Valén Holle
Research interests:
My broad interest lies in applying models to deepen our understanding of large-scale ecological systems and their processes, particularly in response to the main drivers of biodiversity loss, and to derive implications for practical policy strategies. This includes, for instance, assessing the risks posed by invasive species or species associated with zoonotic diseases, as well as analysing changes in species distributions due to global change. I am also interested in advancing the methodological frameworks of models to enhance their accuracy and utility in ecological research and policy-making. My work to date has focused on quantifying different sources of methodological uncertainty in blacklisting potential Pacific plant invaders using species distribution models (SDMs), aiming to establish reliable blacklists as an effective decision-making tool to prevent biological invasions.
Válen Holle
Valén Holle
Campus Maulbeerallee
Universität Potsdam
Ökologie/Makroökologie
Maulbeerallee 3, Haus 3, Raum 1.13
14469 Potsdam
Project:
ZOE (Zoonoses Emergence across Degraded and Restored Forest Ecosystems)
ZOE is a 4-year EU project aimed at advancing the understanding of how ecosystem degradation and associated biodiversity loss affect the risk of zoonotic disease emergence. These links will be studied in Slovenia, Slovakia, Costa Rica and Guatemala, countries of important biodiversity hotspots that have experienced significant deforestation. Along a gradient of forest ecosystem degradation, biodiversity assessments will be conducted including geobotanic plant mapping, remote sensing-based GIS analysis of landscape structures, and targeted trapping of prototypic reservoirs and vectors of zoonotic diseases (rodents, ticks, and mosquitoes). My main contribution to the project involves synthesising the entire range of gathered data by examining the link between biodiversity loss and zoonotic disease risk and modelling and mapping risk areas for the emergence of rodent- and vector-borne diseases across our study regions. I will also contribute to generating forecasting risk maps based on different plausible land use change futures to support efficient monitoring schemes and early warning systems.
Academic career:
2023 – 2024: Research assistant in the Ecology / Macroecology group, University of Potsdam
2020 – 2023: M.Sc. in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation, University of Potsdam
2015 – 2020: B.Sc. in Ecology and Environmental Planning, Technical University of Berlin