Work shadowing at the Consulate General in Vancouver as part of the joint exchange program of the Leibniz Association and the German Federal Foreign Office

Going to the Consulate General in Vancouver for six months is a great privilege for me and a great opportunity to support the internationalization of my research institute (Senckenberg – Leibniz Institution for Biodiversity and Earth System Research) through the development and expansion of scientific networks in Western Canada. On the other hand, it offers me personally the unique opportunity to make international contacts and gain experience abroad.

Since May 1, I have been seconded to “Downtown, Waterfront” and have been welcomed with open arms and exciting topics by my colleagues at the Consulate General, the numerous scientists from local universities and institutions I have already had the chance to meet in my first month, and by this diverse, vibrant, green city with its friendly and committed inhabitants.

I have been working for Senckenberg in Frankfurt for 15 years. Senckenberg is a research museum and the largest of the 96 independent Leibniz research institutes in Germany. We preserve, develop, and research 45 million units in our collections. Guided by curiosity and responsibility, we document and analyze Earth system dynamics with a focus on biodiversity to benefit science and society.

Senckenberg's strategic priorities are diverse, including marine research with the Senckenberg Ocean Species Alliance. The areas of biodiversity, wildlife ecology, conservation biology, climate change and sustainability, as well as biodiversity genetics and its applications, represent starting points for the development and further strengthening of German-Canadian cooperation.

In addition to the coordinative management tasks I have as Head of Scientific Coordination at Senckenberg, I am also responsible for networking and knowledge transfer, including applied citizen science projects. I have developed a monitoring project on the smallest woodpecker in Europe, the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (Dryobates minor), called “Small Woodpecker – Big Role.” I am a biologist by training and an enthusiastic ornithologist, specializing in woodpeckers and their habitats: forests.

Western Canada also offers a very valuable and enriching field with regard to these topics, with its structurally rich temperate forests and extensive national parks.

I'm looking forward to the next months here and to exchanging ideas—and recommendations on where to observe woodpeckers. 😊

Dr. Kerstin Höntsch