Strategy at the Department of Biology 2026 - 2035
Strategy 2026 - 2035
Department of Biology today
Our Department of Biology (IBI) has a national responsibility for fundamental and applied research and education in the core biological disciplines of physiology, cell and molecular biology, and ecology and evolution, marine biology, aquaculture, and environmental toxicology. IBI is a leading international institute focused on understanding biological processes in nature, with strong relevance to societal challenges in the Anthropocene’s environmental transition. We seek to understand, protect, and manage life under climate change, pollution pressures, and biodiversity loss, the so-called triple planetary crisis.
IBI leads groundbreaking science and unique study programmes, cultivating high-profile students and researchers, who contribute positively to nature and society. Our research spans from genomes to cells, organisms, populations and communities, natural and engineered ecosystems, and biogeochemical cycles. IBI advances discovery by bridging theory with mechanistic lab studies and long-term field surveys of single populations (from, e.g., wild crops to moose, sparrow, shag, whale, and plankton) to complete ecosystems in Trøndelag, or the Arctic using the observational pyramid. By engaging stakeholders, IBI translates cutting-edge biological knowledge into impact for a healthy, ecologically balanced society.
From August 2025, IBI comprises 3 divisions active on the biological foundations of nature:
- Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolution
- Cell and Organismal Biology
- Marine Sciences
working in close connection with:
- Administration unit
- Technical unit
IBI’s management features dual leadership in each area (research, education, division coordination), for shared responsibility, strategic oversight, coherence, representation, and inclusion in the organisation. We employ ca. 140 employees, and train ca. 500 students yearly.
Within NTNU’s Faculty of Natural Sciences (NV), IBI has a central focus on nature. Together with Departments of Physics (IFY) and Chemistry & Biomedical Science (IKB), IBI forms the fundamental triangle of the natural sciences: physics, chemistry, and biology. Technology and innovation is promoted with Departments of Biological Sciences Ålesund (IBA), Biotechnology & Food Science (IBT), Chemical Engineering (IKP), and Material Technology (IMA), as well as other NV and NTNU units and centres. IBI, IBA, IBT and IKB form NV’s biocluster.
IBI’s vision for 2035
By 2035, IBI will become a consolidated, nationally and internationally leading, academic environment which collectively contributes to a nature-positive societal development. We will achieve this by combining basic and applied research of excellence in Biology with high-level education driven by understanding and managing life, biodiversity loss and biological effects of pollution, while promoting a sustainable and responsible use of biological resources.
Our tailored educational programmes will be among the most attractive in the Nordic region, also hosting international students. Across their studies, our graduates will develop as talented young professionals and scientists who will lead future implementations of nature-based solutions. Their profiles will attract employers due to their solid biological knowledge and cross-disciplinary ability to address complex local and global environmental challenges.
IBI’s research strengths will encompass molecular and physiological mechanisms of development and stress, ecological and evolutionary dynamics, environmental toxicology, and marine life. IBI will maintain a strong focus on basic and applied research within NTNU’s science and technology profile, continuing to collaborate closely with partner institutions.
We will be recognised as a strong, interactive academic community and an international leader in biological science and education. This will be demonstrated through groundbreaking scientific discoveries, high-quality education, effective cooperation, and excellence in peer evaluations. Situated in a high-latitude region, IBI will play a central and privileged role as a partner at the heart of the environmental transition. Our integrated infrastructures will enable outstanding research and education, and collaborations of excellence.
IBI will be an inclusive, dynamic and flexible organisation capable of adapting to emerging needs in research, education and administration in alignment with available resources. Through collaboration with universities, research institutes, the private sector, governmental agencies, municipalities, and citizens, IBI will contribute to a sustainable balance between societal needs and the protection of nature.
IBI’s targeted missions
Basic research underpins all IBI activities and supports applied developments. Aligned with NV’s targeted missions (The Faculty of Natural Sciences), IBI focuses on biological research, responsible innovation, and high-level education in the following areas:
- Uncover impacts of climate, pollution, and land-use change on organisms, populations, communities, and ecosystems and offer solutions to mitigate them, based on systems understanding.
- Halt and reverse biodiversity loss, degradation of natural areas, and impacts on environmental and human health through active nature protection, conservation, restoration, and nature-positive, sustainable management of biological resources.
