Understanding water quality is essential for designing solutions that truly benefit people and nature.

The #MeetTheProCleanLakesTeam campaign aims to spotlight the people behind the ProCleanLakes project—researchers, innovators, and collaborators working across Europe to restore and protect our freshwater ecosystems. Through short interviews, we’re sharing personal insights, motivations, and the unique roles each team member plays in driving forward sustainable water management solutions.

Today, we are pleased to launch the #MeetTheProCleanLakesTeam campaign with an interview featuring the BOKU Coordination Team. Representing the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna, Anca-Iulia Stoica, Project Coordinator of ProCleanLakes, and Erika Cuida Lopez, Researcher, share their insights into the project, their roles, and the vision driving ProCleanLakes forward.

ProCleanLakes Team: Dear both, welcome to the first interview of our #MeetTheProCleanLakesTeam campaign. We are delighted to have you with us today to share your perspectives on the project. To begin, tell us a bit about yourself and your role in ProCleanLakes.

Anca: I am Anca-Iulia Stoica, Senior Scientist at BOKU and ProCleanLakes Project coordinator. I am scientist, with background in analytical chemistry, environmental chemistry, corrosion protection, sensors and biosensors development with application in the field of environmental pollution control.

Erika: And I am Erika Cuida Lopez, a PhD student with a background in geology, hydrogeology, and environmental engineering. My role in ProCleanLakes is to evaluate the quality of water and sediments, focusing on identifying and understanding the pollutants found in each lake.

ProCleanLakes Team: What excites you most about working on ProCleanLakes?

Anca: What excites me most about ProCleanLakes is that I built the consortium from zero and was able to bring together people with different backgrounds and personalities who work so well together.
I enjoy having the opportunity to work with and coordinate an interdisciplinary team, and to observe how people with different backgrounds approach such an important subject as the protection and restoration of lake ecosystems.

Erika: For me, the most exciting part is that I have the opportunity to work in an interdisciplinary team that goes beyond assessing the environmental status of important lakes across Europe. Together as a team, we aim to develop long-term solutions tailored to each case, which makes the work both meaningful and impactful.

ProCleanLakes Team: How does your work contribute to cleaner lakes and sustainable water management?

Anca: As an analytical chemist, I consider the assessment of water quality to be very important in order to establish the status of the water. Together with specialists from other fields, such as microbiology, ecology, geology, hydrology, hydrogeology and environmental engineering, I am able to propose, design and implement solutions that contribute to the improvement of lake ecosystems.

Erika: By assessing both water and sediment quality, I help identify pollutants and their possible links to surrounding human activities. This knowledge supports more effective and sustainable lake management solutions.

ProCleanLakes Team:  What are the key challenges or lessons in your area of the project?

Anca: The key challenge is to be able bring together the puzzle pieces from each activity, by working together, consortium, citizens and stakeholders, in order to deliver the action plan and roadmap for the protection and restoration of as much as possible natural lake ecosystems.

Erika: One key challenge is that each lake is unique — with its own environmental conditions and pollution sources — which makes the assessment process distinctive. But this also makes the work rewarding, as it requires both scientific analysis and collaboration to understand the full picture and propose meaningful solutions.

ProCleanLakes Team:   What’s one thing you hope ProCleanLakes will achieve by the end?

Anca: By the end of the project, I hope ProCleanLakes to have contributed to the short- and long-term restoration and protection of natural lake ecosystems by bringing together specialists from different backgrounds, as well as citizens and stakeholders.

The aim is to show people that every action counts and that ecosystems can be restored if we work together.

Erika: I hope ProCleanLakes will deliver effective long-term solutions for each lake. By involving local communities and stakeholders, these actions can have lasting impact and hopefully serve as a model for other lakes across Europe.

We warmly thank Anca-Iulia Stoica and Erika Cuida Lopez for sharing their insights and experiences in this first interview of the #MeetTheProCleanLakesTeam campaign.

Stay tuned for upcoming interviews with more project partners by subscribing to our newsletter and following ProCleanLakes on social media.

Together, we can make a difference for Europe’s lakes!