Statement of research interests

My backgrounds as a forest engineer and my growing passion for ecology have guided me to the fields of dendrochronology and dendroecology. The current highlight of my research is the use of tree rings for understanding the relationships between “plant/tree and environment” and its application to the study of (environmental) change.

In the long term, I hope to contribute to ecological research by exploiting novel tree-ring information and innovative dendrochronological applications. Example case studies performed in a (Swiss) ecologically variable alpine context should contribute to the visibility of the research. Essentially I am interested in all topics that contribute to understanding the processes of storing information in tree-rings. Among those topics, the identification of tree responses to a changing environment in the wood and the interpretation of their ecophysiological meaning (tree functioning) are especially relevant. My field of activity is therefore prevalently anchored in dendroecology, but strongly interacts with other disciplines such as tree physiology, wood anatomy and plant ecology. And finally, the acquired knowledge should be applicable to the study of global change (from land use to environment and climate change).

Currently and for the next two to five years, I plan on focusing my work on two promising ongoing research areas. On the one hand, I aim to further evaluate the potentiality of wood cell anatomy as an ecological indicator. The research activities focus in particular on the identification and evaluation of environmental signals encoded in wood cell anatomical features of both hard- and softwood species, on improving the methodological basis for an efficient and reliable survey, on testing their application for both improving the ecophysiological understanding of tree functioning, and for using them as ecological proxies to reconstruct the past and provide a better scenario for the future. On the other hand, I intend to develop the use of tree rings to predict changes in forest composition and structure in a changing environment. Research will concentrate on the analyses of tree-ring relevant modifications in growth or competitive responses along time and space. The acquired knowledge should contribute to evaluating the effect that a changing environment will have on future forest development.

My work is goal-oriented. As far as is possible, I split broad research questions into modular projects, which answer specific questions while contributing to the understanding of the whole. I try to set up studies with efficient design and straightforward statistics. Results are published in international scientific journals but also presented at conferences and when relevant, disseminated for the praxis. Synergic collaborations are welcome. Fundraising will increase the working capacity as well as promote young expertise that can further develop and disseminate ideas and applications.