Quarries and garbage dumps inside the Galapagos National Park: How can we restore them?

Anna Calle-Loor, co-author of a new publication, shares her team’s experience assessing the survival of plant species in the Galapagos to inform decision-making amongst stakeholders. When you think of the Galapagos Islands, what comes to mind? Perhaps volcanic landscapes, giant tortoises and other unique wildlife, scenes that could easily belong in a nature documentary. But behind this iconic scenery lies a less picturesque reality: the … Continue reading Quarries and garbage dumps inside the Galapagos National Park: How can we restore them?

Smarter planning to bring rivers back to life

In this blog post, Virgilio Hermoso explains how to plan the recovery of longitudinal and lateral connectivity to restore free-flowing rivers in their latest study. Rivers are more than lines on a map—they are living networks. They connect mountains to coasts, nourish floodplains, and support incredible biodiversity. But over the past century, we have fragmented these systems with dams, weirs, levees and floodwalls, breaking the … Continue reading Smarter planning to bring rivers back to life

From the Ground Up: Stories about Community Regeneration in South Wales

Field reflections written by Charlotte, Emily, Tara, Diesha and Anouk who are studying on the University of Surrey’s BSc in Environment and Sustainability degree programme. Meet Charlotte, Emily, Tara, Diesha and Anouk As Surrey University Undergraduates of The Center of Environment and Sustainability, we have had the opportunity to travel to SouthWest Wales in the objectives of studying and investigating environmental regeneration. Our group of: … Continue reading From the Ground Up: Stories about Community Regeneration in South Wales

Restoring Landscapes: can sustainable harvesting of wild plants and fungi help to restore landscapes?

In the ‘Restoring Landscapes’ blog series, we are promoting knowledge exchange from restoration projects around the world. Wild plants and fungi have long provided food, medicine, and income for communities around the world, and underpinned multiple food, cosmetic and health supply chains. But could they also help restore degraded landscapes? A new toolkit developed through a partnership led by TRAFFIC is helping landscape restoration practitioners … Continue reading Restoring Landscapes: can sustainable harvesting of wild plants and fungi help to restore landscapes?

The potential of second-growth forests for bird diversity in a small holder landscape

Mareike Kortmann and co-authors share a summary about their latest study which focusses on the ability of sample coverage to impact diversity measures of bird communities in tropical lowland forests. Tropical old-growth forests are disappearing at an alarming rate, leading to concerning biodiversity loss. But amidst this global decline, some forest areas are also recovering. Second-growth forests—those that regenerate after agricultural use—may offer valuable contributions … Continue reading The potential of second-growth forests for bird diversity in a small holder landscape

Southwood Prize 2024: Winner announced for early career researcher award

Journal of Applied Ecology is happy to share that Agostina Torres is the winner of this year’s Southwood Prize! This annual award is given to the best article in the journal by an author at the start of their career. This year, Agostina was selected by the Senior Editors amid an impressive shortlist of 10 articles. Winner: Agostina Torres Research: Inverse priority effects: The order and timing of removal … Continue reading Southwood Prize 2024: Winner announced for early career researcher award

Natália Medeiros: Critical shortfalls for restoration of tropical grassy biomes

Shortlisted for the 2024 Southwood Prize Natália Medeiros explains their latest research into tropical grassy biomes, which involved reviewing the association of restoration techniques and degradation sources, and investigating the diversity of indicators used to monitor restoration outcomes. About the research Overview My shortlisted paper is about where and how ecological restoration of tropical open ecosystems occurs. We conducted a systematic review to map field … Continue reading Natália Medeiros: Critical shortfalls for restoration of tropical grassy biomes

Natália Medeiros: Deficiências críticas para a restauração de biomas gramíneas tropicais

Finalista do Prémio Southwood 2024 Natália Medeiros explica a sua mais recente investigação sobre biomas gramíneos tropicais, que envolveu a revisão da associação de técnicas de restauração e fontes de degradação, e a investigação da diversidade de indicadores usados para monitorizar os resultados da restauração. Sobre a pesquisa Visão geral Meu artigo pré-selecionado é sobre onde e como a restauração ecológica de ecossistemas tropicais ocorre. … Continue reading Natália Medeiros: Deficiências críticas para a restauração de biomas gramíneas tropicais

Remote sensing: A key to monitoring tropical forest restoration

Laura Vedovato introduces readers to a range of remote sensing tools, explaining how they can be applied to topical forests to monitor the effectiveness of restoration efforts. Read more in the original Review article. Introduction In recent years, global commitments to forest restoration, like the UN Decade on Restoration and the Global Biodiversity Framework, have highlighted the need for scalable, effective ways to track progress. … Continue reading Remote sensing: A key to monitoring tropical forest restoration

Restoring Landscapes: a community effort to restore the Solent’s seagrass

In the ‘Restoring Landscapes’ blog series, we are promoting knowledge exchange from restoration projects around the world. As part of Solent Seascape Project, the Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust and Project Seagrass are partnering to restore a combined total of seven hectares of seagrass beds. Seagrass meadows are internationally important habitats, serving as crucial nursery and spawning grounds for commercially important fish species, … Continue reading Restoring Landscapes: a community effort to restore the Solent’s seagrass