
Madelene Ostwald
Senior Associate Professor
How are land and forests managed, and how does it relate to desired outputs such as more products, reduced climate change, and more ecosystem services? In my research, I study the practitioner and the influence of policies, knowledge, and networks.
Land, forest and users in focus
Using forest and land to provide more products and generate positive effects, using it multifunctionally, has great support in science.
Publications
2025

2024


2023
Books
Carbon Inventory Methods
Ravindranath, N.H & Ostwald, M (2008): Carbon Inventory Methods: Handbook for Greenhouse Gas Inventory, Carbon Mitigation and Roundwood Production Projects. Springer.
Multifunctional Land Uses in Africa
Simelton, E & Ostwald, M (2019): Multifunctional Land Uses in Africa: Sustainable Food Security Solutions. London: Routledge.
Research projects
AgriFoSe2030 programme
The AgriFoSe2030 programme targets the UN Sustainable Development Goal 2 - "End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture" in low-income countries. We synthesise and translate existing science into policy and practice, and develop capacity to achieve this.
Linköping university oversees the Challenge 2: Agricultural productivity and ecosystem functions.
See Youtube clip from colleague Dr Josias Sanou from INERA on parkland management in Burkina Faso:
Project facts
TEMA collaborators: Madelene Ostwald and Veronica Brodén Gyberg
Website for the programme: AgriFoSe2030
Funder: Sida
Programme period: 2016-2026
Climate adaptation together - policy lab for climate adaptation contracts in Malmö
Climate adaptation together is an applied research project on climate adaptation measures in existing urban areas led by IVL. The project designs and tests a collaboration model with local contracts in order to secure the implementation of nature-based climate adaptation measures in Malmö.
Climate adaptation together is carried out in collaboration between policy and climate adaptation researchers at IVL and Linköping University, the knowledge center Green Roof Institute, officials at the City of Malmö as well as property owners in Malmö and insurance companies.
The collaboration takes place in the form of a 'policy lab' where joint deepening of knowledge about nature-based and site-specific climate adaptation measures is exchanged with insights into the availability, responsibility and financial valuation of climate risks and measures of various stakeholders. The 'lab' is used to test different designs of local climate adaptation contracts. In addition to possible contract models, the project must contribute knowledge to decision-makers regarding issues of responsibility and measures for climate adaptation of existing buildings.
Period: 2024 – 2025
Funder: Formas
Education and degrees
- Associate Professor (Docent) in Geography especially Physical Geography, Department of Earth Sciences, University of Gothenburg. 2007.
- PhD Geography especially Physical Geography, Department of Earth Sciences, University of Gothenburg. Thesis: Local protection of tropical dry natural forest, Orissa, India. 2000.
- Masters Geography especially Physical Geography, Department of Earth Sciences, University of Gothenburg. 1995.
Engagement, networks and collaborations
- AgriFoSe2030 – steering group member and challenge leader
- Focali Forests, climate and livelyhoods
- Co-editor of Ambio - A Journal of Environment and Society
- Director at Centre for Climate Science and Policy Research, CSPR
Teaching
Geography
- Natural resources
- Economic geography
- Excursion in geography
Science for sustainable development, master’s program
- Master Thesis in Science for Sustainable Development
- Environmental and resources use challenges