Background

Life on Earth evolves under continuously changing environmental conditions. Changes in climate, the atmosphere, geo-morphology, ocean currents, hydrology, soils, habitats: they all may affect the functioning of ecosystems and the diversity of organisms they sustain.

To enable a sustainable management of the system called Earth, a thorough understanding of the functioning of ecosystems and their response to natural and human-induced changes is needed. The Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED) meets this challenge through a joint effort of scientists with expertise in biology, physical geography, environmental chemistry and mathematical modelling.

Mission Statement

At the broadest level, the mission of the Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED) is to increase our understanding of the diversity and dynamics of ecosystems from the level of molecules and genes to entire ecosystems. Our aim is to unravel how ecosystems function in their full complexity, and how they change due to natural processes and human interference. The focus in IBED lies on the study of two interlinked aspects: (i) how do organisms interact with one another and with their abiotic environment, and (ii) what are the dynamics that emerge from these interactions, both in space and in time.

The Research of IBED

The research of IBED is organized in three themes:

Theme I: Biodiversity and Evolution
Theme II: Geo-ecology
Theme III: Community Dynamics

Each of the Themes is further divided in several Research Groups, each led by a Full Professor. However, research spanning several Research Groups or Themes is actively conducted and promoted. Follow the link below to learn more about the Research Themes and Groups of IBED in general, visit IBED's Research Showcase to get a quick impression of some of the topics studied, or go directly to the webpages of the individual Research Groups.

The Education of IBED

IBED is closely involved in the teaching of the BSc programmes of Earth Sciences, Biology and Future Planet Studies. In addition, IBED is involved in the MSc programmes of Earth Sciences, Biology, and Chemistry.

The Management Structure of IBED

IBED is led by a Director, a role currently fulfilled by Prof. dr. Peter H. van Tienderen. The Director is given a wide-ranging mandate by the Dean of the Faculty of Science to run the Institute. The Director is supported by a Business Manager, an Advisor for educational issues, a Management Assisitant and a Science Officer.

Follow the link below for detailed information about the management structure of IBED, or go directly to the page with contact information.

The external Scientific Advisory Committee of IBED

IBED has an external Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) consisting of leading international researchers with an expertise within IBED’s research domain. The main task of the SAC is to provide a forum for reflection of IBED’s research performance and advice the Institute on future research directions.  

Per 1 January 2011 the composition of the Scientific Advisory Committee is as follows:

Prof. dr. Peter de Ruiter (Chair)
Soil Science Centre
Alterra - Wageningen University
Wageningen, The Netherlands

Prof. dr. Barbara Ekbom
Department of Crop Production Ecology
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Uppsala, Sweden

Prof. dr. Sebastiaan Diehl
Department of Ecology and Environmental Science
Umeå University
Umeå, Sweden

Prof. dr. Gerard Govers
Division of Geography
Catholic University Leuven
Leuven, Belgium