York professor awarded prestigious ERC Synergy Grant
Posted on Thursday 6 November 2025
The Synergy Grant, awarded by the European Research Council (ERC), supports world-leading teams tackling some of the most difficult and ambitious research questions. This year, Rob Marchant, professor of Tropical Ecology, is among the recipients.
Climate change
Together with colleagues Professor Laura Pereira, University of Witwatersrand Johannesburg, Professor Unai Pascual, Basque Centre for Climate Change and Professor Thomas Hickler, Senckenberg Institute, Professor Marchant will examine how mountain ecosystems and societies in East Africa respond to climate and environmental change.
Working across nine mountain regions, the AFRI-CAN project will analyse how communities interact with nature, how ecosystems evolve, and what pathways might support resilient and sustainable mountains.
Professor Marchant said: “Research across the AFRI-CAN project will showcase how important mountains are for people, for nature and for future sustainability. Insights from the project will help us to navigate through the multiple and linked challenges that lie ahead in the coming decades.
“I am particularly excited about developing the science in an East African context and applying our insights to other mountain systems around the world. I am sure we can make the most of this opportunity and build a much stronger research community that is embedded within African partners.”
Big impact
Set up by the European Union in 2007, the ERC is the leading European funding organisation for big impact research. It funds researchers of any nationality and age to run projects based across Europe.
The ERC Synergy Grants foster collaboration between outstanding researchers, making it possible for them to combine their expertise, knowledge and resources in order to push the boundaries of scientific discovery. This funding is part of the EU’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme.
Professor Maria Leptin, President of the European Research Council, said:
“Collaboration is at the heart of the ERC Synergy Grants. In our latest round, teams of researchers will join forces to address the most complex scientific problems together - this time, they are more international than ever. Such scientific endeavours are what Europe needs to be at the real forefront.”
Learn more on the ERC website.