PAPA ESTER

Ester Papa is an Associate Professor of Environmental and Cultural Heritage Chemistry at the University of Insubria and holds the Italian National Scientific Qualification for Full Professor in Analytical Chemistry. She is internationally recognized for expertise in computational environmental chemistry and QSAR modeling, focusing on the development, validation, and application of quantitative structure-activity models for chemical, ecotoxicological, and regulatory risk assessment of chemicals and emerging pollutants.
At the Department of Theoretical and Applied Sciences, she leads the QSAR Research Unit in Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, coordinating interdisciplinary research and collaborations with universities, regulatory agencies, and international research institutions. Her academic training spans Italy and leading European centers, including research periods at Liverpool John Moores University, Umeå University, and Université Paris Diderot.
She oversees the development of internationally recognized open-access QSAR software, technically implemented by Dr. Nicola Chirico since 2012, for constructing, validating, and applying predictive models aligned with international regulatory frameworks. Her scientific output includes over 80 publications in high-impact international journals and a notable bibliometric profile.
Prof. Papa participates in national and international research projects, collaborates with international institutions, serves on editorial boards of peer-reviewed journals, and acted as reviewer for the European Research Council and European Commission initiatives in computational toxicology. She contributes to scientific governance in leading societies such as SETAC and the Italian Chemical Society (2013-2015) and to the organization of national and international congresses and schools. Since 2024, she is listed among the World’s Top 2% Scientists (Stanford University–Elsevier).