ECOSPHERE studies the role of nutrients in the ecology and biogeochemistry of aquatic (e.g. ponds, lakes, rivers) and terrestrial (e.g. wetlands, meadows) ecosystems, focusing on the interaction with plants and animals -from diatoms and plants to butterflies hippos. We study the transformation and transportation of elements, with a particular focus on the effects that excess nutrients (e.g. eutrophication) can exert on ecosystems properties and organisms' performance and distribution. Within this research line, specific attention is given to climate change (temperature, CO2, carbon sequestration…), the global silica cycle (e.g. vegetation as a filter for biogenic silica) and the effects of atmospheric nitrogen deposition and phosphorus pollution on biodiversity and environmental health.
