Current Team
Researchers, students, and staff currently contributing to the Sustainable Urban Food Lab and its work on circular and resource-efficient urban food systems.
Michael Martin
SUF Lab Leader
Researching sustainable food systems, circular economy, and environmental assessment.
Michael Martin
SUF Lab Leader
Michael Martin is a Senior Researcher at IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute and Adjunct Professor of Sustainable Production and Consumption Systems at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden. He holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Systems Analysis and Environmental Management and has extensive experience from the research field of industrial ecology, including industrial symbiosis, circular production systems, urban agriculture, and sustainability assessments across stakeholder categories to promote sustainable production and consumption. His research is focused on assessing and improving the sustainability and resilience of urban and regional food systems in collaboration with many of the urban and vertical farms in Sweden. He enjoys being a hobby urban farmer and spends his spare time in the outdoors, his garden, and is an avid hobby garage vertical and mushroom farmer.
Maria Bustamante
Researcher
Researching how innovation and emerging technologies are transforming agricultural production and sustainability.
Maria Bustamante
Researcher
Maria J. Bustamante is a Postdoc at KTH Royal Institute of Technology. She recently completed her PhD at the Department of Marketing and Strategy at the Stockholm School of Economics. As a former farm girl turned urbanite, Maria is combining her personal experience in farming and professional experience in regional economic development, technology and entrepreneurship to research how new technology and innovation is creating alternative forms and practices of agricultural production. Her research explores how both incumbent and start-up firms are managing the challenges of implementing these technologies within a broader agricultural system as they seek to reach both economic and environmental goals.
Mosen Farhangi
Researcher
Working on sustainable urban food systems and resource-efficient production.
Mosen Farhangi
Researcher
Add a longer biography here, including research interests, current projects, collaborations, and academic background.
Rebecka Milestad
Researcher
Researching resilient food systems, urban agriculture, and sustainable links between producers and consumers.
Rebecka Milestad
Researcher
Rebecka Milestad is an agronomist and researcher at the Department of Sustainable Development, Environmental Sciences and Engineering, KTH. She has a PhD in rural development from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) and a docentship in environmental strategies research from KTH. Her research is interdisciplinary and systems oriented, focusing on farm resilience, consumer-producer links, multifunctional agriculture, urban agriculture, and local organic food networks.
Elvira Molin
Researcher
Researching sustainability in food systems, environmental assessment, and sustainable public procurement.
Elvira Molin
Researcher
Elvira Molin is an industrial PhD student at IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute and KTH. She finished her masters at KTH 2017 in Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Infrastructure and has since worked for IVL in various projects concerning food, sustainability and public procurement. The food interest goes deep in both handling and working with food and she has a previous career working as a chef in restaurant kitchens.
Loris Mazzaferro
PhD candidate
Researching circular production methods and environmental assessment to improve the sustainability of urban vertical farming.
Loris Mazzaferro
PhD candidate
Loris Mazzaferro is a PhD researcher at the Department of Sustainable Development, Environmental Science and Engineering (SEED) at KTH Royal Institute of Technology. His research focuses on improving the resource efficiency and environmental performance of urban vertical farming through circular production methods. His work explores how vertical farms can make use of urban residual streams, such as organic waste, excess heat, and other by-products, to support the transition from linear to circular food production systems. Using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), he evaluates the environmental implications of these strategies and investigates their potential to reduce resource use and environmental impacts. Through this research, he aims to contribute to the development of more sustainable and resilient urban food systems while providing evidence-based insights for researchers, industry stakeholders, and policymakers working towards circular food production.
Lisa Henriksson
Industrial PhD candidate
Researching circular food production systems, resource efficiency, and sustainability assessment.
Elisabet (Lisa) Henriksson
Industrial PhD candidate
Lisa Henriksson joined the Sustainable Urban Food Lab in 2023 as an Industrial PhD researcher affiliated with IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute and KTH Royal Institute of Technology. She holds a Master’s degree in Agricultural Sciences and an Agronomist degree from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU). Before starting her doctoral studies, Lisa worked with aquaponics and circular food and feed production systems, developing a strong interest in resource-efficient and integrated approaches to agriculture. Her research focuses on promoting resource efficiency and circularity in food production systems, as well as assessing the sustainability of emerging urban and circular food production solutions. Through her work, she aims to support the development of more sustainable, resilient, and environmentally responsible food systems.
Cameron Kennett
Industrial PhD Candidate
Researching urban industrial symbiosis and circular resource flows for sustainable urban food systems.
Cameron Kennett
Industrial PhD Candidate
Cameron Kennet is an Industrial PhD researcher at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in collaboration with IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute. His research focuses on Urban Industrial Symbiosis (UIS), urban metabolism, circular food systems, and material flow analysis. His work explores how urban agricultural systems can become more resource-efficient by better integrating with surrounding urban infrastructure and resource networks. A key aspect of his research is understanding how waste streams and by-products generated within cities can be recovered and exchanged between different sectors, creating synergies that reduce resource consumption and environmental impacts. Through this work, Cameron aims to support the development of more circular and resilient urban food systems by identifying opportunities for improved resource management and collaboration across urban environments.
