University of Amsterdam
People
My group consists of students who come from a wide range of countries and backgrounds. Together, we conduct diverse research projects to address current challenges in coral reef biology. We aim to advance our understanding of how corals are impacted by climate and environmental change, and what mechanisms increase coral stress tolerance in a future ocean.
Verena Schoepf
Associate Professor
MacGillavry Fellow and Vidi Laureate
I'm a marine biologist at the University of Amsterdam investigating how climate and environmental change impact tropical coral reefs, the “rainforests of the sea”. I have published more than 55 papers in leading peer-reviewed scientific journals, including Nature and Science, and have won several awards such as the WA Young Tall Poppy Science Award. As a TEDx Speaker and former Superstar of STEM, I'm passionate about science communication and promoting women in STEM, and my career and research on “super corals” were featured in the documentary series “Women and Oceans”. I currently serve as the Chair of my institute's DEI Council and on the Board of WiF (Women in the Faculty of Science).
Kelly Wong Johnson
PhD Candidate
I completed my MS in Biology at California State University, Northridge where my research focused on the capacity for corals and octocorals to occupy space on rubble-dominated reefs in the United States Virgin Islands and French Polynesia. Continuing my interest for coral ecophysiology on Caribbean reefs, I am currently a PhD candidate at the University of Amsterdam under the supervision of Dr. Verena Schoepf. My current research goals are to explore how the environmental variability of particular reefs in Curaçao and Panama, which are characterized by sub-optimal conditions as compared to surrounding reefs, promotes or reduces the physiological performance and stress-tolerance of corals from those reefs. I am impassioned to be a student, diver, and researcher within a large scientific community working towards better understanding how corals will persist when confronted with persistent global climate change.
Ilan Bubb
PhD Candidate
I am a Marine Biologist who fell in love with the ocean growing up in Florida, USA. Since completing my B.A. at New College of Florida and M.E.M. at Duke University I have been working to conserve coral reefs through the reduction of land-based sources of pollution along the coast of Saipan, part of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Continuing my work in the Pacific, I am co-supervised by Dr. Verena Schoepf and Dr. Lyza Johnston in my research studying the patterns and mechanisms of thermal tolerance in reef building corals. It is our hope that this research will facilitate the restoration of local reefs that were devastated by the 2014-2017 global bleaching event. Outside of my research I am a passionate underwater photographer, long distance hiker and cat dad.
Ashtyn Isaak
PhD Candidate
I am a marine ecologist working towards disentangling the effects of climate change stressors on photosynthesizing organisms in various ocean environments. I completed my BS from Oregon State University and MS in Biology from California State University, Northridge. I am a current PhD student in the Coastal Eco-Physiology Lab Group with Dr. Christopher Cornwall based in Wellington, New Zealand and I’m co-supervised by Dr. Verena Schoepf at the University of Amsterdam. My research focuses on the effects of marine heatwaves and ocean acidification on coral and calcifying macroalgae in the Ningaloo region of Western Australia.
Fulvia Gamberale Colapietro
MSc Project: Modelling time-dependent stress exposures in corals
I completed my BSc in Environmental Science & Environmental Sustainability at the University of Roma Tre in Rome, Italy. During my studies, I developed a deep interest in marine biology, which led me to pursue a MSc in Freshwater and Marine Biology at the University of Amsterdam. My research project focuses on understanding coral stress tolerance under dynamic environmental exposure using ecotoxicological models. Through this work, I aim to capture the complexity behind the interactions between corals and their time-varying exposures to different climate change stressors. I am excited to learn more about coral resilience and grateful for the opportunity to contribute to this research team.
Amelie Wittig
MSc project: Coral symbiont composition across a strong environmental gradient in Bocas del Toro, Panama
I am a Master’s student in Freshwater and Marine Biology at the University of Amsterdam with a deep passion for marine biology, especially marine microbiology, molecular biology and symbioses. In my research project, I’m using ITS2 symbiont typing to discover whether the algal coral microbiome differs along an environmental gradient in Bahia Almirante, Bocas del Toro, Panama. With this, I hope to contribute to the understanding of the role of Symbiodiniaceae in the stress tolerance and bleaching of corals. I am excited to learn more about corals and their symbionts while furthering our understanding of how corals cope with climate change.
Former Students and Postdocs
Postdoctoral Fellows
Dr Rene van der Zande, 2023 - 2025
Dr Maite Buchner, 2020, joint supervision with Dr Karl Castillo
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PhD Students
Sarah L. Solomon, 2026​, "Extreme reef environments as natural laboratories: Mechanisms underlying coral acclimatization to future ocean conditions"
Claire Ross, 2018, "Coral calcification mechanisms and the use of corals as paleothermometers" (co-supervisor)
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Master Students
Antonie Kooymans, 2025
Joe Pilmeijer, 2025
Sophie Littke, 2025, daily supervisor Kelly Wong Johnson
Kay Watty, 2025, daily supervisor Dr Rene van der Zande
Sophia Suvacarov, 2025, daily supervisor Sarah Solomon
Angelica Verschragen, 2025, daily supervisor Ashtyn Isaak
Maxine Mouly, 2024, daily supervisor Dr Rene van der Zande
Riccardo Mazza, 2024, daily supervisor Sarah Solomon
Rebecca van Oostveen, 2024, daily supervisor Kelly Wong Johnson
Matteo Bravo, 2023
Emily Croasdale, 2023
Chris Lippens, 2023, daily supervisor Sarah Solomon
Laura Misker, 2022, daily supervisor Sarah Solomon
Wout van der Heide, 2022, co-supervisor Dr Chris Cornwall
Chiara de Jong, 2021
Iris van Os, 2021
Elias Speelman, 2020
Guadalupe Sepulveda, 2020
Cyrielle Rigal, 2018
Maria Jung, 2018
Andrew Warnes, 2017, co-supervisors Drs Chris Cornwall and Steeve Comeau
Steven Carrion, 2017
Morane Le Nohaïc, 2016
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Undergraduate Students
Isabel Guncay Alvarracin, 2024
Joe Pilmeijer, 2022
Lena Faber, 2021
Rebecca van Oostveen, 2020
Anna Groen, 2018
Hermione Sanderson, 2018
Ellis Larcombe, 2018
