Institute of Ecology, Evolution and Diversity

The Institute of Ecology, Evolution and Diversity currently comprises 18 departments and is part of the Faculty of Biological Sciences at Goethe University Frankfurt am Main. Through numerous joint and adjunct professorships, the institute maintains particularly close collaboration with the Senckenberg Society for Nature Research, the Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre, the Institute for Social-Ecological Research, and the UFZ Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research.

The research focus of the Institute of Ecology, Evolution and Diversity lies in the interactions between organisms and their environment, the assessment and explanation of biological diversity, and the impacts of global change. To investigate animals, plants, and biological communities in the field and in controlled laboratory experiments, the institute applies a broad range of methodological approaches. These include, among others, field and aquatic biological methods, (eco-)physiological techniques, morphological and systematic analyses, molecular biological and phylogeographic approaches, evolutionary genetics, and ecotoxicological methods.

The overarching goal of our research is to contribute to the documentation, analysis, and conservation of biological diversity (biodiversity) on Earth. Research topics range from questions of human evolution and environmental stressors to the origins of plant and fungal diversity in tropical ecosystems. Basic and applied research complement one another and foster strong networking among our research groups within interdisciplinary research collaborations both within and beyond the university.