María G. Álvarez is a PhD candidate in Biology (Conservation Biology) at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, Portugal. She holds an MSc in Biodiversity and Conservation Biology from the University of Barcelona and a BSc in Biology from the University of Oviedo. Her research focuses on freshwater ecology and biodiversity conservation, particularly the ecology and conservation of freshwater mussels under global change scenarios. She has participated in multiple research projects addressing climate change impacts, hydrological alteration, and species conservation. She has experience in field ecology, monitoring programs, malacological collection management, and ecological data analysis across the Iberian Peninsula. Her work integrates ecological modelling, distribution datasets, and conservation planning for threatened freshwater species. She has co-authored peer-reviewed publications in journals such as Biological Conservation, Scientific Data, Scientific Reports, Diversity, and Journal of Environmental Management. She has presented her research at several international conferences and received the Second Best Student Presentation Award at the Portuguese Malacology Congress (2025).