About Felipe
Dr Felipe Melo is a Brazilian ecologist based in the UK with experience in landscape ecology, biological conservation, and restoration ecology. He has contributed to the academic and policy arena by conducting applied ecological and conservation research focusing on tropical ecosystems.
He has worked in close partnership with NGOs and governments to develop public policies aimed at strengthening community-led conservation and restoration efforts. His previous studies were conducted in Brazil and Mexico, mostly in tropical dry and wet forests.
Career before NTU
Felipe has a BSc degree in Biology and a Master’s degree in Plant Biology, both from the Federal University of Pernambuco - UFPE. He earned his PhD at the National Autonomous University of Mexico – UNAM.
From 2011 to 2023, he was responsible for the Applied Ecology Lab at the UFPE, where he trained 10 MSc students, 6 PhD students and two Postdocs. Felipe also has experience with restoration NGOs in Brazil and is part of the International Panel for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services – IPBES and its Brazilian chapter – BPBES.
Research themes
- Biodiversity conservation
- Ecosystem services
- Political Ecology
- Restoration of degraded ecosystems
- Tropical biology
Felipe’s research is guided by the following question: how can we manage and restore social-ecological landscapes? To answer this question, he draws on both the theoretical and analytical tools of natural sciences and on the social-ecological systems (SES) framework.
He is interested in interactions between biodiversity and human activities that take place in working landscapes such as rangelands, farmlands, peri-urban, and fragmented landscapes. His research goals are shared between basic and applied sciences with a strong interdisciplinary integration.
Felipe’s contributions to both basic and applied sciences cover functional ecology, forest regrowth, plant species assembly, plant-animal interactions, biological invasion, and landscape ecology. In terms of applied sciences, he has produced work on the use of natural resources, ecological restoration, political ecology, and conservation sciences.
We asked Felipe a few questions to better understand his background and research.
Why did you choose to apply for the NTU EAC Professorship?
The vision of NTU EAC strongly matches my own research vision and career outputs. I run a laboratory of Applied Ecology where I strive to keep a research program that generates relevant contribution to both basic sciences and applied ones. I am part of the scientific committee of the Brazilian Platform of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services - BPBES where I took part in the production of two reports for decision makers.
I am also the lead author of a chapter (Chapter 5.4: Options for delivering sustainable approaches to elements of the nexus (biodiversity conservation, restoration and sustainable use) in the upcoming Nexus Assessment of the IPBES. I had a crucial role in many political decisions with impacts on biodiversity conservation such as the elaboration of national plans for restoration and creation of protected areas.
I also had a short but life-changing experience while working as head of an NGO dedicated to conservation and restoration, Cepan. I used to write to newspapers and digital media because I strongly believe that communication with citizens is crucial to improving the impact of my research.
What is the Vision?
My plan for the next three years is to build a dedicated research group on the sustainable management of social-ecological tropical landscapes. I have carefully examined the research lines of many researchers based at NTU, and my research interests seem to both strengthen current interdisciplinary expertise and create a novel research focus with a solid ground in biodiversity sciences.
I foresee many opportunities to engage in ongoing research groups and projects, and I see myself as a hub for new collaboration opportunities for NTU scientists. Since starting at NTU, I have found many more amazing researchers that I’d be honoured to work with.
Events, resources and links
Events
June and July 2025:
- 29 June - 4 July 2025 ATBC Oaxaca 2025: 61ˢᵗ Annual Meeting of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation, Oaxaca, Mexico