyday and extraordinary products. Benoît has a PhD in Marine Sciences from NUI Galway and several years of experience in commercialising seaweed products. He is a research expert on the topic of seaweed hydrocolloids and oligosaccharides. His expertise includes macroalgal biotechnology, innovative analytical techniques, EU project set-up and water sport photography. He was an associate director at ALGANACT SAS. The JRS Group is one of the world’s leading fiber and hydrocolloid companies delivering ‘Green Products’ made of renewable, botanical resources into numerous industries. JRS and Algaia are both sustainably harvesting and processing seaweed along the Atlantic coast of Brittany, one of the largest fresh seaweed fields in Europe. They provide solutions for a wide range of industries such as food, feed, pharmaceuticals and medical care, home and personal care, surface coating or agriculture.

5 Presentation abstract: Benoît’s presentation will give an overview of the company ALGAIA-JRS, and how Algaia-JRS harvest, stabilise, and extract hydrocolloids from different, abundant and sustainable seaweeds here in Europe. The talk will also discuss the application of seaweed hydrocolloids in different products, ranging from textiles to substances used in different applications including fire-fighting technologies, biomedical and heath, foods and building materials. The formulation and techno- functionality/physical characteristics of seaweed-derived hydrocolloids will be discussed and technical guidance on how to extract, stabilize, and physically incorporate algal hydrocolloids into materials and textiles will be discussed. Presenter: Dr Maria Hayes, Teagasc Food Research Centre, Ashtown, Dublin 15, IRELAND. Contact: Maria.Hayes@teagasc.ie Title: Generation, characterisation and applications of chitin, chitosan and chitosan-oligosaccharides from marine resources: Potential use and applications in sensor and electronics development relevant to food and agriculture Biography: Dr Maria Hayes, a native of Co. Tipperary, is a senior scientific research officer at Teagasc – The Irish Agricultural and Food Development Authority, and an Adjunct Professor within the Food, Innovation and Health Centre at TU Dublin. She has a PhD in industrial microbiology and chemistry from UCD (2002), a PhD in Biotechnology from the Department of microbiology/ APC2 and Teagasc Moorepark Biotechnology Centre (2007) and has spent time in research in Sweden and Norway as well as Co. Donegal. Maria works primarily on the isolation, generation and extraction of bioactive molecules from marine and natural biomass and her primary research interests relate to identification of health benefits, associated with natural molecules and application of these in different spheres in food, medicine, pharma and medicine.

6 Presentation abstract: Legal restrictions, high costs and environmental problems regarding the disposal of marine processing wastes have led to amplified interest in biotechnology research concerning the identification and extraction of additional high grade, low-volume by-products produced from shellfish waste treatments. Shellfish waste consisting of crustacean exoskeletons is currently the main source of biomass for chitin production. Chitin is a polysaccharide composed of N-acetyl-D-glucosamine units and the multidimensional utilization of chitin derivatives including chitosan, a deacetylated derivative of chitin, is due to a number of characteristics including: their polyelectrolyte and cationic nature, the presence of reactive groups, high adsorption capacities, bacteriostatic and fungistatic influences, making them very versatile biomolecules. Maria will present methods to generate and stabilise chitin and chitosan from shellfisheries waste streams and present methods to use chitin/chitosan of marine origin into materials and films. Maria will also discuss microbial and enzymatic hydrolysis of shellfish to produce chitin and how to characterise chitin/chitosan for different applications for use as materials, medicines, in agriculture and other unusual applications of this wonder molecule. Presenter: Dr Shivani Pathania, Teagasc Food Research Centre, Ashtown, Dublin 15, IRELAND. Contact: Shivani.Panthania@teagasc.ie Title: Engineering of biopolymer architectures—specifically dense continuous films FROM NATURAL RESOURCES Biography: Dr Shivani Pathania is a Senior Research Officer in the Department of Food Industry Development at Teagasc, Ashtown. With extensive expertise in biopolymer science and circular bioeconomy valorisation, her work centres on transforming underutilised bioresources into high-performance functional materials. Her research encompasses the isolation and characterisation of structural biopolymers—including

7 chitosan, cellulose, starch and seaweed extracts—and tailoring their film-forming, mechanical, and interfacial properties through green chemistry, crosslinking, and nanocomposite integration. Abstract for presentation: This presentation examines the engineering of biopolymer architectures—specifically dense continuous films—derived from renewable agricultural and marine bioresources (including carrageenan and celluloses). The presentation details the fundamental extraction and compounding pathways required to fabricate these matrices and addresses the critical engineering challenges of scaling production from benchtop casting to pilot extrusion.

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