Associate Professor in the Design Department at the School of Design, Politecnico di Milano. Here she studied and began her academic career focusing on material design. She has been a pioneer in this field for almost twenty years and has developed an internationally recognised expertise in both research and education. For her PhD, she undertook a unique and innovative study on an important but little explored topic: the expressive-sensory dimension of design materials and their experiential aspects.

Currently, her research and teaching activities focus on pioneering and challenging topics such as materials for the transition to regenerative ecologies; living materials and living artefacts; DIY materials; bio-based and biofabricated materials; materials from waste; materials for interactions and IoT (ICS materials); speculative materials; tinkering with materials; materials driven design methodologies; CMF design; emerging materials experiences; and materials education in design. She is one of the founders of the Materials Experience Lab (2015).