Congratulations to Professor Rob Salguero-Gómez and Dr Keith Kirby MBE, who have both been awarded a Fellowship of the British Ecological Society (FBES). This is in recognition of their significant contribution to ecology and leadership within the ecological community.
The British Ecological Society's newly elected Fellows join a distinguished and growing community of FBES members, recognised for their outstanding contributions to ecology through research, teaching, leadership, policy, and the practical application of ecological science. In this second round, 23 ecologists have been awarded FBES, selected through a highly rigorous process by a committee of senior ecologists. Together, they represent a remarkable breadth of expertise and experience in the ecological community.
Rob is a global leader in evolutionary demography. His research integrates life-history theory, resilience research, and ecological models with novel analytical pipelines to monitor complex systems to understand how species respond to environmental change. He directs the SalGo team and leads major initiatives such as the open-access COMPADRE and COMADRE databases and the Wytham Woods Digital Twin.
Rob’s work spans empirical, theoretical, and comparative approaches with ramifications in ecology, evolution, and conservation. His contributions to date have created a mechanistic, data-driven foundation for predicting biodiversity responses to change. By integrating demographic models, life-history evolution, and trait-based ecology, he has helped unify disparate subfields around a shared goal: understanding the dynamic resilience of living systems across scales, from individuals to ecosystems.
Keith’s work centres on documenting long-term ecological changes in British woodlands through resurveying permanent vegetation plots established decades ago, examining impacts from deer browsing, tree diseases, and historical land use. He has particular interest in wood-pasture systems and their significance for understanding both historical landscapes and contemporary rewilding approaches.
Colleague Professor Tim Coulson who was on the Fellows committee said of the fellowships
“Being awarded FBES was a highlight of 2025 for me. The society is a real force for good, and something I have been involved with on and off for over 30 years. It was an honour to sit on the panel reviewing Fellows' applications. I was so impressed with the quality of applications from practitioners, policy setters, and academics. The next few years will be exciting for the BES as this prestigious membership grows, and I genuinely look forward to helping review the next round of applications. If you are a leader in any aspect of ecology, you should seriously think about applying.”
Application for the first round of Fellows for this year is now open, and it will close on 23 April: https://www.britishecologicalsociety.org/content/become-a-fellow/