Livia Lara Kastner
Industrial PhD Candidate
Exploring food system transformation using System Dynamics and environmental assessment methods.
Livia Lara Kastner
Industrial PhD Candidate
Livia is an industrial PhD candidate at IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute and KTH. With a focus on sustainable food systems, she holds a Master's degree in Sustainable Development from Uppsala University and has previously gained research experience through projects at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. Building on this background, her PhD work centres on holistically assessing the sustainability of food system transformations by applying System Dynamics, complementing Life Cycle Assessment and qualitative methods.
Teresa Piovano
PhD Candidate
Researching the environmental performance of vertical farming and controlled-environment agriculture systems.
Teresa Piovano
PhD Candidate
Teresa Piovano is a PhD researcher in Agricultural, Environmental and Food Science and Technology at the Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), University of Bologna. She has also been affiliated with IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute, where she worked as a researcher and later returned as a visiting researcher during her doctoral studies. Her research focuses on the application of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to agri-food production systems, with particular emphasis on vertical farming, hydroponic and aeroponic cultivation, and controlled-environment agriculture. By combining experimental and commercial data, she evaluates the environmental performance of these systems, identifies key sustainability hotspots, and investigates opportunities to improve resource efficiency. In addition, her work explores the potential of indoor farming for the cultivation of high-value crops, including medicinal, nutraceutical, and pharmaceutical plants. Through her research, Teresa aims to support the development of more sustainable and resource-efficient food production systems.
Riccardo Prandi
PhD Candidate
Researching circular growing media and resource-efficient solutions for indoor and vertical farming.
Riccardo Prandi
PhD Candidate
Riccardo Prandi is a PhD researcher in Agricultural, Environmental and Food Science and Technology at the University of Bologna, in collaboration with IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute in Stockholm. His research focuses on circular urban food production systems, with particular emphasis on the reuse and management of growing substrates in indoor and vertical farming. He investigates how circular approaches to growing media can reduce resource consumption, improve waste management, and enhance the environmental performance of controlled-environment agriculture. Through his doctoral research, Riccardo aims to develop strategies that support more sustainable and resource-efficient urban food systems while contributing to the transition towards circular agricultural production practices.
Visiting Researchers
Researchers from around the world collaborating with us on short-term research projects.
Maria Ravani
PhD Candidate
Researching the sustainability of greenhouse and vertical farming systems using Life Cycle Assessment.
Maria Ravani
Visiting Researcher
Maria is a PhD researcher in Sustainable Agriculture at ELGO-DIMITRA and the International Hellenic University, and a visiting researcher at IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute. She holds a Master’s degree in Sustainable Agricultural Systems and an Integrated Master’s degree in Agronomy from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Her research focuses on the application of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to greenhouse and vertical farming systems. By combining experimental cultivation data with life cycle thinking, she evaluates the environmental performance of these production systems under real commercial conditions and identifies opportunities to improve sustainability and resource efficiency. In addition to her doctoral research, Maria contributes to scientific publications, international research collaborations, and projects focused on climate-smart and resource-efficient agriculture. Her work aims to support the development of more sustainable food production systems through evidence-based environmental assessment.
Emanuela Campana
PhD Student
Researching the valorization of agro-industrial waste and sustainable solutions for urban food production.
Emanuela Campana
PhD Student
Emanuela's research focuses on the application of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to the valorization of agro-industrial waste and its potential use in sustainable horticultural production. Her work explores how residual biomass and by-products can be transformed into valuable resources, supporting more circular and resource-efficient agricultural systems.
Vivek Jadhav
PhD Student
Researching energy-efficient vertical farming systems and crop performance in controlled environments.
Vivek Jadhav
PhD Student
Vivek is a PhD researcher in the Department of Vegetable Science and Urban Horticulture at the University of Bologna. His research focuses on controlled-environment agriculture, with particular emphasis on improving the energy efficiency and productivity of vertical farming systems. He holds a Master's degree in Horticultural Science (IMaHS), where his thesis investigated the effects of gibberellin-altered rootstocks and mycorrhization on tomato responses to phosphorus deficiency and salinity stress. His expertise includes vegetable crop physiology, particularly in tomatoes and leafy greens, as well as LED lighting strategies and nutrient management for indoor cultivation systems. Through his research, Vivek aims to develop more resource-efficient production methods that enhance crop performance while reducing the environmental footprint of controlled-environment agriculture..
Master’s Students
Elsa Boloux
MSc Student
Thesis title: Price-based photoperiod optimization for energy-efficient vertical farming.
Monica Carolfi
MSc Student
Thesis title: Growing below the surface: assessing the potential of underground vertical farming in Stockholm.
Viktor Christiansen
MSc Student
Thesis title: Environmental life cycle assessment of potential symbiotic development between vertical farming and mushroom cultivation in an urban setting.
Pinthira Mio Fagerström
MSc Student
Thesis title: Assessment of oyster mushroom production employing urban-based materials in Stockholm Stad.