معرفی
Professor Lina Mercado is a faculty member at the University of Exeter's Department of Geography since 2011, holding a 30% subcontract with the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH) since 2012. She leads the vegetation theme in the UK's Joint UK Land Environment Simulator (JULES) and specializes in plant ecophysiology and biogeochemical modeling. Her work focuses on climate-vegetation interactions, particularly plant responses to temperature, CO2, and nutrient limitations in tropical and temperate ecosystems.
Educations: PhD (2004) from Free University of Amsterdam on Amazon canopy photosynthesis modeling; MSc (1999) in Environmental Sciences from Lund University; BSc in Chemical Engineering from Universidad Nacional de Colombia.
Research interests include carbon/water cycles, photosynthesis, transpiration, and nutrient constraints (N/P cycles). Fieldwork spans Amazon basins, Andean montane forests, and semi-arid West Africa (e.g., Mali), involving gas exchange measurements and ecosystem modeling. She collaborates with global networks like RAINFOR and AMMA.
Her research aims to improve Earth System Models (ESMs) for better climate predictions. Current projects include PhD/MSc supervision on tropical forest resilience, ozone impacts, and nutrient limitations. She actively integrates field data with JULES model development to address climate change challenges.
