Konstantinos Georgopoulos
PhD Fellow
Institute of Biology, Leiden University, Netherlands
Biography
Kostas Georgopoulos is from Athens, Greece, and is currently working at Leiden University as part of the Above-Belowground interactions group. His research focuses on the use of soil inoculation to assist the process of afforestation. The group studies how plants, microbes, and insects interact, particularly examining soil-dwelling and aboveground organisms associated with specific plants or trees. Their central aim is to influence plant communities and plant-insect interactions via the soil microbiome. Research is conducted in growth chambers, greenhouses, and field experiments, both in natural and agricultural systems. They are also involved in the Silva Nova project, restoring soil biology and functions to create diverse, stable, and resilient multifunctional forests by inoculating former arable land with soil from old forests and planting tree species mixtures.
