On Monday, October 27, 2025, the President of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Eloísa del Pino, made the first official visit of the CSIC presidency to the Institute of Evolutionary Biology (IBE), a joint centre of the CSIC and Pompeu Fabra University (UPF).

The Rector of UPF, Laia de Nadal, also took part in the visit, which was held at the IBE facilities located in the Mediterranean Center for Marine and Environmental Research (CMIMA) building in Barcelona.

The CSIC President was accompanied by the CSIC Secretary-General, Ignacio Gutiérrez, the CSIC Institutional Delegate in Catalonia, Luís Calvo, and the Director of the CSIC Presidency Office, Isabel Martínez.

The Director of the IBE, Salvador Carranza, and the Deputy Director, Elena Bosch, welcomed them in the building’s courtyard, together with the Centre Manager, Anna Pérez.

During the visit, the CSIC President and the UPF Rector learned first-hand about the research of IBE (CSIC-UPF)

Throughout their tour of the IBE, the CSIC President and the UPF Rector visited various facilities and laboratories, accompanied by the institute’s researchers and management staff. In particular, they got to know the work of three IBE research groups with projects funded by the European Research Council (ERC), noted for their scientific excellence and contribution to advancing knowledge in evolutionary biology.

Marc de Manuel, IBE Principal Investigator and head of the Mutation Dynamics group, offered a visit to his laboratory to explain his research on the origin of mutations, which play a key role in evolution, ageing, and disease.

Marc de Manuel explains his research to Eloísa del Pino, Laia de Nadal, and Ignacio Gutiérrez.

Daniel Richter, head of the Biology and Ecology of Abundant Protists Lab, opened the doors of the IBE culture room to discuss his research on the most abundant protists on the planet and their importance in the trophic networks of Earth’s main ecosystems.

Daniel Richter presents his research in the IBE culture room.

Eloísa del Pino observes a protist sample during her visit to the IBE.

Iñaki Ruiz-Trillo, Principal Investigator of the Multicellgenome  lab at the IBE, explained how his group’s research on the origin of multicellularity has led them in search of the so-called “Eight Magnificents.”

IBE Principal Investigator Iñaki Ruiz-Trillo and predoctoral researcher Marina Carmona explain the work of the Multicellgenome group.

Afterwards, the IBE management team met with the CSIC President and her delegation in the boardroom to present the latest progress of the institute as a centre of research excellence.

Meeting of the management team in the boardroom.

The visit concluded with an open talk by the CSIC President addressed to the IBE staff, during which Del Pino highlighted the role of the CSIC within the G6 of Science — the network that brings together the six leading European research organisations — which the CSIC is coordinating during 2025. She also emphasised the organisation’s participation in international forums such as the European Parliament’s Panel for the Future of Science and Technology (STOA).

CSIC President Eloísa del Pino gives a talk to the IBE community during her visit.

The President also emphasised the scientific excellence of CSIC centres, which achieve 60% self-financing, making them among the most self-sufficient in Europe. She also stressed the importance of knowledge transfer and patent generation as key pillars of innovation within the institution.

In addition, she highlighted the social dimension of CSIC research, exemplified by the work of the Disaster and Emergency Advisory Group, which provides scientific support in crisis situations such as the La Palma volcano eruption or in managing extreme weather events like DANA.

Photo of the IBE community at the end of the visit.