Franz Simon

Visiting Fellow, Natural Resources and the Environment Section

About

Franz’s research interest relates to the critical role of scale in determining the dynamics of socio-ecological systems. Franz is leading a collaboration between the Nature Conservancy Alaska and Cornell University for his postdoctoral fellowship to advance strategies for climate-ready fishing communities. The goals of this project are to assess communities’ climate driven fisheries risk and to identify climate-robust rights portfolios. His Ph.D. at Yale University in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology focused on the indirect effects of environmental disturbances on socio-ecological systems, including a collaboration to explore the connections between terrestrial and marine socio-ecological systems in southern Spain. Franz received his M.S. at Simon Fraser University in animal behavior and his B.Sc. in Biology and Mathematics and Statistics at the University of the Fraser Valley.

Education

Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University
M.S. in animal behavior, Simon Fraser University
B.Sc. hons in Biology and a minor in mathematics and statistics, University of the Fraser Valley

Recent Research

F. W. Simon, D. Vasseur, (2020) Trophic cascades of variation: Extending the Exploitative Ecosystem Hypothesis to temporally fluctuating environments. Ecology (2011) https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.3277
J. Fox, D. Vasseur, M. Cotroneo, L. Guan, F. W. Simon (2017) Population extinctions can increase metapopulation persistence. Nature Ecology and Evolution
F. W. Simon, C. H. Hodson, B. R. Roitberg (2016) State dependence, Personality, and plants: light foraging in Mimosa Pudica (L). Ecology and Evolution
A. M. Chubaty, B. O. Ma, R. W. Stein, D. R. Gillespie, L. M. Henry, C. Phelan, E. Palsson, F. W. Simon, B. D. Roitberg (2014) On the evolution of omnivory in a community context, Ecology and Evolution
F. W. Simon, D. Gillespie (2013) Long handling times of Praon unicum by Harmonia axyridis results in protection from predation. Journal of Applied Entomology

Contact Information

Ithaca, NY 14853

fs365 [at] cornell.edu

Franz in the news

News

June 3, 2025

Biodiversity allows for sustainable fisheries, better nutrition

To satisfy the seafood needs of billions of people, offering them access to a more biodiverse array of fish creates opportunities to mix-and-match species to obtain better nutrition from smaller portions of fish.

Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Natural Resources and the Environment Section
Biodiversity