Alex Enrich Prast

Alex Enrich Prast is a Professor in Theme Environmental Change at Linköping University (LiU), Sweden, with a research focus on biogeochemistry, particularly in Amazon forest ecosystems and biogas production. His work bridges environmental science with practical applications for climate change mitigation and sustainable resource management.

Dr. Prast's research interests center on biogeochemical cycles in tropical ecosystems, with special emphasis on methane emissions from Amazonian forests, nitrogen transformations in soil, and biogas production technologies. His work has revealed significant insights into how trees in the Amazon contribute to methane emissions and carbon cycling, challenging previous assumptions about forest-atmosphere interactions. He investigates the role of different management strategies on gas emissions and ecosystem services in the Amazon region, working in collaboration with communities in the Mamirauá reserve in Brazil.

His recent publications (2024-2025) demonstrate a strong focus on Amazon forest ecology, methane dynamics, and biogas technologies. These works reveal patterns in nitrogen transformations across Amazon forests, identify significant methane emissions from Amazonian trees that rival global oceanic emissions, and explore innovative approaches to enhance biogas production from various feedstocks. His research shows an interdisciplinary approach combining field measurements, laboratory analyses, and modeling to address complex environmental challenges.

Dr. Prast is actively involved in two major research initiatives: the Sustainable Management of Amazon Forests project, which examines how different management strategies affect gas emissions and ecosystem assimilation in the Amazon region, and the Biogas Solutions Research Center (BSRC), a national competence center administered by Linköping University that develops innovative and resource-efficient biogas solutions with positive environmental and economic impacts.