Rate My Professor Sabine Both

Both's academic interests center on tropical and subtropical species-rich forest ecosystems, particularly the interplay between biodiversity and ecosystem functions. Her research explores interactions involving tree species richness, functional diversity, plant-plant dynamics, plant-soil relationships, and trophic levels through both observational and experimental approaches. She has analyzed over 30 structural, physiological, and anatomical traits from nearly 300 tree species in Bornean tropical rainforests to assess their role in ecosystem functions like productivity, decomposition, nutrient cycling, herbivory, habitat invasibility, and exotic species invasion. In 2018 and 2019, she was awarded Robine Enid Wilson Grants to investigate plant-herbivore interactions responding to elevation and functional plant traits along gradients in New England National Park, New South Wales. Notable publications include 'Logging and soil nutrients independently explain plant trait expression in tropical forests' (New Phytologist, 2019), 'Strong positive biodiversity–productivity relationships in a subtropical forest experiment' (Science, 2018), 'Canopy structure and topography jointly constrain the microclimate of human-modified tropical landscapes' (Global Change Biology, 2018), 'Land use not litter quality is a stronger driver of decomposition in hyper-diverse tropical forest' (Ecology and Evolution, 2017), and recent contributions such as 'Canopy functional trait variation across Earth's tropical forests' (Nature, 2025) and 'Thresholds for adding degraded tropical forest to the protected estate' (Nature, 2024). Her studies inform forest management amid global environmental changes.