Climate is changing, causing warming temperatures and changes in precipitation and snow cover. High latitude ecosystems are typically temperature limited, and thus considered to be especially sensitive to climate warming. The most dramatic changes are to be expected in winter conditions. Our team studies how terrestrial ecosystems respond to changing climate conditions, especially drought and freezing stress, and how ecosystems, in turn, affect climate e.g. by acting as carbon sink and aerosol source.
Ecosystems mediate the exchange of material and energy between the soil and the atmosphere, and are thus crucial components of the critical zone, i.e. the outer skin of the Earth. The critical zone and ecosystems within provide the life-sustaining resources and are increasingly impacted by human actions and thus it is crucial to study the interactions between ecosystems and climate. The team works in the Institute of Atmospheric and Earth System Research (INAR) at the University of Helsinki.