Hiding from the climate – finding, protecting and creating climate refugia

The climate an organism directly experiences – for example, in the shade of a tree – can differ greatly from the climate of the free atmosphere. To understand the impacts of climate change on biodiversity, we need climate data at scales relevant to organisms. Where are the cold spots in our warming landscapes? What creates them, and how do they help declining species survive in climate refugia? I will present my work on measuring, modeling, and mapping forest microclimate, exploring its ecological consequences, and how we can harness microclimate science to protect biodiversity in a changing climate.

Caroline Greiser is a trained landscape ecologist, working and thinking in a multidisciplinary way to address questions related to climate and biodiversity. She holds a PhD in Ecology and works as a researcher at Stockholm University and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. Her research focuses on the effects of microclimate on organisms, populations, and species distributions, with a particular emphasis on managed boreal forests, where humans directly modify the thermal landscape. She has made significant contributions to the fields of microclimate ecology and biogeography.

Moderation: Professor Dr. Philipp Lehmann