Scientific team

The scientific team consists of the researchers, devided over the three work packages, the coordination team, and the field technicians.

1 | Agro-ecology

The researchers of work package 1.

Erik Poelman

Erik Poelman

Coordinator / researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Effecten van plantendiversiteit op biocontrole / Weerstand tegen herbivoren en plantpathogenen

Dirk van Apeldoorn

Dirk van Apeldoorn

Coordinator / researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Designing mixed cropping systems

Franca Bongers

Assistant professor

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Modelling key belowground ecological processes in crop mixtures / Optimising micro-climated informed intercropping systems / Schaalvergroting van plant naar veldniveau

About Franca

My general interest is to understand how, why and when interactions among species can contribute towards ecosystem functioning. I do this from the perspective of the plant, where I explore the responses that underlie plant interactions with their environment, and consequently quantify how these plant responses influence growth and ecosystem functioning. I combine experimental work, field measurements and modeling to scale from organ traits to plant responses and community performance.

Ik ben een sociaal actieve wetenschapper die graag in teams werkt en met veel verschillende mensen omgaat. Naast mijn werk aan diverse systemen – leef ik graag in een diverse gemeenschap. Ik heb over de hele wereld gereisd, een aantal jaar in het buitenland gewoond en ik ben blij dat ik nu in de diverse stad Wageningen woon.

Hilde Faber

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Designing mixed cropping systems

Andi Dirham Nasruddin

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Weerstand tegen herbivoren en plantpathogenen

Franklin Harris

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Soil food web and nutrient cycling

Rik Waenink

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Research: The value of strip cropping for farmland birds

Margherita Berri

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Soil borne diseases and microbial interactions

Cristina Malaga Lopez

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Biodiversiteit en ecosysteemdiensten in circulaire voedselsystemen

Kostas Kypros

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Modelling key belowground ecological processes in crop mixtures

Gabriele Bolletta

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Effecten van plantendiversiteit op biocontrole

Amandrie Louw

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Sustainable weed suppression

Wijnand Sukkel

Senior Onderzoeker

Wageningen University & Research

About Wijnand

I am spiritual father of the recent strip cropping development. Crop diversity in general has a lot of potential for the development of more sustainable agriculture. Therefore I am happy to advise Cropmix and its partners on the development of genetic diverse cropping systems and its practical, economical and social implications.

I am almost pensioned, but will still be available for CropMix after my pensioning as a member of the advisory board. Its great to see so many young researchers continuing the work I started about 15 years ago and developing a solid scientific base for the application of crop diversity in agriculture.

www.wur.nl/landbouw-van-de-toekomst

Merel Hofmeijer

Researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Sustainable weed suppression

Felix Bianchi

Researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Effecten van plantendiversiteit op biocontrole

About Felix

I like to contribute to developing sustainable crop systems that have a net positive effect on agrobiodiversity.

I like to contribute to developing sustainable crop systems that have a net positive effect on agrobiodiversity.

www.wur.nl/nl/personen/felix-dr.ir.-fjja-felix-bianchi

Marcel Dicke

Professor of entomology

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Weerstand tegen herbivoren en plantpathogenen

About Marcel

My motivation for the study of ecological interactions between plants, insects and microbes is to understand how plants respond to challenges. I am fascinated about the abilities of plants to cope with abiotic and biotic challenges by recruiting organisms that help plants to cope with such challenges. I aim to apply such knowledge to develop ecology-based crop production systems that do not rely on chemical pesticides.

Singing is a passion of mine, as is walking in nature, reading books and listening to classical music.

Gerlinde de Deyn

Researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Soil food web and nutrient cycling

Liesje Mommer

Researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Soil borne diseases and microbial interactions

Thijs Fijen

Researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Research: The value of strip cropping for farmland birds

Raymond Klaassen

Researcher

University of Groningen

Research: The value of strip cropping for farmland birds

Ana Ferreira Ernst

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Optimising micro-climated informed intercropping systems

Lammert Bastiaans

Researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Sustainable weed suppression

Alejandro Morales Sierra

Researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Optimising micro-climated informed intercropping systems

Over Alejandro

I am interested in understanding and modeling how plants interact with their physical environment. Previous researchers have hypothesized that the effect of mixing different crops on the physical environment is responsible for the advantages of intercropping on performance and/or resource use efficiency. I am interested in testing whether this is true and how we can use it to design more efficient cropping systems.

Trained as an engineer in both Agronomy and Forestry, I fell in love with computational modelling of plant growth, especially at the interface between ecophysiology, environmental physics and scientific modelling. I therefore decided to come to Wageningen (where plant growth modelling was born) and developed my research career here.

Hannah van Zanten

Researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Biodiversiteit en ecosysteemdiensten in circulaire voedselsystemen

2 | Socio-economics

The researchers of work package 2.

