Timme Donders

Dr. Timme Donders is an Associate Professor of Palaeoecology in the Department of Physical Geography at Utrecht University. His research integrates biological proxies like pollen and spore data with geological methods to reconstruct past environments and climate. He holds adjunct roles at TNO Geological Survey of the Netherlands and has led projects at TNO Petroleum Geosciences. Donders' expertise spans wetland ecology, palynology, and Quaternary geology, with fieldwork in Florida and Lake Ohrid. He teaches courses on paleoenvironments and extreme climate transitions at both BSc and MSc levels.

Education:

• PhD in Paleoecology (2001-2005), Utrecht University
• Postdoc (2006-2008), Utrecht University

Research Focus: Uses pollen analysis, geochronology, and landscape reconstruction to study climate change impacts on ecosystems. Current projects include the Future Deltas initiative and Pathways to Sustainability program. Recent work highlights include PNAS publication on forest diversity history and Nature coverage of Lake Ohrid research.

Media Engagement: Featured in NPO1 podcasts on Pleistocene ecosystems, Trouw articles on giant beaver discoveries, and Dutch climate change series Code Red. Collaborates on educational content linking pollen data to hay fever trends.