Forest ecology & conservation in an era of rapid global change
What motivates us
In our collective imagination forests are vast, wild places, largely untouched by man. But the reality is that with few exceptions this couldn’t be further from the truth. Humans have been reshaping forest ecosystems for millennia and in the last century our reach has become truly global. The impacts of this on our planet’s biodiversity and climate are plain for all to see.
New South Wales, Australia, before and after the bushfires of 2019. Source: Sentinel-2
Research focus
At Selva lab we study how forests are responding to rapid environmental change – from the growth and survival of individual trees, to carbon cycling on a planetary scale. We do this using a range of different approaches, including manipulative experiments, large-scale datasets, remote sensing and modelling.
Our mission
Our goal is to get a more accurate picture of what forests will look like in the future and what consequences this will have for climate, biodiversity and the billion or so people whose livelihoods depend on these ecosystems. Along the way we hope to play a small role in making sure forests continue to be ‘where the wild things are‘.
