I am an Arctic terrestrial ecologist and modeler with a focus on in wildlife management and conservation. My PhD studies the spatial feedback between caribou and vegetation communities in West Greenland under different scenarios of land use and climate change. I live in Nuuk, Greenland, and work at the Greenlandic Institute of Natural Resources).
I research centers on understanding the interactions between herbivores and Arctic ecosystems, which are rapidly transforming due to climate change. As ecosystem engineers, herbivores play a major role in ecosystem functioning and resilience. I am particularly interested in exploring herbivores as a management tool (i.e., through trophic rewilding), to support ecosystem balance.
I am a member of the Herbivory Network, a collaborative network which studies plant-animal interactions, and the Tundra Exclosures Network (TexNet), a collaborative research network that studies how vertebrate herbivores shape tundra ecosystems through multi-site field experiments and exclosures. I also collaborate with The Nordic Borealization Network (NordBorN) a platform uniting researchers across Nordic countries to study the drivers, processes, and consequences of borealization in Nordic ecosystems.
Alongside my scientific work, I am passionate about translating research into impactful visualizations, combining scientific illustration with my career to communicate complex concepts effectively.If you would like to contact me or learn more about my work visit:
X/Twitter: @laurabarberop
Email: labp@natur.gl
Website – https://laurabarberopalacios.wixsite.com/mysite
Select publications:
Kristensen, J.Å., Barbero-Palacios, L., Barrio, I.C. et al. Tree planting is no climate solution at northern high latitudes. Nat. Geosci. 17, 1087–1092 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-024-01573-4
Barbero-Palacios, L., Barrio, I.C., García Criado, M. et al. Herbivore diversity effects on Arctic tundra ecosystems: a systematic review. Environ Evid 13, 6 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13750-024-00330-9
Barrio, I.C., Laura Barbero-Palacios, E. Kaarlejärvi, J.D.M. Speed, S. Heiðmarsson, D.S. Hik, and E.M. Soininen. (In press). “What are the effects of herbivore diversity on tundra ecosystems? A systematic review protocol.” Environmental Evidence (Accepted 12-01-2022)
Barbero-Palacios, Laura., J. Carreira, E. Baraza, J. Adams Krumins, M. Brolly, N. Burnside, J. Bartolomé, S. Lavín, J. Calleja, J. Carvalho, R. Tinoco Torres, I. Barrio, R. Perea and E. Serrano. (2020). “The role of wild ungulates in nutrient cycling in Mediterranean ecosystems: a pending issue” / “El papel de los ungulados en el ciclo de nutrientes en ecosistemas mediterráneos: una asignatura pendiente.” Galemys 32. https://doi.org/10.7325/Galemys.2020.F1
Women in the Arctic and Antarctic 