Shon George Shiju

Shon is currently a PhD researcher at Munster Technological University (MTU), supervised by Dr Gaurav Rajauria, Mr Patrick Quille, and Dr Eilish Broderick. His project titled CircBioCityWaste: Converting urban waste streams into value-added products is an EPA and DAFM co-funded project aiming at resource-efficient valorisation of urban biowaste streams with principles of circular bio-economy and suitability at the core. The research pursues to develop a first-of-a-kind integrated biorefinery concept in Ireland via ‘cascading’, using an ‘end-of-waste’ approach that utilises urban biowaste streams. Upon completion, the project will demonstrate a novel concept of new value chains from urban biowaste biomass sourcing to biostimulants and biofertiliser for sustainable agriculture, focusing primarily on plant growth and soil health. The project approaches are crucial to addressing efficient resource valorisation, multi-faceted sustainability and circular economy challenges.

Shon George received his Masters degree in biotechnology from CHRIST (deemed to be) University, Bangalore, India, in 2022. During his time at University, Shon was engaged with the Applied and Industrial Biotechnology Laboratory (AIBL), where he gained and contributed to various projects related to microbial fermentation, protein purification and analysis. His master thesis is ‘Process Development for Production of Proteases from Bacillus subtills’. He was also the recipient of the Summer Research Fellowship Programme (SRFP-2019) awarded by the Indian Academy of Sciences (IAS), Bangalore, India.  

Microbiology, analytical chemistry, enzyme purification, protein assay, process optimisation and solid-state and submerged fermentation are the domains of his experience. Shon envisions contributing towards sustainable resource management with his applied research. His research aligns with UN SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being), SDG 12 (Responsible consumption and production), and SDG 15 (Life on land).