Academic Background

2021 -  2026       Department of Applied Biology. Universidad Miguel Hernández, Elche, Spain.  Senior Researcher. Programa para el apoyo a personas investigadoras con talento (Plan GenT / CIDEGENT), Spain.

2019 - 2020        Department of Conservation Biology. Estación Biológica de Doñana, C.S.I.C. Seville, Spain. Juan de la Cierva Postdoctoral Researcher (landscape ecology). 

2017 - 2018        Universidad Miguel Hernández, Elche, Spain. Senior researcher (remote sensing and animal ecology)

2015 - 2016       Carnegie Institution for Science – Department of Global Ecology Asner Laboratory at Stanford University, California (USA)  and CAO laboratory at Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry, Hilo, Hawaii (USA). Postdoctoral researcher (remote sensing and forest ecology). PI: Gregory P. Asner

2014                      Stanford University – Department of Biology. Stanford, California (USA). Postdoctoral researcher (remote sensing and ecology). PI: Rodolfo Dirzo

2009 - 2013       Ph.D. Ecology. University of São Paulo – USP (Brazil). Landscape Ecology Laboratory. Thesis title: Remote sensing of forest biophysical structure in Atlantic Rainforest over steep slopes. http://www.teses.usp.br/teses/disponiveis/41/41134/tde-25062013-105829/pt-br.php

2005 - 2007       M.Sc. Agronomy, Ethnobotany and Ethnoecology. São Paulo State University - UNESP (Brazil). Title: Traditional use of native plant species in tropical forests, Brazil. http://www.athena.biblioteca.unesp.br/exlibris/bd/bla/33004064014P0/2007/barbosa_jm_me_botfca.pdf

2000 - 2004      B.Sc. Biology.  University of Uberlândia (Brazil).

Other professional positions

2008 - current      Independent consultant on Environmental Assessments for Private companies such as Tragsa (Spain), ARCADIS Tetraplan, VALE do Rio Doce, AMBEV, Klabin S.A, Environmental Wise Paths Cons. Amb. (Brazil). Projects related to Geographic Information System; Remote Sensing; Environmental Risk Assessment; Restoration ecology; Landscape Ecology

2011 - 2011         Visiting Scholar at University Miguel Hernández (Spain) and Alicante University (Spain)

2007-2009           Assistant Professor at Anhanguera University (Brazil). Ecology and Botany courses. 

Research projects

1. Global change, socioecological systems and movement ecology: a large-scale spatial approach to the role of grazing systems, climate and scavenging processes. This project focuses on how traditional livestock practices will respond to long-term changes in the environment and, at the same time, explores the ecological and social consequences arising from these changes on the production systems, the vertebrate primary consumers dependent on them and on the ecosystem services they provide to stakeholders. Subproject 1 addresses large-scale objectives (Iberian Peninsula) and focuses on transhumance and how this system "in motion" responds to environmental (e.g. climate) and social changes and how these changes can have an impact on migration patterns and the use of space at the same scale by large specialized scavenger birds. Subproject 2 focuses specifically on the mountain biome (Pyrenees) and studies the interaction between extensive livestock practices and carrying capacity for scavengers as well as on the effects of global change on the agro-pastoral biome (shrub encroachment). 2021-2025.    

2. I have combined multi-temporal remote sensing data (LiDAR and MODIS) with annual rainfall gridded maps, from 1920 to 2012, to answer two questions: (1) Do long-term rainfall declines affect tropical forest structure and photosynthetic function? (2) What are the relative effects of short- and long-term drying trends in photosynthetic function and forest structure? 

3. Mapping plant species and forest primary productivity with high-resolution imaging spectroscopy (2015). Hawaii, USA. I am looking for environmental controls on the spread of invasive plants. Gregory Asner – Carnegie Institution for Science; Flint Hughes - Forest Service – USDA; Tracy Johnson - Forest Service – USDA.

4.     Mapping species interaction using high-resolution imaging spectroscopy (2014). California, USA. I used airborne hyperspectral data to map mistletoes infestation on oak trees. Rodolfo Dirzo – Stanford University; Gregory Asner – Carnegie Institution.

5.     Forest aboveground biomass of Atlantic Rainforests using remote sensing data. I evaluated how landscape structure and configuration determines the capacity of Atlantic Rainforest fragments to stock carbon (collaboration with Marisa Dantas Bittencourt – University of São Paulo; and Jean Paul Metzger – University of São Paulo). Funded by CAPES. 2009-2014. 

6.     Allometric equations to estimate forest biomass in Atlantic tropical forests (collaboration with Dr. Cristina Adams). Funded by FAPESP.

7.     Impacts of invasive plant species in Fernando de Noronha Island, Brazil. Funded by Fundação O Boticario. 2012. I used geostatistical approaches to understand spatial distribution of Leucena leucocephala (a tree invasion specie) in Archipelago of Fernando de Noronha, Brazil (collaboration with Dr. Alexandre Adalardo and Thayná Mello)

8.     Restoration of riparian forests. Funded by Ambev. 2007-2008.

9.     Ethnobotany of traditional communities living in areas of tropical forest. Funded by CNPQ 470276/2006-1 and SP/ FAPESP 04/14375-7. 2005-2007

10.     Floristic survey in Brazilian savanna region (Cerrado). Funded by Energy Company of Minas Gerais State –CEMIG (Brazil). 2004

Research grants

2021 - 2024         Senior Researcher. Programa para el apoyo a personas investigadoras con talento (Plan GenT / CIDEGENT), Spain.

2019 - 2020         Post-doc fellowship. Juan de la Cierva Postdoctoral Researcher (Spanish State Research Agency)

2018                     Senior Researcher (contract)

2015 - 2016         Post-doc fellowship. Carnegie Institution for Science – Grant from United States Department of Agriculture. 2 year.

2014                   Post-doc fellowship. Grant from Science without borders (CNPQ/CAPES). 1 year. Brazilian Ministry of Education.

2009 - 2013         Ph.D. fellowship. Brazilian Ministry of Education. 4 years

2011                    Visiting scholar. University of Alicante (Spain). Santander Bank and Brazilian Ministry of Education. 3 months

2011                    Visiting scholar. Miguel Hernandez University (Spain). Santander Bank and Brazilian Ministry of Education. 5 months

2006-2008           Master fellowship. Brazilian Ministry of Education and FAPESP. São Paulo State University – UNESP (Brazil). 2 years.

Referee in scientific journals

- Ecology (ESA)

- Forest Ecology and Management (Elsevier)

- Remote Sensing (MDPI)

- International Journal of Remote Sensing (Taylor and Francis)

Experience

·       Programing in R (and basic knowledge on Java, SQLite);

·       Experience in GIS and remote sensing software (including, but not restricted to, ArcGis, ENVI, IDRISI, Quantum GIS)

·       Experience in processing airborne and satellite imagery (coarse and high resolution)

·       Experience with landscape ecology tools, such as Fragstats, CONEFOR, and others

·       Experience in statistical models in ecology and geospatial statistics (spatial autocorrelation, kriging, etc.)

·       Experience with field data collection for ecological research

·       Languages (and level): Portuguese (native), Spanish (full professional proficiency), English (full professional proficiency).