Agata A. Konczal

Dr. Agata A. Konczal is an Assistant Professor at Wageningen University's Forest and Nature Conservation Policy Group since 2022. Previously, she led the European Forest Governance and Society Team at the European Forest Institute (2017–2022). She holds a PhD in social and cultural anthropology from Adam Mickiewicz University (Poland) and has conducted research at the University of Alberta and Aarhus University. Her work focuses on environmental anthropology, political ecology, and forest policy, particularly exploring how forests are perceived and managed by diverse social groups amid climate change and biodiversity challenges. She chairs the FORAGE Working Group to advance forest anthropology research and leads projects like TRANSFORMIT and FORESEE, addressing environmental governance and cultural dimensions of rewilding.

• Education: PhD in Social and Cultural Anthropology (Adam Mickiewicz University), 2017
• Key Roles: Former Researcher at European Forest Institute, Visiting Scholar at University of Alberta and Aarhus University

Her research examines forest politicization as climate solutions, rewilding debates, and cultural values in forest management. She integrates interdisciplinary approaches to address the 'forest crisis' and disturbance-restoration dynamics. Current projects include analyzing societal demands in biodiversity conservation (TRANSFORMIT) and exploring forest spirituality in Eastern Europe (FORESEE).

She chairs FORAGE and serves on the Scientific Advisory Board of Centrum Strategii Środowiskowych (Poland). Teaching includes courses on environmental governance, strategic planning, and MSc thesis supervision in forest conservation policy.