Maria Dolors Nuñez Sánchez is a Chemical Engineer and holds a PhD in Materials Science from the University of Barcelona. She has complemented her academic background with advanced training in innovation and industrial policy, including postgraduate studies in Innovation, Enterprise and Circular Economy (University of Bradford), Industrial Policy (IESE), Innovation and Clusters (ESADE), and Exponential Innovation (EADA), among others.
Throughout her professional career, she has built extensive experience across industry, academia and the public sector. She held senior management positions as Director of Quality, Research and Development in component manufacturing companies serving the automotive, textile, food and energy industries.
In parallel, she developed an extensive academic and research career at the University of Barcelona, within the Department of Materials, where she worked as a researcher and advisor, participating in numerous national and European research projects. She also contributed actively to higher education, teaching in different university courses and master’s programmes, particularly in the fields of materials science, innovation and technology.
She is the author of more than 50 publications, including books, scientific articles and conference contributions, and has participated in several European projects in the areas of health, energy, materials and chemistry.
Until her recent retirement, she was Team Leader for Technological Opportunity Analysis at ACCIÓ, the competitiveness agency of the Government of Catalonia, supporting companies and institutions in strategic innovation, technology intelligence and emerging technology assessment.