Curious: Fellow Annabel Josien Slettenhaar loves Norwegian nature, and she loves to find out how things are connected. All photos: Lise Fagerbakk
Born in the Netherlands, Annabel Josien Slettenhaar didn’t have much wild nature when she grew up. She still wondered how nature works from an early age.
The opportunity came when she some years later looked for work.
– I wanted to go to Norway, and when Nord University published a job as a fellow, I applied. I had never been here in Steinkjer, but as soon as I skyped with my coworkers, I decided to go. And now I work to find out about the ecological connections between the falcon and the grouse. How do they use their natural habitat? What is their position in the foodweb? How does the grouse survive with the falcon as a predator? Can the falcon and the grouse cope with climate change? So many questions I want to find answers to, she tells.
She needs to hurry. Because in January 2026 she must be finished.
Love the wild nature
She loves to work in nature as a researcher.
– I love to find out how nature works. I love nature. And in Norway I find wild nature with little human impact. My research project is like a puzzle. Each time you find new pieces, and new questions arise, she tells.
Just before Easter, she flew further north, and to what is her second trip to the Norwegian Ecologists' annual conference. Oikos Norway 2025, in Bodø.
It was the first time that ecologists met in Bodø.
The event was organized by Nord University and the Norwegian Ecological Society. Something that professor Vigdis Vandvik from the University of Bergen was pleased with.
- It is important that we meet both to network and to see what others are working on. Over the years, the association has put more effort into getting students and young researchers across disciplines more involved, she says.
Many young students and researchers
Among other things, bachelor and master students participate in the national conferences for free. It has worked according to the registration lists. Something that young researchers have also noticed.- I have just finished the first part of my research. That is why I want to hear what others are working on. This is my first Oikos conference, and I was positively surprised by how many young people are here. It allows us to talk to colleagues that you don't meet every day, says Sofia Amieva Mau, a research fellow at Nord University in Bodø.
Many young participants also help lower the threshold for speaking out.
- It makes it less intimidating to present your own work or ask something, says Slettenhaar.
