Rate My Professor Anders Ahlström

Anders Ahlström is a senior lecturer at the Department of Physical Geography and Ecosystem Science and the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences (MGeo) at Lund University. He is a member of the Strategic Research Area BECC: Biodiversity and Ecosystem services in a Changing Climate, the Strategic Research Area MERGE: ModElling the Regional and Global Earth system, and the LU Profile Area: Nature-based future solutions. Ahlström studies the global cycles of carbon and water and their interplay with climate and society, with a focus on the functioning and states of ecosystems and the direct and indirect effects of human activities on them. His work emphasizes quantitative analysis of land use impacts on ecosystem states, changes over time, and stability during weather variations, including extensive efforts to map and inventory Swedish primary forests.

Key research interests include carbon cycling, primary forests, climate change, ecosystem carbon storage, ecosystem ecology, climate sensitivity, soil carbon storage, and vegetation dynamics. Ahlström has contributed to numerous peer-reviewed publications, including the 2015 Science paper on the dominant role of semi-arid ecosystems in the trend and variability of the land CO2 sink, as well as recent works such as the 2026 Science paper on higher carbon storage in primary than secondary boreal forests in Sweden and studies on old-growth forests and their carbon accumulation. He maintains an active research profile with ongoing projects on boreal forests, primary forest states and changes, and drought impacts.