Gidske Leknæs Andersen

Gidske Leknæs Andersen is an Associate Professor at the Department of Geography, University of Bergen. She specializes in environmental and climate change impacts, socio-ecological systems, and the integration of traditional ecological knowledge with scientific methods. Her work emphasizes the use of GIS, remote sensing, and field-based approaches to study arid landscapes and cultural heritage sites like the ancient Blemmy capital of Nubt. She teaches courses in cartography, GIS, and physical geography field methods.

Her research explores tree population dynamics in hyper-arid regions, particularly Acacia tortilis and Dracaena ombet species, linking vegetation changes to human activity and climate variability. She has collaborated on projects addressing plastic pollution impacts, landscape recovery in Sudan's Red Sea Hills, and the role of traditional nomadic practices in sustaining ecosystems.

Andersen holds a PhD in Ecology from the University of Bergen (2007) and has published extensively on desert ecology, cultural landscapes, and remote sensing applications. She actively supervises master's students in geography and advises on theses involving GIS and environmental monitoring. Current projects include studying dracaena population recovery and plastic bay formations along Norwegian coastlines.