The Society for Tropical Ecology mourns the loss of its former president, Prof. Dr. Manfred Niekisch, who died in mid-November at the age of 73. He served as the society’s president from 2009 to 2018. During his time as president, efforts were made to successfully Europeanize the Society for Tropical Ecology. Prior to that, from 2001 to 2009, he contributed his knowledge, critical thinking, and extensive network to the scientific advisory board.
He was a university lecturer in Greifswald from 1998 to 2008 and held a co-opted professorship in international nature conservation at Goethe University in Frankfurt starting in 2010. One of his most significant roles was as director of the Frankfurt Zoo, where he led the institution from 2008 to 2017 with a focus on modernization and nature conservation. As a recognized expert in species and habitat protection, he participated in numerous commissions, including the World Commission on Protected Areas of the IUCN, the Species Survival Commission, the tropical forest foundation "Oro Verde," and the Frankfurt Zoological Society, where he served as vice president. He also contributed his expertise to the scientific advisory board for forest policy of the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture and the German Federal Government's Advisory Council on the Environment. With his extensive knowledge and ability to engage in debate, he effectively communicated scientific findings to students and applied them in practice, always aiming for nature and species conservation. Advisory board meetings held in Frankfurt often concluded with a local apple wine and good food at one of his favorite restaurants. An opera lover, he had a distinctive ringtone that occasionally caught everyone's attention. We will miss his fascinating stories about connections in tropical ecology and his unwavering commitment to supporting nature and biodiversity.
