Published 23 October 2024 Jesica López on her participation at COP16 In the Colombian rainforest, cattle ranching is spreading and leading to forest fires and deforestation. This threatens the environment, climate and indigenous people in the Amazon. More efficient use of existing pastures and alternative livelihoods are some of the factors needed to protect the rainforest, according to a new thes

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/new-thesis-highlights-sustainable-solutions-protect-amazon-rainforest - 2025-07-05

Published 28 October 2024 The government has appointed Olof Johansson Stenman, professor of economics at the University of Gothenburg and a BECC PI, as a new member of the Climate Policy Council. "It is an honor, but above all, it is an important task that the council has," he says. The Climate Policy Council is an independent and interdisciplinary expert body that evaluates and reviews the govern

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/olof-johansson-stenman-new-member-climate-policy-council - 2025-07-05

Published 24 November 2024 Research estimates that rainforests account for more than half of all carbon captured by plants on our planet. However, photosynthesis is disrupted when levels of ground-level ozone become too high. Photo by Johan Wingborg Exhaust fumes and burning reduce the ability of rainforests to capture carbon by 0.29 billion tonnes each year. A new study by researchers from the Un

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/burning-reduce-rainforest-carbon-sequestration - 2025-07-05

Published 27 November 2024 What were the main outcomes of the UN Biodiversity Conference COP16 and what happened behind the scenes? Here are key takeaways from our webinar with negotiators, researchers, NGOs and other experts. On 21 November, some 150 people tuned into the webinar Post COP16 analysis: From biodiversity commitments to action. The event was co-organized by SIANI, Focali, Stockholm E

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/post-match-analysis-cop16-learn-what-happened-and-why-it-matters - 2025-07-05

Published 5 December 2024 Andreas Nord, a researcher at the Department of Biology and Mikkel Brydegaard, senior lecturer at the Physics department - both members of BECC, have been awarded an ERC Consolidator Grant Mikkel Brydegaard draws on his experiences from electrical engineering and atomic physics to develop laser diagnostic tools for new insights into the ecology and diversity of insects.By

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/congratulations-andreas-nord-and-mikkel-brydegaard-recieving-erc-consolidator-grant - 2025-07-05

Published 11 December 2024 Grass fodder production in southern Sweden. Photo: Josefin Winberg. Bioenergy plays a vital role in the transition to a fossil-free society. However, the "unused" agricultural land, so-called marginal land, deemed suitable for bioenergy cultivation in southern Sweden is practically nonexistent, according to a new study from Lund University. Much of the land is already in

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/land-identified-crucial-swedish-bioenergy-already-occupied-new-study-shows - 2025-07-05

By lina [dot] tornquist [at] innovation [dot] lus [dot] se (Lina Törnquist) - published 20 January 2025 Much of the world's infrastructure is made of concrete, which presents a challenge when it cracks and needs repair. Traditional repair methods involve cutting away a large amount of material. Now researchers at Lund University are investigating an innovative solution: using fungi to mend concret

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/sustainable-construction-how-fungi-research-lund-university-could-revolutionise-infrastructure - 2025-07-05

Published 5 March 2025 With his cycling helmet perched on his head, he rushes in like a whirlwind, fires off monosyllabic replies to emails and then asks thoughtful questions during meetings while simultaneously managing to work away on his computer. For Henrik Smith, life moves at a hundred miles an hour. But he is also a lauded professor and the previous, long-time coordinator of BECC with an aw

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/henrik-smith-visionary-who-never-slows-down - 2025-07-05

Published 18 March 2025 Satellite image of Lake Yamzho Yumco in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China – one of the lakes that, thanks to minimal human impact, has not undergone major colour changes. (Photo: Google Earth) Over the last 40 years, the majority of the world’s lakes have changed colour, according to a new study. The research team analysed 32 million satellite observations from over 67,0

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/lakes-worldwide-are-changing-colour-possibly-due-human-impact - 2025-07-05

Published 26 March 2025 Photo: Michael O. Dillon Tropical forest canopies play a crucial role in the biosphere’s carbon, water, and energy cycles. Despite this, they are often treated as uniform in climate system models. A new study now reveals that canopy traits vary significantly across different regions, which could have major implications for how we understand and model forest functions in a c

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/unique-mapping-canopy-diversity-tropical-forests - 2025-07-05

