Meet Rodrigo: Cryptogamic communities in Antarctica and the Amazon

Hey everyone, my name is Rodrigo Alves. I started my Post Master position in the ATTO project in May of 2019. I’m a biologist and graduated from the Federal University of Pampa (Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil). During my studies, I worked with the effect of climate change on plant communities in Antarctica and participated in three Antarctic expeditions. Now, I have the chance to learn more about those effects in the Amazon rainforest.

I’m currently a member of the Group of Bettina Weber at the Max-Planck-Institut für Chemie but I’m stationed in Brazil. We work with cryptogamic communities and their role in bioaerosol and trace gas cycling in the tropical rainforest. Every month, at the ATTO site, we sample and analyze cryptogamic communities. I’m really happy for the opportunity to work in the ATTO project and understand the role of Amazon tropical forests in earth system processes and climate change.