About us

About ForestStudio

ForestStudio has been a long-standing vision shared by members of the Forest Resources Management (FORM) group at ETH Zurich. It emerged from a common ambition to better represent the complexity of forest dynamics and management under changing climate conditions and disturbance regimes, while taking advantage of the growing availability of forest data and advances in technology to improve forest characterization and model initialization.

Beyond research, ForestStudio was also envisioned as a platform to support teaching and learning, foster collaboration among researchers, students, and forest management professionals, and help bridge the gap between scientific knowledge and practical forest management.

In March 2025, this vision began to take shape with the launch of the ForestStudio project and the development of ForestStudio Edu, an application initially designed to support the Landscape-Level Forest Management and Planning course at ETH Zurich. What started as an educational prototype is now evolving into a broader platform that brings together research, teaching, and practice through interactive forest simulation, visualization, and decision-support tools.

We’re only at the beginning, but the path ahead is clear and exciting: ForestStudio will continue to grow as a space for innovation, collaboration, and deeper understanding of how forests respond and adapt in a changing world.

  1. The visionA long-standing idea in the FORM group at ETH Zurich.
  2. March 2025ForestStudio Project launches.
  3. October 2025ForestStudio Edu app launches for the Landscape-Level Forest Management course.
  4. TodayGrowing into a platform that bridges science, teaching and practice.

Our Team

Verena Griess
Verena Griess
Professor
FORM ETHZ
Dr. Olalla Díaz-Yáñez
Olalla Díaz-Yáñez
Senior Researcher
FORM ETHZ
Normand Overney
Normand Overney
Scientific Programmer
FORM ETHZ
Josefa Cabezas
Josefa Cabezas
Data Scientist
FORM ETHZ

Collaborators

Our team partners with a diverse group of researchers, developers, educators, and forest management professionals whose expertise supports the continued advancement of ForestStudio.

Sina Reuter
Sina Reuter
PhD student
Contributes to the development of ForestStudio
FORM ETHZ
Gina Marano
Gina Marano
PD Researcher, WSL
Contributes to modelling how drought affects forest dynamics
Jasper Fuchs
Jasper Fuchs
Assistant Professor, BOKU
Contributes to the economic assessment module
Noemi Fruchner
Noemi Fruchner
Research Assistant
Contributes to the economic assessment module
FORM ETHZ
Marie Doyle
Lecturer / Assistant Professor, UCD
Brings expertise in forest planning in Ireland

Theses

ForestStudio also grows through student work. We offer a range of Bachelor’s and Master’s thesis topics for ETH students interested in developing practical, forward-looking tools for forest dynamics and management, in the context of ForestStudio and the ForestStudio Edu App. We already have many ideas available, but we’re also happy to define a topic together with you.

Ongoing: Nina Zurkinen’s thesis is applying ForestStudio to a new landscape in Ireland.

If you’d like to contribute to ForestStudio and help shape its future, get in touch with us.