Marcelo Assis
Marcelo de Assis
Chemical Technologist from UFSCar, with a master’s degree in Inorganic Chemistry and a dual PhD from UFSCar and Universitat Jaume I (Spain). He held postdoctoral positions in Brazil and Spain, including the Margarita Salas and Juan de la Cierva programmes, and represented Brazil at the 71st Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting.
He is now a researcher at the Institute for Advanced Studies of the Sea (IEAMar/UNESP), where he coordinates SMILE Lab, dedicated to sustainable materials for health, the environment and innovation.
Academic journey
From his undergraduate studies in São Carlos to the founding of SMILE Lab: the steps, the people and the places that built this path.
Degree in Chemical Technology
The start of his training in chemistry and his first contact with scientific research.
Master’s in Inorganic Chemistry
Research on inorganic materials in Prof. Elson Longo’s group.
PhD between Brazil and Spain
The start of his PhD period in Spain, which would lead to a dual degree.
Prof. Elson Longo’s group
Doctoral research alongside the group that shaped his scientific training.
Dual PhD
PhD in Inorganic Chemistry from UFSCar and in Physical Chemistry from UJI, with the defence held in Spain.
Postdoc at LIEC
First postdoc, still in Prof. Elson Longo’s group.
Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting
Took part in the 71st meeting with Nobel laureates, among young researchers from all over the world, and represented Brazil at the 7th BRICS Young Scientist Forum. In Lindau he met Profs. Isabel A. Lázaro and Marciléia Zanatta: “we are friends and scientific partners to this day”.
Margarita Salas postdoc
Next Generation EU programme for attracting young researchers.
Juan de la Cierva postdoc
Juan de la Cierva researcher, and farewell to Spain after years of collaboration.
FAPESP postdoc
Back in Brazil, a postdoc funded by FAPESP in Prof. Anna Rafaela Cavalcante Braga’s group.
SMILE Lab is born
The group begins to take shape, presented at SBPMat 2025.
SMILE Lab around the world
The group takes its research to Spain, with Prof. Rosa Llusar, and strengthens its international partnerships.
Over the years, perhaps the greatest lesson science has taught me is that the most important results rarely lie only in published papers, patents or awards. My path was built thanks to many people who believed in me: my parents, who despite having no academic background taught me the value of work, honesty and perseverance; teachers who saw potential where I still saw only curiosity; advisors, friends, collaborators and students who walked alongside me.
That is why I have never seen science as an individual activity. The most significant discoveries of my career came from collaborative environments, in Brazil and abroad. With Prof. Dr. Elson Longo I learned that producing excellent knowledge requires rigour, dedication and vision, but also generosity in training people. With Profs. Drs. Juan Andrés, Rosa Llusar, Ángel Serrano-Aroca, Miguel Ângelo Cerqueira and Ana Claudia Muniz Renno, among many others, I learned that science crosses borders and grows stronger when different perspectives work together.
Watching young researchers grow, witnessing their achievements and helping them build their own paths is, for me, as important as any scientific result. More than developing new materials, I seek to build environments where people can learn, collaborate, grow and inspire one another.
SMILE Lab was born from exactly this vision: a community based on collaboration, respect, continuous learning and scientific excellence. After all, although materials are the object of our research, people are at the centre of everything we do.