Prof. Milan Chytrý from the Department of Botany and Zoology of the Faculty of Science of Masaryk University has been elected member of Academia Europaea, one of the most respected scientific societies in Europe.
What is Academia Europaea?
Founded in 1988, Academia Europaea is a pan-European academy of sciences that brings together leading experts in the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences and engineering. Membership is granted by invitation only after a thorough nomination and evaluation process.
Academia Europaea aims to support and promote international excellence in science and education across all fields of science. Today, the academy has more than 5,800 members, including 88 Nobel laureates, some of whom were elected before winning the prize. Academia Europaea is the European Union’s key partner for consultations on science.
A unique recognition for our faculty
Professor Milan Chytrý became the second representative of the Faculty of Science of Masaryk University in the history of Academia Europaea after Prof. Vladimír Sklenář, a world-renowned chemist who died in 2024. From Masaryk University, Prof. Jozef Gruška (Faculty of Informatics), Prof. Mary O'Connell (CEITEC) and the late Prof. Antonín Bartoněk (Faculty of Philosophy) have so far been elected to Academia Europaea. The Czech Republic is currently represented in Academia Europaea by only 35 scientists.
This prestigious award is a significant recognition of Prof. Chytrý's long-term scientific work and, at the same time, an extraordinary success of the entire Faculty of Science and Masaryk University. "I have always done my scientific work in a team with colleagues and students from our Department of Botany and Zoology and with dozens of international collaborators, mainly from the European Vegetation Survey group. I therefore see my election as a recognition for all of us who have been systematically researching the diversity of European vegetation and natural habitats, their changes over time and the possibilities of how to counter negative trends," Chytrý responds to his acceptance into Academia Europaea.
Official induction into the membership
Professor Chytrý was officially inducted into the Academia Europaea at the annual conference in Barcelona, which took place on 15-17 October. He gave there an invited lecture called "Biodiversity loss in European vegetation", in which he summarized the results of recent research by his Vegetation Research group at Masaryk University and the international working group European Vegetation Survey, which he has long led. In the lecture, he drew attention to alarming changes in plant communities of natural habitats. These are manifested throughout Europe in the decline of plant species narrowly specialized for specific habitats and, conversely, the spread of a smaller number of previously abundant species. "Nature is becoming increasingly monotonous. Under the influence of recent human activities, the previously colorful mosaic of various plant communities is gradually changing into a dull landscape. In different places of this new landscape, we see the same plant species that are well adapted to today's changed conditions," explains the award-winning scientist.
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