CESSDA ERIC's strengthens its project management team by adding Maria Rujano. Until recently, Maria worked for ECRIN ERIC in Paris, but has now joined the CESSDA team in Bergen, Norway.

Maria Alexandra Rujano brings a dynamic blend of scientific research expertise with hands-on experience managing large-scale, multinational projects. As a Project Manager at ECRIN, she led a diverse portfolio of EU-funded initiatives, overseeing coordination, work packages, deliverables, and stakeholder engagement across multiple countries. Her role also included contributing to Horizon Europe proposals, giving her a comprehensive understanding of the project lifecycle, from concept to completion. 
With a background in cell biology and a strong academic foundation, Maria thrives in multidisciplinary, cross-cultural environments. She has a proven ability to align stakeholders, translate complex technical goals into actionable plans, and navigate research data governance, including hands-on experience with health data sharing and GDPR-compliant data policies.

While her career has primarily been in life sciences and clinical research, her skills are highly transferable to research data services and European infrastructure environments. She is particularly drawn to settings where international collaboration and data infrastructure drive long-term impact, making CESSDA’s mission a natural fit.
Maria also serves as an external evaluator for the European Commission’s Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions and holds a PhD in Medical Sciences from the University of Groningen.

Outside work, Maria loves gardening, wandering through art exhibitions, catching live concerts, and exploring new places. She's thrilled to be relocating to Bergen, with its breathtaking nature, and is looking forward to meeting her new colleagues and diving into the social sciences community.

The CESSDA ERIC Project management team now consists of Head of Project Management Martina Draščić Capar (center), and the three project managers Maria Bashir (right), Maria Alexandra Rujano (left), and Cécile Guezennec (currently out of office).