Nikita Mergelov graduated from
Soil Science Faculty of Moscow State University in 2002. At present he is
postgraduate student at Institute of Geography of Russian Academy of Sciences.
The title of PhD thesis - 'Spatial regularities of pedogenesis and carbon
dynamics in Kolyma's tundra and open forests'. Since 2002 he has spent more than
7 month in field expeditions studying functioning of tundra and taiga ecosystems
in European and Asian Russia (Kola Peninsula, Kolyma Lowland, Polar Urals). In
2002-2003 worked in program of Circumpolar Active Layer Monitoring and NSF's
Russian American Initiative on Shelf Environment. His academic interests include:
genesis and cartography of Arctic and Subarctic soils, carbon cycle in tundra
and taiga ecosystems, soil sustainability to different types of effects,
anthropogenic effects (especially fires) on ecosystems.
N. Mergelov is one of the prizewinners of the contest 'The best post-graduate
students of Russian Academy of Sciences-2005' held by Foundation for Russian
Science Assistance.
Recently N.Mergelov has also joined Russian Division of Botanic Gardens
Conservation International as Secretary, where he is responsible for
coordinating day-to-day activities of BGCI in Russia and CIS countries,
strengthening botanic gardens network in Russia, implementing grants programs
for Russian botanic gardens, promoting Global Strategy for Plant Conservation,
compiling, editing and publishing BGCI's biannual Newsletter (in Russian),
maintaining BGCI-Russia website, updating and developing 'The database of rare
and endangered species in collections of Russian Botanic Gardens', organizing
workshops.