About our research
Research institute
This Master’s specialisation is tightly connected to the Radboud Institute for Biological and Environmental Sciences (RIBES), a well-known institute in the field of stress adaptation in plants, micro-organisms and animals. For more than 20 years, researchers from RIBES have been trying to fundamentally understand recovery processes and connect all different components in an ecosystem. This includes studying and predicting the impact of anthropogenic (man-made) stressors, such as carbon dioxide emission and the use of toxic agricultural compounds. Due to this long history, the institute profits from an ample funding and a large research network, both inside and outside academia.
Radboud Institute for Biological and Environmental Sciences (RIBES)
Research departments
During your Master's you will do at least one internship at one of our research departments. Relevant departments are:
The department Ecology comprises a team of ecologists dedicated to preserve and pursue ecosystem health. Our group unites aquatic and terrestrial ecologists focussing on plants, animals, microorganisms and their interactions in a changing world.
The department of Environmental Science investigates the impact of stressors on animal and plant species and humans. They aim to understand and predict both the relative and cumulative impact of anthropogenic stressors on species including humans. The methods developed and the results obtained are used by governments, agencies, industry and consultancies.
At the department of Plant & Animal Biology we aim to understand the interactions between environmental change and developmental and physiological processes, in plants and in animals. Our ambition is to develop innovative strategies and technologies to tackle challenges around food security, sustainable food production, species resilience to climate change, and improvement of human health.
Researchers
Get to know our researchers and their work, you could be working alongside them in this Master's!
Research projects
When you do your Master's intership, you can contribute to one of our ongoing research projects. Get in touch with the internship coordinator of the relevant department (often listed on the department website) or with the project leader of the project you're interested in.
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Carbon Connects
Carbon Connects is an Interreg North-West Europe initiative with a primary focus on peatland restoration. Originally slated for a four-year period commencing in 2018, the project's timeline has now been extended to December 2023.
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Towards smart soil-sensing: developing a proxy for soil health
Rosa Boone is studying how the restoration of soil diversity contributes to the condition of soil. To do this, she's developing a new measuring method that farmers can use to track the health of the soil beneath their feet.
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Future Dikes
The Future Dikes project investigates how we can strengthen the Dutch dikes with a species-rich grass covering.
Research facilities
RIBES researchers make use of state-of-the-art molecular, analytical and microscopy facilities in the modern Huygens building of Radboud University. New greenhouse and growth chambers were specifically designed for RIBES research needs and became operational in 2014. Only a few other comparable facilities exist in the world.
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Greenhouse, phytotron and experimental gardens
The modern greenhouse complex of the Radboud University houses growing rooms, climate rooms, mesh chambers, a root lab (phytotron) and an experimental field of 7000 m².
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Radboud Zebrafish Facility
The Radboud Institute for Biological and Environmental Sciences houses aquaria where research is done with zebrafish as an animal model.
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Bioreactors
The bioreactor facility hosted at the Department of Microbiology is used for the cultivation of microorganisms and microbial communities from the environment.