The
Radboud Institute for Biological and Environmental Sciences (RIBES) aims to perform world-leading research in order to understand the response of the natural environment to human impact. Researchers within RIBES are working on the overarching research mission ’Towards Healthy Ecosystems’, with four focus areas: I. Macronutrients and chemicals of emerging concern, II. Physical conditions: understanding responses and adaptation mechanism to stressors, III. Biodiversity decline and recovery of ecological communities, and IV. Mitigation of greenhouse gasses. Research at RIBES encompasses three major groups of organisms (microorganisms, plants and animals) and spans nearly all levels of biological organisation.
The institute is organised in four departments: Ecology; Plant & Animal Biology; Environmental Science; and Microbiology. The Plant & Animal Biology department is dedicated to advancing the understanding and improvement of plant & animal development, growth and functioning in relation to the environment, by combining quantitative experimental, computational and theoretical approaches.