The BEC Group develops and applies state-of-the art ecological knowledge, methods, and tools to understand ecosystem functioning, biodiversity change, and feedbacks in coupled social-economic-ecological systems. We use this knowledge to develop management options to achieve biodiversity and sustainability goals
The BEC group is the institute’s hub of applied ecology and conservation research. The group provides the needed ecological and conservation insights to help IIASA promote institutional, demographic, behavioral, technological, social, and economic changes that achieve development goals sustainably.
The group’s key research areas include:
- Ecological responses to natural and anthropogenic drivers of change, for example, land and water management and climate change.
- How to prioritize conservation efforts to maximize positive impacts at scales from local to global (e.g., habitat restoration and conservation, and species management plans).
- How species and ecosystems contribute to selected ecosystem services and human wellbeing.
Models, tools, datasets
Integrated model for BiodIversity distribution projectionS (ibis.iSDM)
Plant Functional Acclimation and Trait Evolution (PlantFATE)
Projects
Designing a resilient and coherent Trans-European Network for Nature and People (NaturaConnect)
European Union Biodiversity and Climate strategies Assessment (BIOCLIMA)
Streamlining participatory approaches and agent-based models to explore ideas of fairness at the food-water-biodiversity(FWB) nexus (fairSTREAM)
Resilience of Ecosystem Services provided by Intact and Sustainably managed Terrestrial ecosystems (RESIST)
Staff
Chloe Dawson
Guest Research Scholar (BEC)
George Monbiot
Guest Senior Research Scholar (BEC)
Adrienne Etard
Research Scholar (BEC)
Carla Freund
Project Officer (BEC)
News
05 May 2026
Amazon understory forests show short-term boost in CO₂ uptake – but this comes at a cost
Tropical forests are one of the planet's most important carbon sinks – often also called "the lungs of the Earth". But their future in a high-CO₂ world remains uncertain. IIASA researchers contributed to a new study, which suggests even small understory trees in the Amazon may initially buffer climate change more strongly. Their long-term capacity to store carbon could, however, be restricted by nutrient availability, highlighting the vulnerability of these ecosystems under future climate conditions.
12 January 2026
Trees4Adapt project to address risks from climate change and biodiversity loss through tree-based solutions
Researchers from the IIASA Biodiversity and Natural Resources Program are involved in the recently launched EU-funded Trees4Adapt project. The project focuses on tree-based solutions for climate adaptation, aiming to strengthen Europe’s adaptation and resilience to climate change in a way that supports people and nature.
24 October 2025
CRAES delegation visits IIASA to explore collaboration on environmental research
In October, IIASA welcomed a high-level delegation from the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences (CRAES) for an in-depth exchange on advancing systems analysis and environmental solutions. The visit marked an important step toward strengthening collaboration between IIASA and CRAES on global and regional sustainability challenges.
Events
Comenius University, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Bratislava
IIASA – Comenius University Joint Seminar
Focus
31 October 2025
From YSSP to Guest Research Scholar: My journey with IIASA
What begins as a summer research experience can sometimes grow into a lasting collaboration. In this blog post, Jaewon Son reflects on her path from participating in the 2024 IIASA Young Scientists Summer Program (YSSP), to returning as a Guest Research Scholar with the Equity and Justice Research Group.
29 October 2024
Biodiversity COP16 in Colombia: Time to deliver
Who lives up to the promises made two years ago? Not many. Only about 35 countries have a strategy on how to meet biodiversity targets, says Piero Visconti, Biodiversity, Ecology, and Conservation (BEC) Research Group Leader at IIASA. But in 2022, at COP15 in Montreal, the countries pledged to preserve 30 percent of the planet’s land and seas. At the same time, rich countries also don’t live up to their promise to help the poor with financing. This COP needs to show results.
Publications
Etard, A. , Jung, M. , & Visconti, P. (2026). Risk to European birds from collisions with wind-energy facilities. Biological Conservation 319 e111875. 10.1016/j.biocon.2026.111875.
Dragonetti, C., Thuiller, W., Guéguen, M., Renaud, J., Visconti, P. , & Di Marco, M. (2026). Impact of global change on the distribution of mountain mammals and birds. Conservation Biology e70339. 10.1111/cobi.70339. (In Press)
Mailes, R., Cintra, B.B.L., Bergamin, R.S., Graham, L., Luna, E., Heard, M.S., Matthews, T.J., MacKenzie, A.R., Brienen, R., & Esquivel-Muelbert, A. (2026). Risk factors of ash dieback disease and consequences for carbon storage in natural ash populations. Forest Ecology and Management 610 e123575. 10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123575.
Davoli, M., Jung, M. , Visconti, P. , Rondinini, C., D´Alessio, A., & Pacifici, M. (2026). Improving the Classification of Wildlife Conservation Status to Support Nature Protection in the European Union. Conservation Letters 19 (3) e70039. 10.1111/con4.70039.
Nepal, P., Waldron, A., Prestemon, J.P., Gopalakrishna, T., & Jung, M. (2026). Economic costs of global forest protection may be overstated. Nature Communications 10.1038/s41467-026-73569-0. (In Press)
Tudge, S., Etard, A. , Harris, Z.M., De Palma, A., & Jung, M. (2026). Regional land use and land-use intensity effects on vertebrate biodiversity across Europe identified using species distribution models. Landscape Ecology 10.1007/s10980-026-02379-y. (In Press)
Hyman, J., Sonter, L.J., McDonald-Madden, E., Watson, J.E.M., Mervine, E.M., Bull, J.W., Dawson, C., Lloyd, T.J., Luckeneder, S., Maron, M., Mendonca Severiano, B., Raymond, S., Schlacher, T.A., Sreekar, R., Valenta, R.K., Visconti, P. , Werner, T.T., & Northey, S.A. (2026). Growing nickel supply from the tropics threatens priority conservation areas. Nature Ecology & Evolution 10.1038/s41559-026-03068-4. (In Press)
Gaget, E., Jung, M. , Lewis, M. , Hofhansl, F. , Graham, L., Warren-Thomas, E., & Visconti, P. (2026). Reviewing and benchmarking ecological modelling practices in the context of land use. Ecography 2026 (5) e07745. 10.1002/ecog.07745.
Martini, J., Fuß, T., Brasseur, M.V., Oester, R., Talluto, L.H. , Walther, F., Wilfling, O., Zizka, V.M.A., Singer, G., & Vitecek, S. (2026). Seasonal Metacommunity Processes of Benthic Invertebrates in the Vjosa/Aoos River. Ecology and Evolution 16 (4) e73307. 10.1002/ece3.73307.
Martins, N.P., Fuchslueger, L., Lugli, L.F., Valverde-Barrantes, O.J., Norby, R.J., Hartley, I.P., Aleixo, I., Baccaro, F.B., Brum, B.N.S., Silva de Souza, C.C., Cola, C.M., Di Ponzio, R., Damasceno, A., Domingues, T.F., Ferrer, V.R., Fleischer, K., Garcia, S., Guedes, A., Hofhansl, F. , Lapola, D.M., Menezes, J.G., Moraes, A.C.M., Miron, A.C., de Oliveira, L.R., Palheta, C., Pereira, I.S., Martins, M.P., Ribeiro, G., Schmeisk-Rosa, J., Rammig, A., Santana, F.D., Santos, Y.R., Silva, L.S., Takeshi T. Portela, B., Ushida, G., & Quesada, C.A. (2026). Amazonian understory forests change phosphorus acquisition strategies under elevated CO2. Nature Communications 17 (1) e3740. 10.1038/s41467-026-72098-0.