Valeria Pérez de Ciriza

Valeria Pérez de Ciriza is the leader of Security, Space and Defence knowledge area at Zabala Innovation. She is a senior international consultant with extensive experience in European funding programmes, including the European Defence Fund (EDF), Horizon Europe (notably Clusters 3 and 5), EIC, Interreg and cascade funding/FSTP schemes.

She has contributed to numerous defence and dual-use projects, both in proposal preparation and in project management and implementation. She also spent three years in the Environment knowledge area, building strong expertise in sustainability-driven programmes such as LIFE and Horizon Europe Cluster 5 (Climate, Energy and Mobility).

Valeria holds a degree in Industrial Engineering with a specialisation in Mechanics, complemented by a Master’s in Product Design and Development. Her technical engineering background, combined with strategic EU funding expertise, enables her to bridge industrial innovation, sustainability and security priorities. She supports organisations in positioning, structuring and securing highly competitive European projects, as well as in their effective implementation within complex international consortia.