- Implement enabling and emerging technologies and solutions to study nature and biodiversity, protect the environment, and promote the responsible use of natural resources.
IBI shall lead fundamental and applied biological research for a sustainable nature
IBI shall be an internationally recognised research actor within its disciplines and will actively contribute to knowledge development, with a strategic focus on its priority areas. Our research activities are anchored in strong academic research groups, where students are efficiently integrated through research-based education. Scientific excellence will be supported by our advanced research infrastructure, including laboratories, field stations, and computational platforms, enabling cutting-edge science, innovation, and education.
We will achieve this by:
- Strengthening our research groups to ensure scientific excellence and strategic capacity for developing new research and innovation activities, with particular emphasis on EU cooperation alongside national leadership.
- Increasing the integration among research groups, divisions and faculty-level centres to reinforce our position as a preferred partner in biological research and education.
- Consolidating theoretical principles, research methodologies, and infrastructure that support high-quality basic and applied research, innovation, and education.
- Positioning IBI, NV and NTNU in the international research community via long-term collaboration with leading research environments, public authorities, and the private sector, contributing to halting and restoring biodiversity loss, enabling sustainable resource use, and supporting nature-positive industrial development and value chains.
IBI shall educate Norway’s most competent biologists and international students
Our study programs will remain the natural first choice for prospective students in our fields nationally, while also attracting international students. IBI will be distinguished by strong academic and social learning environments, combined with excellent teaching.
We will equip our students with outstanding skills by combining theoretical, laboratory, and field courses and applying active learning methods. IBI will be a leading provider of biologists who contribute to societal transformation, with a strategic focus aligned to our priority areas. Our graduates will be highly sought after nationally and internationally due to their academic expertise in Biology and their ability to collaborate across disciplines.
We will achieve this by:
- Supporting the responsible professional and scientific development of students and researchers both individually and collectively, fostering creative and critical thinking.
- Continuously improving our course offer and quality at all study levels via program-driven development, pedagogical practice, and collaboration with scientific and professional domains.
- Further developing strong study environments that involve active learning methods, close collaboration among students within each program, direct engagement between students and academics, and effective collaboration between lecturers.
- Providing research-based education and access to modern research infrastructure, equipping students with relevant theoretical and practical competence within a research community connected to regional, national, and international priorities.
- Strengthening academic language proficiency in both Norwegian and English to enhance local and international impact on societal transformation.
- Strategically developing and improving our study portfolio to align with societal needs while providing students with sustainability and digital competences.
- Establishing arenas for interdisciplinary and (inter)national collaboration in education, engaging other departments, centres, faculties, universities, and facilitating mobility for students and researchers.
- Encouraging the continuous pedagogical and supervisory development of academic staff into excellent teaching practitioners and mentors at IBI.
IBI shall be a driving force in developing and applying knowledge on nature’s terms
Through groundbreaking research and the education of responsible biologists, IBI will play a leading role in the transition towards an ecologically balanced and sustainable society that protects and strengthens biodiversity and the environment. Drawing on its unique combination of expertise in terrestrial and aquatic biology, as well as its active engagement with enabling and emerging technologies and solutions, IBI will contribute to societal development founded on the sustainable management of biodiversity, ecosystem functions and services.
We will achieve this by:
- Fostering our role as a knowledge builder by linking basic science, applied research, and innovation for value creation within the limits of nature’s carrying capacity.
- Recruiting and educating Biology candidates who will responsibly manage ecosystem services and resources for sustainable societal development.
- Promoting Biology in the education of teachers, enabling them to convey nature’s principles to younger generations, supported by our biology school laboratory at NTNU’s resource and competence centre for teaching in science.
- Contributing our expertise to collaborative projects and centres with research institutes, the public sector, and industry to ensure a holistic green transition.
- Strengthening NV’s and NTNU’s academic community through increased knowledge sharing with other departments and centres, as well as active participation in NTNU’s strategic research areas and major cross-disciplinary incentives.
- Profiling our identity and impact through evidence-based policy engagement, public debate, and high-quality scientific dissemination via leading channels and audiences.
- Maintaining and developing terminology important for communicating knowledge within our fields, with regional, national, and international impact.