Rafael Zas

In my PhD (UPM, Madrid, 1996-2001), I analyzed the nutritional status and fertilization needs in forest plantations of fast-growing species. Then, I moved with a INIA-Posdoc contract to the Forest Research Center of Lourizán (2001-2008), where I mainly worked in forest genetics and tree breeding. After several international stays (INFOR, Chile; FRI, New Zealand), in 2008 I won a tenured scientific position in the MBG-CSIC, where I build my own research group (Forest Genetics and Ecology; www.genecolpines.weebly.com) fine tuning a completely new research line in the Institute. In 2017 I promoted in CSIC, acquiring the level of “Investigador Científico”. Our main research interest in this group is to improve current knowledge on the genetic and ecological basis of the resistance of pine trees against their biotic enemies. The acquired knowledge will set the foundation for establishing sustainable and environmentally-friendly tools for improving the health of our forest in the face of the new biotic threats that are dramatically increasing due to global change. Our main objective is to understand how long-lived and massive species, such are trees, are able to resist the huge pressure imposed by their multiple enemies. Particularly, we are especially interested in the plastic responses of pine trees to biotic aggressions eliciting direct and indirect defensive mechanisms, the so called induced defences. After 12 years, our research group is now consolidated with two new tenured scientists incorporated in the Institute from our group. We are now becoming a reference international group in pine-organism antagonist interactions. My scientific activity has maintained high quality indicators, especially after my incorporation in the MBG-CSIC. Up to date I have leaded up to 13 competitive research projects and 11 contracts with private and public entities, summing more than 780000 € of founding as a PI during the past 10 years. I have coauthored 85 scientific papers in SCI-JCR journals, most of them if top-level journals within their respective category (mainly Forestry, Ecology and Plant Science). I am also committed with outreach activities, having participated in several dissemination projects, and contributed to science management, being during 4 years in charge of the Forestry area of the Spanish Agency of Evaluation and Prospective (ANEP). My publication record includes 85 SCI-JCR papers (+ 3 under review), 6 publications in other international scientific journals indexed in SCOPUS, 17 publications in national scientific or technical journals and 5 book chapters. I have published articles in highly recognized journals such as Ecology Letters, New Phytologist, Journal of Ecology, Functional Ecology, Proceedings of the Royal Society, to mention a few. During