Constantin Ciupagea is Head of Unit for Land Resources at the Directorate General Joint Research Centre (JRC), within the European Commission, managing projects in support to EU policies. He is also the JRC Director-General’s Sherpa for the European Innovation Partnership on Raw Materials. The most recent areas of research and policy support were: Raw Materials and Strategic Value Chains – impact assessment and monitoring, management of the Commission’s Raw Materials Information System (RMIS); Life Cycle and sustainability assessments, including footprints; Soil health – providing assessments and management of knowledge (EU Soil Observatory) in support of Soil Strategy and Healthy Soils and Food Mission; Ecosystem Services Assessments and Natural Capital Accounting in support of Nature Restoration Law under the Biodiversity Strategy. Before joining the European Commission in 2010, he was the director of the Institute of World Economy (IWE) of the Romanian Academy. Between 2006 and 2008 he acted as Economic State Counsellor in the Chancellery of the Prime Minister of Romania, while between 1994 and 1996 he was the economic counsellor of the President of the Romanian Parliament's Chamber of Representatives.