PONZA-ME – Coasts and islands as models for Multidisciplinary and Ecosystem studies: welcome to PONZA Island

The multidisciplinary study of marine-coastal and island ecosystems is at the core of the International Summer School “PONZA-ME – Coasts and islands as models for Multidisciplinary and Ecosystem studies: welcome to PONZA Island”, organized by the University of Tuscia within the ELLS – Euroleague for Life Sciences network, in collaboration with the University of Hohenheim and the Czech University of Life Sciences Prague. From 27 September to 2 October, the Summer School will bring together 15 international students on the island of Ponza, along with lecturers and researchers from the three partner universities and the Institute of Environmental Geology and Geoengineering of the Italian National Research Council (IGAG-CNR). Activities will take place across the island and at the Ponza Island Biological Station of the Department of Ecological and Biological Sciences (DEB).

A key feature of the Summer School is its strongly multidisciplinary approach, integrating marine ecology, botany, geology, microbiology and zoology. The programme is designed to explore the relationships between the biotic and abiotic components of island ecosystems, from terrestrial and marine biodiversity to the geological substrate, soils and water resource availability.

Following a preparatory phase of online lectures, the programme in Ponza will combine field and marine observations and sampling with laboratory activities and data analysis. The proposed activities will include, among others, the study of birdlife and migration patterns, marine algae and marine fungi, as well as the use of environmental DNA (eDNA) to study biodiversity.

The initiative is coordinated by Prof. Roberta Cimmaruta and Dr Chiara Sbarbati within the ELLS Subject Area “Environmental Science”.