Dr B.J.M. Robroek (Bjorn)
Assistant professor - Aquatic Ecology and Environmental Biology
Heyendaalseweg 135
6525 AJ NIJMEGEN
Internal postal code: 31
Postbus 9010
6500 GL NIJMEGEN
Bjorn is a plant ecologist with over 20 years of experience in research that has mainly concentrated on wetlands; yet Bjorn has also worked in other environments, including arctic, montane, alpine and tropical ecosystems. Bjorn has undertaken his research at several universities in the Netherlands (WUR, UU), Switzerland (EPFL) and England (Southampton); at the latter he still holds a guest lecturer position.
Bjorn examines how plant communities shape microbial communities, how plant-microbe interactions are regulated by enviro-climatological change, and how plant-microbe associations –and changes therein– drive ecosystem processes such as carbon and nutrient cycling. Over the last decade, Bjorn has become fascinated by extreme events such as drought, fire, and changing winter conditions. Bjorn integrates ecological theory to explore to potential to use plant-microbe interaction in fast-tracking ecosystem restoration after extreme events. A novel line of research focusses on understanding species interactions along enviro-climatic gradients, with a particular focus on multitrophic interactions. Bjorn is also interested in the effects of changing winters on ecosystem processes.
To achieve his research aims, Bjorn draws on field studies, mesocosm studies and environmental gradient studies. He has been awarded a personal research grant, VENI, from the Dutch Research Council NWO, and has played an active role in an EU funded BiodivERsA project. He currently leads a NERC funded project on the effects and potential biological restoration potential of the post-fire Saddleworth/Stalybridge Moor. Bjorn is also the coordinator and principal investigator on a long-term (> 10 years) plant removal experiment in the Store Mosse National park in Sweden.
- Plant-Soil interactions
- Aquatic Ecology and Environmental Biology