Europe Region Board Information
Laura Bosco, PhD, President
Chair of the Policy Committee
Grant-funded Researcher, Finnish Museum of Natural History, Finland
Laura is an ecologist from Switzerland. Her main research interests are the impacts of human land use and climate change on biodiversity, with a special focus on the distribution of northern bird communities. She is also interested in aspects of landscape ecology and finding solutions for a sustainable, environmentally friendly agriculture. She has a PhD (2018) in conservation biology from the University of Bern, Switzerland.
Bluesky
Additional roles: chair of the Policy Committee, creator of newsletters, member of the ECCB2024 Steering and Scientific Committees, member of the Early Career Award group
I’m a member of the PC since 2021 and chair since 2022. I organize and host quaternary PC meetings online and help/support with other PC activities (e.g. open letters on policy-science matters). I co-organize the fall webinars.
Michelle Henley, MSc, PGDip, Secretary
University of Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom
Michelle is an experienced ecologist with over 23 years of experience working in the field of biodiversity conservation and the protection of natural resources for both NGOs and government departments in the UK and Canada. She is currently undertaking a PhD at the University of Edinburgh. Her interests are conservation genetics, land management and habitat restoration, large carnivore conservation and resolution of human-wildlife conflicts.
Additional roles: secretary and member of the ECCB2024 Steering and Scientific Committees
As the Secretary I draft meeting agendas and record minutes at monthly Board meetings. I also monitor the Region email inbox and administer correspondence of the Region. As a member-at-large I fulfil the general duties required to support and progress the Region’s work and ensure good governance of the Region. I co-organize the fall webinars.
Arash Ghoddousi, PhD, Treasurer
Assistant professor at the Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Group, Wageningen University, Netherlands
I am an assistant professor at Wageningen University, the Netherlands, interested in conservation questions related to the effectiveness of area-based conservation measures, development of monitoring tools and frameworks, and better understanding of human-wildlife interactions. I have been active in conservation research and practice particularly in eastern Europe and the Caucasus, some of the least-studied, but rich in biodiversity regions in Europe. I have close collaborations with conservation organizations around the world (e.g., IUCN, WWF) and consult on several projects with a particular focus on large mammals and temperate ecosystems.
Bluesky
Additional roles: As the treasurer I maintain the account, collect and pay funds for Region activities. I am also a member of the Equity, Diversity, Inclusivity and Justice Committee, member of the Early Career Award group, member of the ECCB2024 Steering and Scientific Committees, liaison of the SCB-Europe at the SCB-Global Regional Council
I regularly attend the online meetings, review and revise documents and processes (e.g., within the award allocations or EDIJ policies), and support others in the Region’s work.
Michele Lussu, PhD, Member-at-Large
Postdoctoral researcher at University of Bologna, Italy
Michele Lussu graduated in Cagliari (Italy), specialized in Milan and obtained a research master's degree at Imperial College London (UK). His scientific interests are focused on the Orchidaceae, their evolutionary and ecological patterns. He is particulary interests in insular biogeography and how specialized organisms such as orchids response to biogeographic laws and anthropization. He has also obtained several grants on plant functional traits (PFT) and their response to climate change and biological invasions.
Additional roles: secretary of the SCB Italy Chapter; member of the ECCB2024 Steering, Scientific and Local Committees, contact person for the ECCB2024, chair of the ECCB2024
Ewa Orlikowska, PhD, Member-at-Large
Karlstad University, Sweden
Ewa is a forest ecologist, originally from Poland. She worked for number of years in SE Alaska, U.S. and currenly works in Sweden. Her main research interests include forest ecology, invasive species, boreal forest conservation with focus on protected areas, habitat modelling and spatial landscape analyses.
Bluesky
Additional roles: member of the SCB Europe Region Communication Committee, member of the ECCB2024 Steering and Scientific Committees, treasurer of the SCB Nordic Chapter
In practice, I participate in online meetings, write Bluesky & Facebook posts for the SCB Europe account, update the SCB Europe Region’s website and engage in the Region’s typical activities - newsletters, webinars, etc.
Petr Zasadil, PhD, Member-at-Large
Czech University of Life Sciences Prague (CZU), Czech Republic
Website
Additional roles: chair of the ECCB2024 Steering and Scientific Committees, contact person for the ECCB2026, chair of the ECCB2022 Local Organising Committee
In practice, I participate in online meetings, organize the ECCB2024 SteCom meetings, and communicate with the ECCB 2024 Local organizing committee.
Katalin Pap, MSc, Member-at-Large
Hungary
Katalin graduated as a biologist from the University of Szeged. During her Erasmus program, she spent time with bright students from developing countries and this experience empowered her to conduct studies on global issues such as climate change and the effect of urbanization. During her ecological work, she focused on wetlands and studied waterbirds. After a career change, she became a member of the IT world, and right know she focuses on virtual conferencing tools, and how these systems can reduce our ecological footprint by burning less kerosene. Her current area of interest is climate change mitigation and child education, providing clean drinking water to all and how one can apply ecological aspects when delivering emergency aid during natural or human induced disasters.
