Emiru Birhane

Professor in Ecology, Mekelle University
I am a professor in restoration ecology at the department of Land resource management and environmental protection, Mekelle University. I have a PhD in Forest Ecology and Management from Wageningen University in The Netherlands; MSc degree in Farm Forestry from Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Sweden; and Bsc degree in forest science from Alemaya University of Agriculture, Ethiopia. I have an extensive academic and practical knowledge in forestry, ecology and management and soil quality among numerous other related fields.I used to lecture different courses in Mekelle University to Bsc. MSc. and PhD students at lecturer, assistant professor, associate professor and professor level in the areas of ecology, mycorrhizal ecology, forestry, natural resources, Ecological methods, research methods, scientific methods and other related courses for the last 20+ years. I thought PhD courses such as dryland ecology and restoration, advanced statistical methods (Ecological methods), advanced soil microbiology and scientific research writing. Msc level courses include forest ecology and management, statistical methods, environmental science, biodiversity and ecosystem functions, research methods and Agroforestry. I have also thought courses in ecology, agroforestry, forestry, biodiversity and dryland resource management at Bsc level.

I have more than 20 years of experience with research in rural areas in developing countries and has done research in Ethiopia, East Africa, Europe and Asia since 2001. This includes establishment of research lab in soil ecology and dry forest permanent plots in restored areas and remnant dry Afromontane forests. I founded the Soil ecology lab in 2015, a lab that validates mycorrhizal ecology and scale up local knowledge for sustainable development in Africa.I have long experience with field experiments and has strong skills in ecological methods and ecological impact analysis. I am recognized as a leading expert on restoration issues in Ethiopia, on which I have published more scientific papers than any other researcher has compared to the research facilities and available funds.

I have published more than 120articles in peer reviewed reputable journals, 4 books, 20 book chapters, conducted more than 36 consultancy and community service, participated in more than 60 different conferences and seminars. I have advised more than 79 Msc. students and advising and co-advising more than 28 PhD students. I won and coordinated 22 Research projects in the area of Ecology, forest science and restoration. I have been the PI and coordinator of 4 internationally funded projects (Sustainable forest management, Tree youth right, Tree for food security II, CIRCLE), several nationally funded projects and a consortium member to several projects. I was a post-doc researcher at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), Norway from February 2015-February 2018. I have also completed another Post-doc research for the open society project-ACCAI-IIB (May 2018-September 2018). I was active in several community service activities and consultancy services.I worked as a national and international consultant/expert for CGIAR (ICRAF, ILRI, CIFOR), international organizations (UNDP, GIZ, UNIDO, FAO) and different sectors in Ethiopia such as the Ministry of Agriculture, Commission of environment, forest and climate change, Ministry of science and higher education, Forest and environment research institute, Ethiopian institute of agricultural research and others related to agriculture and natural resource in Ethiopia. I worked as a restoration consultant for the Bee research in Saudi Arabia. I have a vast experience in capacity building, risk assessment and management, and project design and implementation in the field of Ecology and Restorations of degraded lands. I served as a consultant in Forest Management for UNDP, Ethiopia.I am known to develop and review curriculum for different universities in Africa. I am also good in networking and linking national and international stakeholders working on landscape restoration and ecosystem services. I used to involve in disseminating research outputs to local communities in collaboration with sector offices. I prepared different manuals, policy briefs and consultancy reports in the area of forestry and natural resources.

My strong and significant involvement in different research, publication and project activities enabled me to serve as an editor in chief, editor and reviewer to different disciplinary, multidisciplinary and professional based journals. I used to assume different administrative positions related to academic and research. I served as a director of the institute of climate and society, editor in chief of the journal of the drylands, head of research and community service of the college of agriculture and natural resources, coordinator of the academic complaint handling committee, chair of staff of promotion at Mekelle University, and practical attachment coordinator at Mekelle University

I am a member and chair of different professional societies. I am elected as a president of the Tigray university scholars association (TUSA) recently. I am a president of the forest society of Ethiopia Tigray branch. I am member of AFRINOM (African network on mycorrhiza), Ethiopian Forestry society, Society for conservation Biology (SCB), Association for Tropical Biology Conservation (ATBC), African Forest Forum (AFF), Society for Applied microbiology (SFAM), Forest Ecology Group and Ethiopian flora network.
I have been active in social Medias and mainstream Medias to convey academic, research and community service activities