Previous Fora / 2013
ROSSWALL, Thomas
Professor emeritus and Chairman, Independent Science Panel of the CGIAR Research Programme on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security
Thomas Rosswall received his MSc in microbiology from the University of Uppsala and was appointed Associate Professor of Soil Ecology and full Professor, at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala.
Thomas has been instrumental in the development of microbial ecology, both nationally and internationally. His work on carbon and nitrogen cycling has ranged from microcosm to global studies and has linked deep process understanding to modelling efforts of entire systems at different scales. In this capacity, he was centrally involved in the planning and coordination of ecosystem studies in tundra, forest and agricultural systems. He has published over 100 scientific papers and edited 12 books.
As a science administrator, he has worked to promote international scientific collaboration that benefits society. His efforts also include linking scientists in the North to those in the South as well as to stimulate South–South networks.
Prof. Rosswall has recently retired as Executive Director of the International Council for Science (ICSU), Paris, France. Formerly he was Director of the International Foundation for Science (IFS), President/Rector of the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Director of the International START Secretariat, Executive Director of the International Geosphere–Biosphere Programme (IGBP) and Professor of Water in Nature and Society at the Universities of Stockholm and Linköping, Sweden. He is an elected member of six learned societies, including the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Academia Europaea and the Academy of Sciences for the Developing World (TWAS).