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Ghent University Belgium
Ghent University is an open, pluralistic and socially engaged university with more than 200 years of history, offering over 200 programmes (including 69 English-taught master’s programmes) and educating more than 23,000 students. Within the university, the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine located in Merelbeke (Salisburylaan 133, 9820 Merelbeke), is one of Europe’s leading centres for veterinary education, research, and clinical services. In the latest Shanghai Global Ranking of Academic Subjects (2025), Ghent’s veterinary faculty ranked 4th in the world in Veterinary Sciences, reflecting its continued strength in research and academic impact.
The university coordinates the overall BIOFRAME project and ensures smooth collaboration, communication, and reporting across the consortium. The team leads the project management work package (WP6) and contributes substantially to stakeholder engagement, legislative analysis, and framework development. UGent will also guide dissemination activities, organise training events and workshops, and support the translation of scientific results into practical tools for farmers, veterinarians, and policymakers.
Role in BIOFRAME:
- Project coordination (WP6)
- Co-lead Dissemination (WP5)
- Key contributor to framework development (WP1)
Lead: Prof. Dr. Ilias Chantziaras
Expertise: Biosecurity, animal health management, epidemiology
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PhD researcher: Eleonora Cattaneo
Expertise: Livestock, wildlife ecosystems & biosecurity measures
Ilias Chantziaras
Ilias Chantziaras graduated in 2007 as a veterinarian (University of Thessaly, Greece). He has been a member of the Department of Internal Medicine, Reproduction, and Population Medicine of the Veterinary Faculty of Ghent University since 2012. In 2022, he assumed the Chair of Biosecurity of Animal Production in the Veterinary Faculty of Ghent University. He has conducted research on biosecurity, antimicrobial use, antimicrobial resistance, and production diseases.
Besides Ghent University, he worked also for the Flanders Research Institute of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries (ILVO) in the department of Animal and Social Science and in numerous animal/public health institutions in Greece. He is a diplomate of the European College of Veterinary Public Health with a specialization in population medicine. He is a member of numerous scientific networks on Biosecurity, Bacteriology, and One Health. He is the co-Chair of the EU-funded COST action CA20103 titled “Biosecurity Enhanced Through Training Evaluation and Raising Awareness”
Eleonora Cattaneo
PhD candidate at Ghent University, she holds a Master’s in Animal Production Sciences and Technologies from the University of Milan, specializing in Livestock and Wildlife Ecosystems. After graduating with a thesis on the effects of bird population dynamics on West Nile Virus spread, she received a scholarship in epidemiology of emerging infectious diseases, continuing her Masters’ thesis research. She later joined the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) where she supported the scientific activities of the Animal Health Team, working mainly on the African Swine Fever annual epidemiological report and risk factor analysis. She also contributed to the European Partnership for Animal Health and Welfare (EUPAHW), working on different projects, among which studies on biosecurity measures for the prevention and control of animal infectious diseases.