Liisa Kulmala

Liisa Kulmala is a Docent in Ecosystem processes at the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Helsinki, where she serves as Supervisor in the Doctoral Programme in Interdisciplinary Environmental Sciences and a visiting researcher in the Department of Forest Sciences. Her primary position is as Senior Researcher and head of the Carbon Cycle group at the Finnish Meteorological Institute, a role she has held since March 2018.

Dr. Kulmala's research focuses on carbon cycling across multiple ecosystems, with particular emphasis on forests, urban environments, and agricultural landscapes. Her work examines the impact of ecosystems on climate, plant ecophysiology, and soil carbon dynamics. She is driven by the goal of identifying land use solutions that enhance carbon sequestration while maintaining other critical ecosystem services like biodiversity and human well-being. Her interdisciplinary approach bridges environmental science, climate research, and practical applications for sustainable land management.

Analysis of Dr. Kulmala's recent publications reveals a strong focus on urban carbon dynamics, with significant attention to how green infrastructure contributes to carbon neutrality. Her work increasingly integrates climate policy considerations, particularly examining how EU environmental regulations affect carbon sequestration potential. Methodologically, she employs advanced techniques like eddy covariance measurements and innovative gap-filling approaches using machine learning to improve carbon flux estimates.

Dr. Kulmala has supervised multiple graduate students, including work on 'Belowground carbon dynamics in Scots pine stands' (2022) and Sini Salko's research on soil respiration in drought conditions (2019-2020). She has led or participated in numerous research projects, including 'Uncovering the belowground sink' (2018-2020) as project leader, 'Quantification and drivers for belowground carbon input in boreal forest' (2021-2023), and the multi-institutional ClimEco project (2018-2020). Her work has been supported by organizations including the Kone Foundation and through state research funding.

As head of the Carbon Cycle group at the Finnish Meteorological Institute, Dr. Kulmala leads a team focused on understanding carbon dynamics across different ecosystems. Her group's work integrates field measurements with modeling approaches to provide robust estimates of carbon fluxes and stocks. The team collaborates extensively with researchers across Finland and internationally, contributing to both fundamental understanding of carbon cycling processes and practical applications for climate change mitigation.