Published 1 April 2025 Lead, pesticides, brominated flame retardants, plastic additives, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and heavy metals. This is what researchers at Lund University found when they collected dead hedgehogs to investigate the environmental pollutants found in urban environments. Previous research has investigated the presence of heavy metals in hedgehogs from other urban areas i

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/surprising-number-environmental-pollutants-hedgehogs - 2025-07-05

Published 3 April 2025 This October marks the launch of Sweden’s first Swedish Biodiversity Symposium—an entirely new meeting place where experts and stakeholders in biodiversity will gather to promote positive developments in the field. We had the opportunity to talk with Mats Björkman, BECC's coordinator in Gothenburg and the project manager for the symposium. Mats Björkman is a senior lecturer

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/has-been-lacking-premiere-swedish-biodiversity-symposium-new-meeting-place-biodiversity - 2025-07-05

By anna_maria [dot] erling [at] cec [dot] lu [dot] se (Anna Maria Erling) - published 3 April 2025 Species diversity is higher in plant communities surrounded by landscapes with low human impact, the study shows. Photo: Honor Prentice. A new global study shows that in human-disturbed regions, many native plant species are absent from their natural habitats, contributing to the missing so called “d

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/global-study-dark-diversity-reveals-hidden-impact-human-activities-nature - 2025-07-05

By anna_maria [dot] erling [at] cec [dot] lu [dot] se (Anna Maria Erling) - published 10 April 2025 Hyltemossa celebrates its 10-year anniversary. Photo: ICOS Sweden. On 15 May 2025, scientists, engineers, and environmental stakeholders will gather to celebrate a milestone for Swedish climate research: the 10-year anniversary of ICOS Sweden’s national greenhouse gas observation network; a decade o

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/celebrating-decade-data-icos-sweden-marks-milestone-climate-science - 2025-07-05

By olof [dot] lonnehed [at] science [dot] gu [dot] se (Olof Lönnehed) - published 8 May 2025 Mountain birches are establishing themselves higher and higher up in the Swedish alpine meadows, often at the expense of other low-growing species that are shaded by the birch. Global warming is causing rapid changes in vegetation in the Arctic. A major study in Nature with researchers from BECC-members at

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/major-changes-biodiversity-arctic - 2025-07-05

Published 25 May 2016 Photo: André Bessa In many parts of the world, grass and forest fires pose a threat to animals and humans. According to a new study from Lund University in Sweden, while climate change is likely to cause more and larger fires, in the future, more and more people will become directly affected as a result of demographic changes. Wolfgang Knorr at Lund University, together with

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/demographic-changes-increase-risk-natural-fires - 2025-07-05

Published 22 June 2016 Skogaryd research site spruce forest on drained peat soil and drainage ditch. Photo: Åsa Kasimir Forests have long been seen as a sink for greenhouse gases. Research conducted by scientists from University of Gothenburg has shown that over a forest rotation of 80 years, forest production on drained peat soil is a large source of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. BECC/MERGE

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/forest-production-drained-peat-release-greenhouse-gases - 2025-07-05

Published 23 June 2016 Photo: University of Gothenburg The Department of Economics at the School of Business, Economics and Law at University of Gothenburg has been selected to host the 6th World Congress of Environmental and Resource Economists, WCERE, in June 2018. BECC researcher Thomas Sterner is head of the local organization committee for the conference. “We feel happy and proud to once agai

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/environmental-economists-return-gothenburg - 2025-07-05

Published 27 June 2016 Open PhD student positions in Environmental Science, at Lund University. Doctoral student position in Environmental Science, at the Department of Physical Geograhy and Ecosystem ScienceWork descriptionThe successful applicant for this position will setup and run the forest ecosystem model ForSAFE in different climate regions in Sweden. The effects on processes and indicators

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/phd-student-positions-environmental-science - 2025-07-05

Published 1 July 2016 Photo: Pixabay Lund University has an open internal call for 7 million SEK aiming at Strategic Research Areas (SRAs) as for example BECC. All 7 million comes from SRA-funding. Send in your suggestion before August 19! In shortA call for 5 millions for research infrastructure (Forskningsinfrastruktur) and 2 millions for joint SRA projects (Gemensamma projekt).Funding needs to

https://www.becc.lu.se/article/wanted-suggestions-joint-sra-projects-and-funding-infrastructure-lu-internal - 2025-07-05