Rok graduated in pharmacy from the University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Pharmacy (Slovenia) in 2004. He received his Ph.D. in 2009 in the Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry at the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, under the supervision of Prof. Slavko Pečar. His doctoral thesis focused on the design, synthesis and testing of small molecule inhibitors of Mur to investigate their potential as antibacterial agents. During his postdoctoral studies (2009-2010) at the Université Paris Descartes (France), he worked with Christine Gravier-Pelletier on the synthesis of bacterial MraY transferase inhibitors. He has also acted as Assistant Professor of Medicinal Chemistry at the Faculty of Pharmacy, College of Ljubljana (2016-2020). Rok's research includes medicinal chemistry of antibacterial compounds, organic synthesis and machine learning. In teaching, he leads experimental practices in medicinal chemistry and instrumental pharmaceutical chemistry. He was recognized in 2004 with two Krka awards for his work on the design and synthesis of Ag85C inhibitors as potential anti-tuberculosis drugs. In 2009, he received a special award for research on MurC and D inhibitors. The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia awarded the Golden Prize for Innovation in 2016 in recognition of Rok's pioneering work on the green and efficient synthesis of sitagliptin.
Nina Kočevar Glavač is the mastermind of Modern CosmEthics activities and now leads an expert group for cosmetic product review during the CosmEthically ACTIVE certification process. She is a pharmacist by profession and a doctor of pharmaceutical sciences who lectures students about medicinal plants and cosmetic ingredients of natural origin and researches them in a laboratory setting. She obtained her Master of Pharmacy and PhD degrees from the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia. Her scientific background is also the driving force behind her development of formulations of natural cosmetics.
