UvA - Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, Netherlands

The Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED) of the University of Amsterdam is a multidisciplinary research institute with a mission to increase insight into the functioning of ecosystems in all their complexity. The section Population Biology is a research group with ample experience in experimental studies and modelling of interactions between populations (predator-prey, pathogen-host, herbivore-plant) and within food webs, with the general research theme being ‘Population Dynamics and Evolution in Multitrophic Systems’. This research group has special expertise in the physiology and ecology of mites and insects, as well as in the study of plant-vector-pathogen interactions. The section has a long track record of supervision of PhD students and PostDocs, both from the Netherlands and abroad. The institute offers an international research environment and has excellent research facilities, including several state-of-the art laboratories, greenhouses and growth chambers.

Role in the project

The role of the UvA in this project is to assess the impact of functional biodiversity on pest control in the cropping systems at several experimental research stations, together with the BU Greenhouse Horticulture. This work includes sample analyses for arthropod diversity measurements, predation capacity tests and experiments to evaluate soil microbial mediated effects on above ground pests.