International Master in Applied Ecology

🎓🌿 As we reach the end of IMAE — now concluding after seven remarkable editions — we celebrate an exceptional season of master’s dissertation defenses.

✨ Five of our eight students have already defended their dissertations during the regular period, delivering outstanding presentations, solid science, and impressive results. Their hard work, resilience, and curiosity truly shone through.

📅 Two students will defend during the special period in September — and we are already looking forward to their incredible contributions.

🇩🇪 One student will defend at the University of Kiel — we wish them the very best for this important moment in their academic journey.

IMAE may be coming to an end, but its legacy continues through the scientists it helped shape, the research it inspired, and the global ecological challenges it empowered students to tackle.

Now it’s time to enjoy the summer, soak up some sun and raise a glass! See you in September! ⛱️ 😎 🍹

🎓✨ 𝗔𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗘𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 (𝗜𝗠𝗔𝗘)!

Last Friday, our students delivered their 𝐒𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐄𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐲, a key moment in their academic journey where each of them presented:
- 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐟 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐭 on their master’s dissertation topic,
- 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 guiding their work,
- and an initial outline of how they plan 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡 to test their working hypotheses.

There was even room to share some 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐬, showing that their scientific ideas are already taking shape in the field and in the lab.

The students are to be congratulated — they are now 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗴𝗼𝗮𝗹: 𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻! 🌱📚

For more details, feel free to visit the 𝐈𝐌𝐀𝐄 𝐰𝐞𝐛𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐞.

Excellent work by a former IMAE student, Elise Quigley! 🪱🪱

A cadeia de produção cientifica não para!

ʟᴇᴀᴄʜɪɴɢ ᴏꜰ ᴍɪᴄʀᴏᴘʟᴀꜱᴛɪᴄꜱ ᴇɴʜᴀɴᴄᴇᴅ ᴛʜʀᴏᴜɢʜ ᴄᴏᴍᴘʟᴇx ꜱᴏɪʟ ᴍᴇꜱᴏ- ᴀɴᴅ ᴍᴀᴄʀᴏꜰᴀᴜɴᴀʟ ᴄᴏᴍᴍᴜɴɪᴛʏ ᴛʀᴀɴꜱᴘᴏʀᴛ

🔎 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2026.127638

Excelente colaboração do investigador E3G, José Paulo Sousa com o grupo de Maria Briones, da Universidade de Vigo, tendo uma ex-aluna do International Master in Applied Ecology como primeira autora.

🌍🪱 Os organismos do solo podem acelerar a passagem de microplásticos para camadas mais profundas — e potencialmente até ao aquífero.

A publicação na Environmental Pollution analisou a forma como os micro-plásticos se deslocam em solos agrícolas quando diferentes comunidades de fauna do solo estão presentes — com especial destaque para minhocas (três grupos ecológicos) e colêmbolos (Collembola). Utilizando colunas de solo e eventos e simulações de “chuva”, foi observado que:

• A água, por si só, consegue transportar micro-plásticos pela coluna de solo e para o lixiviado.
• Minhocas anécicas aumentaram significativamente a lixiviação de microplásticos.
• A maior lixiviação ocorreu quando vários grupos de minhocas e colêmbolos estavam presentes — sugerindo que comunidades complexas e realistas do solo podem amplificar o transporte vertical.

⚠️ A migração de micro-plásticos para as camadas mais profundas pode aumentar o risco de contaminação ao longo do perfil do solo, levantando preocupações para a saúde do solo e para a qualidade da água subterrânea.

Another week in the field at the Monte Barata Biodiversity Station (Tejo International Natural Park)! 🌿

We’ve just wrapped up an exciting and productive week full of hands-on fieldwork and training in ecological methods. Activities covered a wide range of biodiversity assessment and monitoring techniques, including:

🪱 Soil ecology – sampling soil macrofauna and mesofauna using soil cores and pitfall traps.
🐭 Small mammal monitoring – installing and checking traps.
🦋 Invertebrate biodiversity – sweep netting and suction sampling of flying and vegetation arthropods.
🦇 Vertebrate ecology – applying telemetry & GPS tracking, camera traps, and Audiomoths for bats and other fauna.
🌿 Plant and vegetation surveys – vegetation sampling and species identification.
📊 Ecological data collection – distance sampling, territory mapping, point counts, and assembling ecological networks to study biotic interactions.

Next comes laboratory week, where students will learn and develop laboratory techniques applied to ecology. 🔬

A huge thank you to the Monte Barata Biodiversity Station staff, to the collaboration with Quercus, and also to Mr. Vítor and his team for the delicious and energizing meals that keep everyone going through these intense field days! 🙌

📚✨ to our September defenses!

In September, we celebrated the last two master’s defenses of the 2023-2025 edition — and what an amazing finish to the school year! 🌲🍄🌳

🎓 Elisabeth Steiner presented her dissertation “Assessing Soil Health Variability in Oak and Pine Forests through Macrofauna Invertebrate Community”.

🎓 Lauren Greene defended her work “Tree species and wildfire as determinants of macrofungal communities in mountain forests”.

Both Elisabeth and Lauren did an outstanding job and received excellent grades for their impressive work.

Congratulations to both on these well-deserved achievements! 👏🎉

🌿 Field Course in Mediterranean Ecosystems – Week in Action! 🌿

This week marks the beginning of our Field Course in Mediterranean Ecosystems, taking place at the Monte Barata Biodiversity Station, within the Tejo Internacional Natural Park.

Until Friday, IMAE students from different master’s programs will explore and learn a variety of field methods and ecological techniques through a multidisciplinary and hands-on approach.

🪱 Today’s activities focused on soil fauna sampling and setting up traps for small mammals — an exciting start to a week full of discovery and collaboration!

This field course is organized in partnership with Quercus – National Association for Nature Conservation.

Stay tuned and follow our journey! 🌍📸

📢 Final Call: Apply Now for the International Master in Applied Ecology! 🌱🌍
Don’t miss your chance to join a fantastic joint-degree programme offered by the University of Coimbra 🇵🇹 and Kiel University 🇩🇪, in collaboration with a renowned international consortium 🗺️

⏳ Applications for the 2025–2027 edition are open — but hurry!
📅 Third and final call: 1–12 September.

✨ Why choose IMAE?
🌿 Hands-on learning in diverse ecosystems: from Mediterranean landscapes in Portugal to tropical environments in Brazil.
🌎 A global consortium including institutions in Europe, the UK, Canada, and Brazil.
🔬 A rich combination of theory, field excursions, stakeholder engagement and a plenty of research thesis opportunities.

⚠️ Deadline: 12 September 2025 – don’t wait!

✅ Ready to apply?
🔗 Visit the How to Apply page
📑 Submit via the University of Coimbra’s InforEstudante platform
🛂 Start your visa process early to avoid delays

🎓 Master's Defense Accomplished!

Last Friday, Paula Feldmann, a master's student from the IMAE program, successfully defended her dissertation titled "The forest within the forest: Restoration of Galapagos host-epiphyte networks." 🌿🌿🍃

Paula delivered an excellent presentation and defense, impressing the examination committee and earning the highest possible grade! 🌟👏🏼

Her work highlights the importance of ecological interactions in forest restoration and offers valuable insights for the conservation of the unique ecosystems of the Galápagos Islands.

✅ With Paula's defense, two students have now successfully completed their IMAE journey — but we still have four more dissertations to defende!! Stay tuned for more! 🎓🌍

Congratulations, Paula, on this remarkable achievement! 👏🌿🌺