National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA)
Faculty of Biology – Department of Botany
Country: Greece | Region: Attica
The NKUA team participating in the GENMEDA network focuses on the study of seeds and their crucial role in the ecosystems, while at the same time it is also dedicated to the goal of plant conservation. The NKUA team is responsible for the operation and development of the Seed Bank of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (Department of Biology). Since over three decades, a significant amount of scientific work has been produced in the following research fields:
- Seed ecology: germination ecophysiology and dormancy of Mediterranean plants, post-fire role of seeds in the Mediterranean ecosystems, seed germination studies on the ecological approach of germination, breaking and types of dormancy
- ex situ plant conservation: seed collecting and seed banking, seed conservation networks
- in situ plant and habitat conservation: management and monitoring of rare and endemic plant populations, habitats and ecosystems with emphasis on natural and assisted regeneration of plant populations; establishment and management of plant microreserves.
Organization of seed ecology conferences and seminars: Workshop ‘Seed Βank Εcology – upgrading on a European scale’ (EURECO 1999), Tree Seeds 2002 and Seed Ecology 2004 as well as organization of several national conferences (e.g. Hellenic Botanical Society biennial conference, 2009).
Apart from the GENMEDA network, the NKUA team has participated in the European Native Seed Conservation Network (ENSCONET project, 2004-2009), along with more than twenty universities and institutes (seed banks, botanical gardens etc.). Moreover, the NKUA team has been involved in environmental management LIFE projects, such as CRETAPLANT – A Pilot Network of Plant Micro-Reserves in Western Crete (Co-ordinator), JUNICOAST - Actions for the Conservation of Coastal Dunes with Juniperus spp. in Crete and the South Aegean (Greece), PLANTNET-CY - Establishment of a Plant Micro-reserve Network in Cyprus for the Conservation of Priority Species and Habitats, FOROPENFORESTS – Conservation of priority forests and forest openings in “Ethnikos Drymos Oitis” and “Oros Kallidromo” of Sterea Ellada. The Team has also been involved in numerous, national research and conservation projects.
Contact
Costas Thanos –Professor Emeritus of Plant Physiology
cthanos@biol.uoa.gr
Kyriacos Georghiou –Professor Emeritus of Plant Physiology
kgeorghi@biol.uoa.gr
Maria Doussi – PhD
mdoussi@biol.uoa.gr
Katerina Koutsovoulou - PhD
kkoutsov@biol.uoa.gr
Apostolis Kaltsis - MSc
apkaltsis@biol.uoa.gr
Spyridon Oikonomidis – PhD student
soikonomidis@biol.uoa.gr
National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens 15784 - Greece
Tel: +30 210 727 4655, +30 210 727 4626 - Fax: +30 210 727 4657
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