sadf

The Ecology Group

In our research, we are combining field observations and experiments, remote sensing, and historical as well as online data sources with modelling techniques to infer impacts of environmental change on plant species distributions, diversity and performance.

Our preferred study system are alpine and arctic regions, because these relatively pristine areas allow for studying impacts of environmental change without too much direct confounding effects of human action. Furthermore, alpine and arctic regions are warming even faster than other areas on Earth, harbour disproportionately high biodiversity, and provide fundamental ecosystem services.Understanding past and predicting future changes of these ecosystem is therefore highly important to conserve global biodiversity, reach global sustainability commitments, and ensure ecosystem integrity with immediate relevance to humankind.


Are you interested in receiving regular ecology updates on research, events, jobs, etc.? Register to our mailing list by sending an email to ecology-request@maillist.unibas.ch with the subject “Subscribe”. In case of questions, please contact jonathan.vonoppen@unibas.ch.

Postdoc position in ecological modelling
Employment rate: 80-100% - Duration: 2 years - Starting date: February-April 2027

[10 Nov 2026] Fantastic news: Sabine's tenure was officially confirmed by the University Council! 

[09 Nov 2026]
Great to see our students' great work being acknowledged: Raphi's talk on 100 years of wilderness in the Swiss National Park won a Scientific Award at theAcademia Raetica congress, Myriam won the Best Master Prize of the Swiss Systematics Society and Leo's Masters thesis on vegetation change in alpine grassland was awarded by the German Botanical Society and the University of Basel. Congrats to all of you!

[05 Nov 2026]
Sophie became the first PhD graduate from the group - congratulations on your successful defence! 

[13 Aug 2026]
Our new project CLIMSUIT was funded by The Swiss Data Science Center!

A mountain landscape with a clear blue sky. In the foreground, rocks and sparse vegetation with some purple and orange flowers. In the background, a range of snow-capped mountains.

Sonja joined the BergBuchBrig festival and the Libernatur podcast to talk about how plants and animals move upslope as the mountains warm.

Wessely, J., …, von Büren, R.S., …, Wipf, S., … & Dullinger, S. (2026) Rising plant extinction rates on European mountain summits. Science, 393(6815). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00035-026-00373-3

Hausharter, J., …, von Büren, R.S., Wipf, S., … & Dullinger, S. (2026) Widespread thermophilization but weak link to climate warming in Europe's summit plant communities. Nature Ecology & Evolution. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-026-03150-x

Rosbakh, S., Rumpf, S., & Dullinger, S. (2026) Faster growing and more functionally diverse: global change alters functional trait composition of mountain plant communities in the European Alps. Ecography, e08561. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecog.08561

Contact & Address

University of Basel
Departement of Environmental Sciences
Research Group Ecology
Bernoullistrasse 32
4056 Basel
Switzerland

Franziska Grob / Administration:
Tel. +41 61 207 23 11
Monday - Thursday afternoons

To top