Global Research Networks

Scaling ecological research through global collaboration

Many of the environmental challenges facing our planet today transcend national borders. Biodiversity loss, climate change, nutrient enrichment, biological invasions, and land-use change operate across continents and over decades. Understanding these challenges and developing effective solutions requires research at a scale that no single institution can achieve alone.

At the Ecology & Biodiversity group, we believe that collaboration is fundamental to ecological discovery. Through a broad portfolio of international research networks, we work together with researchers across the globe to identify general ecological principles, harmonize methodologies, and build coordinated experiments that span ecosystems, climates, and continents.

These collaborations allow us to move beyond local case studies and address ecology at the scales relevant to global environmental change.

Why global networks matter

Global research networks enable us to:

• Identify ecological patterns that are consistent across ecosystems and regions
• Understand how environmental change affects biodiversity and ecosystem functioning worldwide
• Harmonize methods and data collection across continents
• Test ecological theory under diverse environmental conditions
• Build long-term datasets that reveal ecological change through time
• Translate local ecological knowledge into globally relevant insights

Many of these initiatives rely on coordinated experiments, shared protocols, and open collaboration among hundreds of scientists worldwide.

Networks we lead

• EcoFracNet
• Microclimate Ecology & Biogeography Network (MEB)
• Mountain Invasion Research Network (MIREN)
• NPKD Network (NPKD-Net)

Networks we contribute to

• Drought Network (DroughtNet)
• Nutrient Network (NutNet)
• TreeDivNet

Embedding

Our international collaborations are strongly embedded within Utrecht University’s interdisciplinary research landscape. We actively contribute to and collaborate within university-wide initiatives such as:

• Pathways to Sustainability (PtS) 
  • Water, Climate & Future Deltas (WC&FD)
  • Future Food Utrecht (FFU)
• The Utrecht Ecology Community 
• Cross-faculty collaborations through platforms such as COMBINED

Through these initiatives, we connect ecological research to food systems, water and climate resilience, sustainability transitions, and interdisciplinary innovation. This embedding strengthens our ability to translate ecological insights into societal impact, both locally and globally.