Ana Maria Barata is graduated in Agronomy from Instituto Superior de Agronomia and has a MSc from Missouri University, USA. She is the head of the National Genebank since 1998, Banco Português de Germoplasma Vegetal (BPGV) / Instituto Nacional de Investigação Agrária e Veterinária( INIAV) – Ministério da Agricultura Florestas e Desenvolvimento Rural. She coordinates the Plant Genetic Resources and is Genebank Programme manager and Collection Curator.