News
WUR’s biodiversity research is in the international top 10 according to Elsevier
Wageningen University & Research is one of the most productive universities when it comes to biodiversity research, both on a national and international scale. This is the conclusion of an Elsevier report on the impact of Dutch research in this field.
On the occasion of the International Day for Biological Diversity, Elsevier published the report: ‘Biodiversity research in the Netherlands and worldwide’. The report lists Wageningen University & Research as a highly important knowledge institute in the area of biodiversity, both on a national and international scale. ‘Wageningen University & Research is in a class of its own,’ the report states. WUR is part of the top ten most productive universities in the world. Moreover, on a national scale, WUR boasts the highest number of publications: twice as many as Utrecht University, which takes second place in the Dutch rankings.
Dutch research: significant impact, lots of cooperation
Dutch research is doing well internationally. Along with Sweden and Switzerland, the Netherlands is in the European top three in this area, with a 2.40 Field-Weighted Citation Impact score. This means Dutch research is cited more than twice as often as the international average. Dutch researchers also stand out thanks to their international orientation. In 83% of cases, they cooperate with foreign authors. The international average in this area is a mere 37%. Dutch research is, moreover, frequently cited in policy documents.
Liesje Mommer, founder of the Wageningen Biodiversity Initiative, is cited in the report. She talks about the growing awareness of the importance of biodiversity research. According to her, this is evident from the rising emphasis on interdisciplinary research. In another quote, Rector Magnificus Arthur Mol stresses the importance of collaboration to WUR: ‘Wageningen University & Research is highly committed to biodiversity research and collaborates with partners around the world.’
Europe at the forefront of biodiversity research
Research into biodiversity is growing rapidly. Over the past decade, the total number of publications increased by an average of 8%; in the past five years, this increase was no less than 10%. Europe is at the forefront of this development: 41% of biodiversity research is conducted by researchers at European universities. The US takes second place with 21%, and China follows with 16%.
The report is freely accessible. The analysis for the report has been conducted using Scopus, the world’s largest peer-reviewed literature database. Scopus indexes articles from over 25,000 scientific journals and 7,000 publishers.