Justyna Giejsztowt |
Post-Doctoral Researcher and International Fellow
Disturbance Ecology, Bayreuth Center of Ecology and Environmental Research (BayCEER) University of Bayreuth, Germany |
Hi! My name is Justyna. I am an early career ecologist with a focus on global environmental change. I'm interested in understanding the effects of interactions between stressors -- such as climate change, invasive species and human use of the landscape -- on ecological systems and particularly mountain plants. In my post-doctoral position at the University of Bayreuth (in the Disturbance Ecology team with Anke Jentsch), I have been increasingly focusing on extreme weather events. have also started getting to know plants that live below the tree line. I spend a lot of my time in the field on experimental and observational studies (like I am on the right-- in the European Alps). Often, I combine field results with insights from bigger datasets or with statistical modelling techniques such as Species Distribution Models (SDM). I enjoy experimenting with new methodologies as well as novel combinations of existing ones. I graduated with a PhD in 2019. My doctoral studies focused on the interactive effects of climate change and invasive species pressure on alpine plant communities. I worked with Julie Deslippe, at Victoria University of Wellington, and Aimée Classen, at the University of Vermont. My studies took place in the unique landscape of Tongariro National Park in New Zealand, which is very close to my heart. You'll see photos of this beautiful place all over this website. My studies probed how aspects of this ecosystem might behave in a future that likely includes both a changing climate and continuing invasion pressure: What will changing interactions with invaders mean for native species' distributions under future climates? How will climate change augment the impact of invasive species on native plant-pollinator interactions? What do synergisms between climate change and plant invasions mean for plant species richness across spatial scales? My research has involved many avenues outside of my core interests. In 2013, I completed my Master's Degree in Applied Ecology. My thesis investigated links between population genetics, phylogeography and ecological niche in an alpine plant. The work was supervised by Andreas Tribsch at the Paris Londron Univeristy in Salzburg, Austria. This Erasmus Mundus programme was funded by the European Union, and took me to study at five different universities in European countries. My research has also led me to wear many different hats. During my career in science I have worked in Integrated Pest Management (agricultural systems), have contributed to high-school textbooks, and worked in containment facilities focused on biocontrol agents -- just to name a few. In the near future I will be contributing to a project researching the effects of semiochemicals on mammalian behaviour with Michael Jackson at the University of Canterbury (New Zealand).
Take a look at what I've been up to most recently by reading about some of the projects I am currently involved in on the research tab of this website. If you're interested in my work, I'd love to hear from you. You'll find my contact details below. |
[email protected]
[email protected] Disturbance Ecology Bayreuth Center of Ecology and Environmental Research (BayCEER) University of Bayreuth, Germany |