ResearchGate
Additional roles: member of the Communication Committee, member of the Hungarian Chapter, chair of the Art of the Carpathians Award
I participate in the online meetings and manage/produce content for the SCB Europe Bluesky account. I also compiled a communication strategy. Currently, I’m organizing a conservation-related Art Award and participating in the organization of the 2023 Fall Webinar.
Anne Magurran, PhD, Member-at-Large
Professor, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, United Kingdom
Anne is an ecologist based at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. She is interested in the measurement of biological diversity and in understanding how diversity changes over space and time. Her research includes work on freshwater, marine and terrestrial systems and she has collaborations with colleagues in 5 continents.
Additional roles: co-chair of the ECCB2024 Scientific Committee, member of the ECCB2024 Steering Committeee
I participate in the online board meetings and lead the scientific committee when organizing the next ECCB in Bologna.
Jenny Anne Glikman, PhD, Member-at-Large
Researcher at Instituto de Estudios Sociales Avanzados (IESA-CSIC), Cordoba, Spain
Jenny works as a social science researcher at the Instituto de Estudios Sociales Avanzados (IESA-CSIC). Her main research focuses on integrating and applying social sciences to study and better understand human-wildlife interactions, including conflicts and coexistence, as well as the illegal wildlife trade, to inform wildlife conservation actions and strategies. Her research goals are to support global wildlife conservation efforts and build local capacity to achieve human-wildlife coexistence.
Bluesky
Additional roles: member of the Policy Committee, member of the ECCB2024 Steering and Scientific Committees. I am also a member of the Equity, Diversity, Inclusivity and Justice Committee, member of the Early Career Award group.
I participate in the online meetings and I also currently support the coordination of the 2023 fall webinar.
Emma-Liina Marjakangas, PhD, Member-at-Large
Postdoctoral researcher, Finnish Museum of Natural History, Finland (until May 2023) and at Aarhus University, Denmark (from June 2023)
Emma is an ecologist from Finland. The overarching theme of her research is understanding what makes species’ communities as they are and how they will change under the ever-intensifying anthropogenic pressures. She studies biodiversity trends at large spatial, temporal and taxonomic scales and develops conservation applications based on the results. Emma has a PhD (2019) in Biology from Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway.
Bluesky
Additional roles: member of the ECCB2024 Steering Committee, member of the Communication Committee, chair of the Equity, Diversity, Inclusivity and Justice Committee, representative of the SCB-Europe at the SCB Global’s EDIJ Committee
In practice, I participate in online meetings, write tweets for the SCB Europe account, update SCB Europe’s equity & diversity practices, and co-organize the 2023 fall webinar.
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Roberto Cazzolla Gatti, PhD, Member-at-Large
Associate Professor of Conservation Biology and Biodiversity at the University of Bologna, Italy
Roberto Cazzolla Gatti is an Associate Professor of Conservation Biology and Biodiversity at the University of Bologna, Italy where he is also a member of the BIOME – Biodiversity and Macroecology Lab. He is an ecologist and evolutionary biologist with a Ph.D. in forest ecology. His interdisciplinary research deals with Ecosystem and Planetary Health, Biodiversity (plant & animal), and Global Environmental Protection, occurring at the interface between macroecology, evolution, biogeography, and behavioural ecology. From 2015 to 2021, he was an Associate Professor at the Biological Institute and the coordinator of the MSc Program in Biodiversity of the Tomsk State University (TSU), in Russia. In parallel to his professorship at TSU, he served as an Associate Professor at the Polytechnic of Rouen UniLaSalle (France), a Senior Research Fellow of the Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition (Austria), a Research Associate at the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources of Purdue University (USA), and a Visiting Professor of the Beijing Forestry University (China). He is a member of the IUCN, a founding member of the Italian Chapter of the Society for Conservation Biology, and an external faculty of the Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research. Before, he was a researcher at CMCC and a consultant for the UN-FAO and WWF.
Additional roles: founding member of the SCB Italian Chapter, member of the ECCB2024 Scientific Committee
I participate in the online meetings of the SCB Europe and provide scientific support. I support the production of contents and press releases for the SCB Italy. I am also involved in scientific programs and communications of the Italian chapter and in the organization of the ECCB 2024 in Bologna, Italy. I co-represented the SCB Europe at the ICCB2023 in Kigali.
Future Members
If you are interested in being a member of the Europe Region Board you must be a member of SCB and a member of the Region. Generally 2 to 4 board members are elected annually. The Call for Nominations goes out in September or October and the election runs in October or November. Each year region members receive an email about the open positions and the start of the election process. For more information about getting involved with this board, please contact a board member europe@conbio.org
Committees
- Standing Committees
Communication Committee
Education Committee/Student Affairs Committee
Membership Committee
Policy Committee
- Ad Hoc Committees
Mediterranean Ad Hoc Committee
Bylaws:
The SCB-ES bylaws outlines the procedure for the regions governance.
Bylaws (current version not yet adopted)
Strategic plan:
To complement the revision of the Strategic Plan of the Society, the Europe Region develops its own strategic plan in order to address European challenges.
Strategic plan 2011- 2015 (pdf)
Board Member Agreement:
Being a member of the SCB-ES involves taking responsibility for the development of the region. The Board Member Agreement outlines the expectations on Board members.
BoD ES agreemeent
Annual reports: