(Zaragoza. Friday, 27 June 2025.) The Instituto Universitario de Investigación en Ciencias Ambientales de Aragón (IUCA) concluded the second edition of the “Stories of the Earth” lecture series on 18 June. This science‑outreach initiative traveled across all three provinces of Aragon during the 2024–2025 academic year, aiming to bring the institute’s research closer to the public.
Over eight sessions held from November 2024 to June 2025, the series attracted more than 500 in‑person attendees and has, so far, reached over 870 viewers through its online content.
The program covered a diverse range of topics, from paleogenomics and environmental health to prehistoric archaeology, historical water management in Aragon, sustainable livestock production, and science education.
More than a dozen IUCA researchers shared their work in an accessible way. Highlighted presentations included “Tick Alert!” by microbiologist Antonio Beltrán Rosel; “The first European at the University of Zaragoza” by Gloria Cuenca Bescós; and “De‑extinction” by Pere Bover Arbós, head of IUCA’s Paleogenomics Laboratory. There were also hands‑on activities such as the “Archaeologists in Action” workshop at the Huesca Museum (marking International Day of Women and Girls in Science on 11 February) and the “Transforming Classrooms” visit to the Natura space at the Faculty of Education, led by the BEAGLE‑IUCA team.
This activity was included in the official program of Complementary Academic Activities at the University of Zaragoza, enabling participating students to earn 0.5 ECTS credits.
IUCA wishes to thank all partner organizations and venues that hosted this second edition of the series, as well as the audience whose attendance and engagement continue to support this outreach initiative across Aragon.
Activities included:
“TICK ALERT! How mass spectrometry helps us defend against these arachnids”
Antonio Beltrán Rosel – Clinical microbiologist at Lozano Blesa Hospital; Associate Professor in Parasitology, University of Zaragoza’s Faculty of Medicine; researcher with IUCA’s Water & Environmental Health group.
Wednesday, 20 November 2024 – Centro de Documentación del Agua y del Medio Ambiente, Zaragoza.
Beltrán Rosel focuses on tick research, conducting environmental censuses and analyzing their population dynamics. For his PhD, he developed and validated a rapid, accurate MALDI‑TOF MS method for identifying medically significant ticks. In 2023, he won first prize at Campus Iberus’s “Three‑Minute Thesis” competition with “Don’t mess up with the tick”, underlining his work’s relevance in public health and climate‑driven parasite distribution.
“From the Orient to the Andes: The Camels of the ‘Three Kings’ and their American Relatives”
Francisco Canto – Researcher in BIOFITER‑IUCA, Department of Animal Production, University of Zaragoza’s Faculty of Veterinary Medicine.
Wednesday, 11 December 2024 – Ámbito Cultural, El Corte Inglés, Zaragoza.
Canto, a veterinarian trained at the Austral University of Chile, worked at INIA Remehue from 2010, primarily focusing on livestock extension with dairy and sheep farmers. In 2021 he began his doctoral studies at the University of Zaragoza, researching the effects of exogenous melatonin on sheep milk production and lamb growth.
“The First European at the University of Zaragoza: From Atapuerca to the Pyrenees”
Gloria Cuenca Bescós – Professor of Geology (Paleontology), Aragosaurus‑IUCA, Department of Earth Sciences.
Tuesday, 14 January 2025 – Pilar Sinués Hall, Paraninfo, University of Zaragoza.
Cuenca Bescós has published nearly 300 scientific articles and is highly decorated—including the 1997 Prince of Asturias Prize, the 2018 Cortes de Aragón Medal. She has served as IUCA Director (2017–2021) and is currently the Vice‑Rector for Transfer and Technological Innovation.
“Archaeologists in Action: Experience Prehistoric Technology”
A practical workshop by Ekaterina Shveygert and Cristina López Tascón (P3A‑IUCA), University of Zaragoza’s Museums of Antiquity, Saturday, 15 February 2025, Huesca Museum.
Shveygert studies Mousterian lithic technology in the Pyrenees (doctoral candidate), and López Tascón (postdoctoral Margarita Salas fellow) investigates traceological use‑wear on Middle–Upper Paleolithic stone tools.
“Transforming Classrooms: Are We Experimenters?”
Workshop and visit at Natura (Faculty of Education), featuring Ester Mateo and María José Sáez Bondía from the BEAGLE‑IUCA group.
Wednesday, 26 February 2025.
Conferencia «Transformando las aulas. ¿Somos seres experimentales?» (Historias de la Tierra II)
Both researchers collaborate with early‑childhood educators to improve use of open‑choice science spaces for children.
“Melatonin: Beyond Sleep. A Molecule 2.5 Billion Years in the Making”
Rosaura Pérez Pe – Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry & Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Zaragoza; researcher in BIOFITER‑IUCA.
Pérez Pe’s work focuses on reproductive technologies for sustainable livestock farming, especially melatonin’s effects on sheep reproduction.
“Water Management in Aragon’s History”
Miguel Ángel Pallarés Jiménez – Professor, Faculty of Education; member of IUCA’s Argos group.
A specialist in medieval geography and hydraulic infrastructure, Pallarés Jiménez has published extensively on irrigation and the agrarian heritage of Aragon, and collaborates on interdisciplinary river‑landscape and water education projects.
“The Extraordinary Archaeological Record of the Vero”
Lourdes Montes Ramírez – Associate Professor of Prehistory, University of Zaragoza; researcher in the Ebro Valley Prehistoric Heritage group (P3A and IUCA).
Saturday, 17 May 2025 – Río Vero Cultural Park Interpretation Center, Colungo (Huesca).
Her work on Ebro Valley prehistoric sites—Peña Miel, Gabasa, Espantalobos, Legunova—includes directing the national “Gaps and dates” project on prehistoric cultural dynamics.
“De‑extinction: Can (and Should) We Bring Back Extinct Species?”
Pere Bover Arbós – ARAID researcher; head of IUCA’s Paleogenomics Laboratory.
Wednesday, 18 June 2025 – Xplora Ibercaja, Zaragoza.
Bover, a biologist from the University of Barcelona, earned his doctorate at the Balearic Islands University. A Marie Curie IOF fellow, he trained at ACAD (Australia) and IMEDEA (Spain), focusing on vertebrate paleogenetics. His current research combines morphology and genetics of fossil vertebrates.