Ecological Sciences
We are an innovative, multidisciplinary group of scientists who study the interactions between soil, plants, animals, humans and the environment with the aim of sustainable management of natural resources. We represent the UK’s largest collection of ecological expertise and deliver answers to ecological challenges and contemporary issues in agricultural and natural ecosystems in Scotland and beyond.
Our combined skills and holistic approaches, the application of cutting edge technology (for example in genomics) and the continuity of our resources, reference collections and archives give us a unique ability to respond to current and future issues. Our highly trained and flexible support team and joint areas of expertise add to the effectiveness of our critical mass. We have proven experience of working in multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary teams both locally and worldwide. We work in a range of environments and have a unique understanding of Scottish ecological systems.
Environmental change
Much of our work focuses on the impact of a changing climate and how the effects of changes on, for example, biodiversity can be mitigated. We also work at a range of relevant scales – from gene to globe – and in partnership with a wide range of individual stakeholders and organisations from commercial companies to government agencies, charities, and land managers.
We have excellent links with a number of universities and particularly strong relationships with those of St Andrews, Dundee, including the Centre for Environmental Change and Human Resilience (CECHR), and Aberdeen where we have developed a new focus through the Aberdeen Centre for Environmental Sustainability (ACES). We work hard to make the output of our research work widely available through a range of mechanisms from formal scientific peer-reviewed articles to “ecological” games which introduce school children to important ecological principles. Many scientists within the Group teach on university courses and also play their part in both national and international peer review and advisory capacities.
Head of Ecological Sciences Group: Pete Goddard
Research areas
- Agroecology
- Chemical and Molecular Ecology
- Community Ecology
- Landscape and Spatial Ecology
- Plant Soil Ecology
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