Yadvinder Malhi awarded prestigious Ramon Margalef Prize in Ecology

We are delighted to announce that the Leverhulme Centre for Nature Recovery’s Director, Professor Yadvinder Malhi has been awarded the prestigious Ramon Margalef Prize in Ecology, one of the world’s foremost honours in ecological science.

Presented annually by the Government of Catalonia, the prize recognises an exceptional scientific career or groundbreaking discovery in ecology or environmental sciences. Since its inception in 2004, it has celebrated a distinguished list of global ecologists.

The jury commended Professor Malhi for his pioneering research on tropical forest ecosystems, particularly for integrating functional and biodiversity perspectives and for his leadership in developing long-term ecological research networks across the tropics. The award also honours his commitment to global equity in science, including his efforts to support researchers in the Global South through collaborative and inclusive approaches.

The prize includes a generous honorarium and a sculpture representing Picarola margalefii, a microalga named in honour of Ramon Margalef, one of the founders of modern ecology. The formal presentation ceremony will take place in October in Barcelona, where the prize will be conferred by the President of Catalonia.

Yadvinder Malhi is Director of the Leverhulme Centre for Nature Recovery, and Professor of Ecosystem Science at the Environmental Change Institute within the School of Geography and the Environment at the University of Oxford. He leads an extensive and expanding research programme on tropical forests and savannas in Asia, Africa, and the Amazon and Andes regions. He has developed an international research network across the tropics that collects data on ecosystem function and its links with biodiversity. More recently, his research interests have expanded to include tropical marine, temperate, and Arctic ecosystems. Part of his work explores the role of animals in shaping ecosystem function.

The Government of Catalonia established the Ramon Margalef Prize in Ecology in 2004, and it aims to recognise a scientific career, or discovery in the field of ecological sciences that has significantly advanced knowledge or scientific thinking, or contributed to the development of theoretical tools for the effective management of natural resources, land, or the sea.