The PERL lab keeps growing

This month has just started off with several new incorporations in our team!

To start with, we have 3 new master’s students: Jolan Wicht, Maxwell Bergstrom and Héloïse Sandoz. Jolan -who is working with PhD student Thibaut Juillard- will be exploring the photosynthesis temperature acclimation of native vs introduced evergreen plants from an Insubric ecosystem of Ticino, Switzerland. Also led by Thibaut, Maxwell will be carrying out his thesis on the physiological response and recovery of an invasive palm species to reduced soil moisture. On the other hand, Héloïse -who is doing her thesis in collaboration with Agroscope- will focus on the adaptability of fodder tree species in an agroforestry system along a climatic gradient.

In addition, we are lucky to have with us Patrick Favre, a new civilist coming with a solid background in biology and expertise in electronics, who is helping us to set up multiple fieldwork sensor devices.

The most recent of the incorporations, Dr Margaux Didion, is starting a postdoc looking at the acclimation of two common deciduous tree species (beech and oak) to chronic warmer and drier conditions, tackling the effects on the stomatal apparatus.

And just to finish, Dr Christoph Bachofen -postdoc in PERL since 2020- is starting his new position in our lab as a Scientist, focusing on urban ecology.

We give all of them a warm welcome to our lab!