The 2026 KINGFA Young Investigator Award goes to Dr Erlantz Lizundia, Full Professor at the Bilbao School of Engineering, University of the Basque Country. He obtained his PhD in Advanced Materials Engineering in 2011 at the University of the Basque Country, and did two Postdoctoral stays at the University of the British Columbia (2016) and ETH Zürich (2018). As the Principal Investigator of the Life Cycle Thinking Group, he implements green chemistry, circularity, and eco-design assisted by life cycle assessment (LCA), to exploit renewable materials that balance a processability, thermo-mechanical properties, competitive performance, and sustainability. He integrates fundamental science and practical applications to promote the implementation of environmentally sustainable bio-products in water treatment, energy storage, sensing, packaging, or cultural heritage conservation, among others.
To quote a statement from his appraiser and evaluator
Dr Lizundia stands out as one of the most persistent and motivated researchers I’ve worked with. He was a remarkably fast learner in the lab and obtained an impressive number of results during his short stay (only 6 months), which grew into several high-quality publications. Dr. Lizundia is an inquisitive and creative young scientist…
Dr Lizundia is also the recipient of the Outstanding Young Researcher in Polymers (2025) awarded by the Spanish Polymer Society. He will be presented with the KINGFA Young Investigator Award at the 2027 ACS Spring meeting in New Orleans.
Vision and Mission