Stefano Cairone, Ph.D., is a research fellow at the Sanitary Environmental Engineering Division (SEED), Department of Civil Engineering, University of Salerno (Italy), where he conducts research and academic activities in environmental engineering. He currently serves as Innovation Promoter at the University of Salerno. He graduated cum laude with honorable mention in environmental engineering in 2022 ad obtained his Ph.D. in Risk and sustainability in civil, architectural and environmental engineering systems in 2026, with a dissertation titled “Artificial intelligence for the next-generation sustainable and carbon-neutral wastewater treatment systems”. His research mainly focuses on the design and validation of biotechnologies for advanced wastewater treatment and valorization, with particular emphasis on membrane technologies. He is involved as a researcher in several national and international research projects. He was a visiting research scholar at Columbia University (USA), Khalifa University (UAE) and the University of Borås (Sweden).