On 1 February Nikolai Friberg takes up his appointment as Director of Research Department in the Department of Freshwater Ecology, National Environmental Research Institute (NERI), Aarhus University, based in Silkeborg.

Nikolai Friberg comes from a post as Principal Scientist at the Macaulay Institute in Aberdeen , Scotland , where he headed research in freshwater ecology. In recent years he has worked with the effects of climate change on watercourses and restoration of river habitats.

Friberg was awarded his BSc in Biology in 1989 and PhD from the University of Copenhagen in 1996. He worked as researcher and later senior researcher at NERI from 1991 to 2006, where at the same time he was an external lecturer at Aarhus University 1997-2006, prior to his move to Scotland.

Friberg’s interests have always centred around the effects of various environmental impacts on the ecological structure of watercourses. His research has covered e.g. the effects of afforestation, channelisation and pesticides on the river environment, with fieldwork in several locations around the world. Moreover, he has been involved in the monitoring programme under the Plan for the Aquatic Environment and implementation of the EU’s Water Framework Directive, e.g. in Lithuania and Slovakia . He has authored and contributed to more than 100 scientific publications ranging from international articles to books as well as popular articles.

  Director of Research Department, Nikolai Friberg, tel. 8920 1490, nfr@dmu.dk