The research areas developed at the Faculty of Forestry of the University of Agriculture in Krakow are in line with the current broader context of the needs of the forest sciences field, both regionally and globally. At the same time, the research highlights recent trends in modelling the impact of global climate change on forests using the latest technologies, including in particular remote-sensing technologies such as satellite data, aerial data and terrestrial laser scanning. The Faculty of Forestry staff are involved in many research projects, including large national and international ones, which are also related to new challenges in the field of forest ecosystem protection, post-industrial land restoration or forest resources management, and are the basis for refining the educational work of the Faculty’s academic teachers.

The Faculty leads numerous international research projects at a high scientific level, reinforced by the use of well-equipped and certified laboratories. Faculty of Forestry is actively involved in the implementation of projects within the European Union Programmes (Framework Programmes, INTERREG and European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST).

The robust scientific activity of the Faculty’s staff is reflected in the organisation of numerous national and international academic conferences.

The main lines of research conducted at the Faculty of Forestry concern:

• modelling the impact of the changing climate conditions on forest ecosystems;
• the uses of aerial and satellite remote sensing in forest monitoring and management and in multidimensional studies of forest ecosystems;
• structure and dynamics of forest vegetation communities with particular emphasis on mountainous ecosystems;
• dynamics of natural and managed tree stands;
• structure and production of biomass in forest ecosystems,
• modelling of the potential productivity of forest habitats;
• modelling of forest development and functioning under different management regimes;
• the influence of the type and intensity of silvicultural treatment on stand growth;
• applying molecular markers to identify and determine the biodiversity of forest biocenoses;
• discerning highly productive provenances of the main forest tree species;
• biogeochemistry and cycling of elements in forest ecosystems and their integrated monitoring;
• forestry rehabilitation and restoration of forest ecosystems in degraded areas;
• pathogenic fungi species and disease processes of forest trees and their determinants;
• bionomy and ecology of selected groups of phytophagous insects and their entomophages;
• the influence of anthropogenic pollution and extreme climate conditions on the activation of biotic pests in the forest environment;
• water balance in the soil-plant-atmosphere continuum in forest communities;
• technical and technological parameters of selected forestry machinery and their environmental impact;
• optimisation of timber harvesting and the use of forests as a raw material base for sustainable forest management.