Marco Bartoli is Associate Professor at the University of Parma, where he coordinates the BeFun (Benthic Functioning) laboratory. He was involved as partner or coordinator in national and international research programmes in the field of biogeochemistry and benthic ecosystem functioning, in particular in the studies of microbial processes in surface sediments. Of particular interest are the exchange of solutes across the sediment-water interface and of dissolved gas across the water-atmosphere interface and the regulating role played by bioturbating macrofauna and macrophytes. Research themes include: -eutrophication; - primary production in aquatic environments; - bioturbation and benthic heterotrophic processes; - greenhouse gas dynamics in shallow water bodies; - interactions between microbial communities and macrophyte roots; - nutrient mass balance at different spatial scales; - the impact of aquacolture on aquatic environments.