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Name: Aster Gebrekirstos Afwork

Title: Dr

Duty station: 

The World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF)

UN Avenue, Gigiri,

P.O. Box 30677 – 00100, Nairobi, KENYA

E-mail: A.gebrekirstos@cgiar.org; agebrekirstos@yahoo.com

Websites: www.worldagroforestrycentre.org

Mobile: +254 73190584

And

 Georg-August-Universität Göttingen

Centre for Tropical and Subtropical Agriculture and Forestry (CeTSAF),

Busgenweg 1

D-37077 Göttingen

Mobile: 004915228803502

Fax: +49-9131-85 22013

Profession:  Researcher 

Area of specialization:

  • Dendrochronology (tree ring analysis, stable isotopes and plant-climate interactions). 
  • Plant ecophysiology (plant water relations, application of stable isotopes to the study of plant eco-physiological processes and global climate changes)
  • Tropical forest ecology and management (effects and consequences of global climate change on biodiversity and livelihoods)
  • Watershed management,  Agroforestry,  reforestation and restoration of degraded lands

Qualifications and experience: 

Dr. Gebrekirstos has studied her BSc in Forestry at Alemaya University in Ethiopia. She won the Netherlands Fellowship Program for MSc study in Wageningen Univ. (1996-1998) and German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for a PhD study in Gottingen  Univ, Germany (2001-2005). Prior to that, she worked as Research technician and Graduate Assistant at the Wood Utilisation Research Centre and at Alemaya University, respectively.  After her MSc, she worked as a lecturer at Debub University Wondo Genet College of Forestry. From 2006-2008, she had a Post Doc position in the department of Biophysics and Biochemistry at Umeå Univ, Sweden. Currently, she is Post Doctoral Fellow at ICRAF, Nairobi and Göttingen Univ. in Germany. She has over thirteen years of research, tertiary level teaching and consulting experience. She has more than fifteen Publications including peer reviewed international journals and international conference presentations. Recently, she won Special Award for Ground Breaking Science- African wide Young Professionals and Women in Science Competitions (2009) organised by (CTA/ATPS/AGRA/FARA/RUFORUM/NEPAD). Her paper was  “Climate change in Africa based on tree rings and stable isotope results, with implication for climatic teleconnections”.

Main activities:

  • Research

Her research activities are in East and West Africa (Ethiopia, Tanzania and Burkina Faso). The main activities are to:  a) assess the regional impacts of climate change on agriculture and environment b) establish large-scale correlation patterns between tree growth, stable isotopes,  precipitation and temperatures  c) develop long term climate data and  explore regional climate processes and identification of extreme environmental and climatological events with implication for climatic teleconnections. d) investigate the adaptation of agroforestry tree and shrub species to drought  and osmotic stress,  and  determine the effect of climate change and  land degradation on these adaptations.

2) Other scientific activities: mentorship of Msc and PhD students, reviews of scientific journals and proposals.