Janelle Sylvester

RESTORATION & CONSERVATION of TROPICAL BIODIVERSITY

ABOUT ME

Page 1 of 6

I am currently completing my PhD at the University of Copenhagen while carrying out my research at the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) as a visiting researcher in Cali, Colombia. I hold joint master's degrees in tropical biodiversity and ecosystems with a specialization in tropical forest landscape restoration. I received my degree from the international Erasmus Mundus TROPIMUNDO Program, where I studied in Belgium, Malaysia and Italy. I have carried out conservation work in Amazonian wet forests (Ecuador) and Andean cloud forests (Peru); I have conducted research and biological surveys in premontane humid forests (Costa Rica), subtropical wet forests (Puerto Rico), mangroves (Malaysia), coral reefs (Malaysia), sea turtle nesting sites (Malaysia) and Texas woodlands.

My master's thesis compared seedling establishment limitation among three methods of tropical forest restoration in Costa Rica. My more recent work focuses on drivers of deforestation and land degradation in post-conflict Colombia and the role sustainable land use systems play in environmental peacebuilding. My career interests focus on taking a landscape approach to restoration and conservation. I strive to restore tropical biodiversity and ecosystem services by working at the landscape level and ensuring that restoration is balanced with the sustainable development of forest-dependent communities. I intend to accomplish this through an interdisciplinary career that combines research, environmental education and the development of sustainable land use practices.

Click for more