Dalia D'amato

Dalia D'Amato, postdoc researcher

Helsinki Institute of Sustainability Science, Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry

My main research interests include the role of the ecosystem services concept in informing the management of socio-ecological systems, in further developing sustainability concepts (e.g. circular-bioeconomy economy) and in engaging the private sector by means of corporate sustainability.

In regard to socio-ecological system, I am interested in the links between ecosystem services and human well-being, in the context of protected areas as well as intensive land use systems such as plantation forestry.

In the context of corporate sustainability, I am looking at the integration of ecosystem services indicators in corporate reporting, as well as the role of the ecosystem services concept in engaging companies with sustainability challenges. In addition to the forest sector as a central context of my research, I am involved in research on corporate sustainability issues in relation to other land use-intensive sectors (forestry, food, beverages, mining, energy). 

I am also developing a comparative analysis of the green, circular and bioeconomy concepts as sustainability avenues, their integration and harmonization in public policies, and their role in guiding corporate sustainability strategies. In this context, my future goal is to examine the role and impacts of emerging circular-bioeconomy strategies on natural capital, biodiversity and ecosystem services; the research will regard especially, but not exclusively the forest sector. 

My teaching activities in 2016 and 2017 have included MSc and PhD-level courses aimed at providing a comprehensive overview of the theory and applications of ecosystem services; and an intensive MSc/PhD-level course comparing green-circular-bioeconomy concepts and strategies.

Before completing my PhD studies in Forest Economics and Marketing at the University of Helsinki (2013-2016), I worked  respectively as a researcher and as a trainee at the Finnish Environmental Institute (SYKE) in Finland and at the Institute of European Environmental Policy (IEEP) in Belgium (2012-2013). I have two MSc degrees achieved in the field of ecology from the University of Sussex (UK) and the University of Roma Tre (Italy).