National network

This cluster project brings together a large team of forest researchers to tackle the very relevant and timely question of biodiversity functionality. The project is the result of a close cooperation of different research groups and organisations (partners). The project has established a unique and novel experimental approach, which will form the basis for long-term top quality research on forest ecosystems in Belgium. With the development of the experimental stands, scientists from a range of disciplines (forestry, biology, hydrology, ecophysiology, socio-economy, etc.) will be attracted to the network and be invited to participate in the field experiment. This will allow building a complementary view on the functional aspects of forest biodiversity. The truly interdisciplinary network will furthermore build bridges between science and policy.

The international TreeDivNetwork

The FORBIO project is part of the international TreeDiv network (www.treedivnet.ugent.be), a platform for similar research about the relationship between forest biodiversity and ecosystem functionality. The TreeDiv network can be considered the largest project on ecosystem research worldwide. The main goals are to share experience about setup and management of large-scale tree diversity experiments and to promote meta-analysis and cooperation for reports. The international network can also help attracting international top scientists to the Belgian research sites.

Within the international TreeDiv network, several research projects, similar to FORBIO, exist.
Click the squares in the map for a link to the local research projects.