As of March 2023, I have joined Ecosystem Ecology Group at WSL as a PhD student working with Dr. Mark Anthony. The focus of my research is on examining how the response of total soil mycobiome will affect tree growth and death in forests. One of the main components of this study is ectomycorrhizal fungi. This work will provide a better insight into how mycorrhizal fungi and ultimately forest trees are impacted by shifting environmental conditions caused by climate change.

As a microbiologist at heart, my interest has always been to study plant-microbe interactions in different settings. I completed my Master’s degree in University of Helsinki in Forest pathology and mycology. Prior to my PhD, I was working in Rothamsted Research (UK), studying plant-microbe relationships in the agricultural field of research.

Contact me: artin.zarsav[AT]wsl{dot}ch

As of April 2024, I am a PhD student at the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow, and Landscape Research (WSL), co-supervised by Dr. Anthony at the University of Vienna.

My research will focus on how the total soil and foliar microbiome responds to climate warming and drought and how this response affects tree growth and ecosystem functions. This project aims to understand how the microbiome and the effects of climate change will affect the future development of European forests, and to improve our knowledge of how to manage these forests in the future.

Contact me: giulia{dot}burini[at]wsl{dot}ch

I started my doctoral journey in May 2024 with Dr. Mark Anthony at the 

University of Vienna. At the core of my research lies the exploration of symbiotic relationships within forest ecosystems, particularly focusing on tree endophytes, 

their impact on tree development, as well as their interplay with 

pathogens, and mycorrhizal fungi. Using ecological and 

microbiological methodologies, my work seeks to illuminate these 

interactions, offering insights into how they influence the health and 

resilience of forest environments. As an enthusiastic mycologist, my 

interest in this topic was driven by a lifelong fascination in fungi 

that has captivated me since childhood. I was completing my Master´s 

degree in ecology and evolution at ETH Zürich and working at the Swiss 

Federal Institute of Landscape Research (WSL) prior to my PhD.

Contact me: philipp.spiegel[AT]univie{dot}ac{dot}at

As of January, 2024, I am a PhD student and China Scholarship Council Visiting researcher in the Fungal Ecology Group of Mark Anthony at University of Vienna. My home institute is the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences. 

My research in Vienna focuses on understanding interactions between clonal plant reproduction, mycorrhizal networks, and invasion biology. 

Contact me: zhangyuanhao[at]ucas{dot}ac{dot}cn

My name is Christos and I come from Lemnos, Greece. I have a deep 

interest for life and subsequently science. I have come to terms with 

the limits that our nature has bestowed upon us, and that has made me 

determined to learn as much as I can and then share my findings back to 

the collection of our united knowledge.

Currently I am working on inter- and intra-specific species relationships 

between fungi and trees of European forests with a special interest 

on the impacts of drought. 

Contact me: a12127285[at]unet(dot)univie.ac.at