Research

The research activities of the PhD program are conducted across various scientific disciplinary fields, with the aim of training highly qualified professionals. These professionals are expected to critically manage the implementation of national and EU directives concerning environmental analysis, delve into methodological aspects related to these themes, and independently design and conduct environmental research from a multidisciplinary perspective. The research topics align with ERC sectors, including terrestrial, community, and population ecology; biogeochemistry, biogeochemical cycles, environmental chemistry; soil science; biodiversity; biology across all kingdoms of living organisms; toxicology; agricultural, animal, fishery, forestry, biochemical, and industrial biosciences; environmental biotechnology and remediation; and animal and agricultural plant production, soil biology, and crop plant biology. It also covers molecular genetics (genomics, transcriptomics, bioinformatics), as well as environmental modeling and simulation related to climate change studies.  

Moreover, the PhD program’s goals, training activities, and research topics are closely aligned with the missions of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), particularly ‘Digitalization, Innovation, Competitiveness, Culture, and Tourism’ (Mission 1) and ‘Green Revolution and Ecological Transition’ (Mission 2). All faculty members of the PhD board are engaged in research that includes national and international themes and collaborations. This aspect offers doctoral candidates opportunities for training and research at other institutions, both nationally and internationally, and helps them establish networks with other researchers, which could be beneficial for their future careers in research or other professional domains.

  • Terrestrial ecology, land cover change 
  • Biogeochemistry, biogeochemical cycles, environmental chemistry 
  • Soil science
  • Ecology (theoretical and experimental; population, species and community level) 
  • Biodiversity, conservation biology, conservation genetics, invasion biology 
  • Evolutionary biology: evolutionary ecology and genetics, co-evolution 
  • Environmental and marine biology 
  • Environmental toxicology at the population and ecosystems level 
  • Microbial ecology and evolution 
  • Agriculture related to animal husbandry, dairying, livestock raising 
  • Agriculture related to crop production, soil biology and cultivation, applied plant biology
  • Population biology, population dynamics, population genetics 
  • Genetics, Genomics, Bioinformatics and Systems Biology