Duygu Keskin

Researcher

Eindhoven University of Technology

Research: Connecting ecology, economy and technology in value chains

Alfaima Solano Blanco

PhD candidate

Eindhoven University of Technology

Research: Sustainable production planning and in-field logistics in mixed cropping systems

Thijmen van Loon

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Designing agricultural landscapes

Chiara Boeri

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Farmers' willingness to adopt mixed cropping

Loes Teunis

PhD candidate

Eindhoven University of Technology

Research: Connecting ecology, economy and technology in value chains

Tuğçe Canbilen Suticen

PhD candidate

Eindhoven University of Technology

Research: Efficient distribution networks

Lisa Marijke van den Berg

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Technological readiness for mixed cropping

Argyris Kanellopoulos

Researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Designing agricultural landscapes

Over Argyris

CropMix is an excellent match with my research interest which focus on addressing the important question of how to design sustainable agricultural systems that ensure supply of food, and bio-based products within a continuously changing world. More specifically, I develop optimization models that are able to systematically evaluate the economic and environmental consequences of interrelated change in climate, market, policy and technology (e.g. strip cropping) on agri-food supply chains. To improve the capacity of these models to predict how actors of the supply chain will react in future changes and to improve representation of the underlying decision making process, I explicitly account for the objectives, preferences and behaviour of individual supply chain actors. While current models of the agri-food supply chain focus on calculating supply chain designs that are optimal (e.g. the best from an economic or environmental point of view), my models aim to calculate alternative supply chain setups that are more sustainable than the current but also ensure benefits to all involved actors according to their specific objectives and preferences. These leads to more realistic improvements that can be embraced by key decision makers in the supply chain.

Jaap Sok

Researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Farmers' willingness to adopt mixed cropping

Annelies Bobelyn

Researcher

Eindhoven University of Technology

Alfons Oude Lansink

Researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Farmers' willingness to adopt mixed cropping

Marjolein Derks

assistant professor

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Technological readiness for mixed cropping

About Marjolein

I'm working on the design of complex agricultural systems. Using different methods from engineering design, combined with social sciences, new sustainable farming systems (like intercropping systems and related machinery) are designed and implemented.

CropMix touches directly upon my professional drive: instead of focusing on everything that is wrong or difficult in current agricultural systems, we focus on identifying what is possible for future agricultural systems, to build knowledge about these systems, and to help farmers and other stakeholders gain access to that knowledge.

Although through the years I have become a hardcore scientist, originally I started off as a farm animal veterinarian, where I enjoyed being in practice. Because of an allergy I had to quit that job and I became, as I say, a 'scientist by accident'. Although I love what I do, the connection with practice and the contact with farmers is still really important to me. Coming from (and still living in) the fertile clay soils of Noord-Holland, arable farming has always been part of my every day life.

Sonja Rohmer

Researcher

Eindhoven University of Technology

Research: Efficient distribution networks / Sustainable production planning and in-field logistics in mixed cropping systems

Marius Monen

Advisor

Avans University of Applied Sciences

Sander de Leeuw

Researcher

Wageningen University & Research

3 | Institutional change

The researchers of work package 3 and the coordinators of the living labs.

Inez Dekker

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Learning and multispecies interactions in living labs aimed at agro-ecological transition 

Camilla Bodewes

PhD candidate

VU / Athena Institute

Research: The role of different societal actors in the transition to a sustainable food system

Barbara van Mierlo

Researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Research: Learning and multispecies interactions in living labs aimed at agro-ecological transition 

Luc van Veghel

Facilitator living labs

HAS Green Academy

Daphne Schoop

PhD candidate

Wageningen University & Research

Bep Schrammeijer

Assistant professor

VU / Athena Institute

Research: The role of different societal actors in the transition to a sustainable food system

About Bep

As Assistant Professor at the Athena Institute I hope to gain (and contribute to) a broader understanding of relevant aspects of social and ecological systems and how they contribute to sustainable change. For CropMix I aim to further insights into the interactions between the multiple aspects of the agri-food system (soil, animals, landscape, farmers, markets, consumers, etc) and the role that diversifying cropping systems play in the necessary changes to improve this system.

Kristiaan Kok

Assistant professor

VU / Athena Institute

Research: The role of different societal actors in the transition to a sustainable food system

About Kristiaan

Researcher on policy and politics of sustainable transitions.

PJ Beers

Facilitator living labs

HAS Green Academy

Cees Leeuwis

Researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Onderzoek: Institutionele opties

Coordination team

Erik Poelman

Coordinator / researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Dirk van Apeldoorn

Dirk van Apeldoorn

Coordinator / researcher

Wageningen University & Research

Yvonne Florissen

Yvonne Florissen

Coordinator

Wageningen University & Research

Would you like to get into contact with our research programme? Please send us an email at cropmix@wur.nl.

Field technicians

The field technicians visit the farms and conduct the measurements in the farm network.

Anna de Rooij

Field technician

Wageningen University & Research

Angelo Grievink

Field technician

Wageningen University & Research

Bart Burger

Field technician

Wageningen University & Research

Maarten de Graaff

Field technician

Wageningen University & Research

Tamar Reijnen

Field technician

Wageningen University & Research

CropMix is financed by the Dutch Research Council (NWO)

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