Projects
The numerus clausus in property law: an enemy of private environmental conservation? KU Leuven
The sustainability theme has meanwhile become omnipresent and is gaining more and more focus, mainly from a public (property) law perspective. Essential and often overlooked, however, is the question of what role private property law, and more particularly the right of ownership, can fulfill in this (fancy / hip) transition towards a more conscious use / occupation of space and the land together (and living on, under or above it). After all, ...
Socially innovative territories in the face of neo-extractivism: (Re)inventing nature conservation and communitarian development in Latin American and Peruvian Private Protected Areas KU Leuven
The PhD research is part of an international collaborative project funded by VLIR-UOS (Belgium). This project seeks to trigger the sustainable development potential of rural areas with high poverty levels and under the social, economic and environmental threats of extractive industries in the Global South. It aims to stimulate sustainable rural development in the North of Peru through socially innovative and community-based conservation in ...
Are Flemish natural areas sufficiently robust to adapt to climate change with respect to species of European and Flemish conservation priority? Research Institute for Nature and Forest
Species can react to a changing climate in 3 different ways:
1) Shifting with or extending the area to the appropriate climate zone
2) adapt to the new climate on the spot
3) local extinction
Threatened and/or habitat-typical species are often limited to nature reserves and are often not mobile enough to expand their ...
Plant conservation in a changing world: modelling range dynamics, climate adaptation, and effects of habitat fragmentation KU Leuven
Climate change can alter the physical and biological parameters of existing habitats, shifting environmental variables beyond the range for which native plant species are adapted. These changes compel plant species to either adapt to new conditions or migrate to areas where conditions remain suitable. Concurrently, habitat fragmentation reduces the amount of suitable habitat and impedes plant species' ability to migrate, thereby reducing the ...
Managing environmental pressures in temperate forests: Processbased modelling of understorey community dynamics to promote biodiversity conservation and ecosystem service provision Ghent University
Urbanisation, land use intensification, climate change and deposition of acidifying and eutrophying
pollutants have led to a decline of biodiversity across Europe. To halt or reverse this trend,
remaining natural and semi-natural ecosystems need to be managed well. This study aims at
understanding the influence of forest management on the response of temperate forests to these
pressures. The study ...
Plant root effects on erosion of sandy soils in a temperate climate. A trait-based methodology to select native plants for biological soil conservation measures KU Leuven
Soil erosion is a major problem leading to severe land degradation problems. To control these soil erosion processes, plant species can be used. Both above- and below-ground biomass can help to protect the soil. Plant roots can be very effective in stabilizing the soil against concentrated flow erosion and shallow mass movements. Most research on the erosion-reducing potential of plant roots was conducted on loamy soils and at present, ...