Magda Bou Dagher Kharrat, a researcher in forest and biodiversity conservation, holds a Ph.D. in Plant Genetics from Sorbonne University – Pierre and Marie Curie (2001) and a Habilitation to Supervise Research in Biodiversity Conservation from the University Paris XI (2015). She began her academic career in 2001 as a researcher and lecturer at Saint Joseph University of Beirut, where she chaired the Life and Earth Sciences Department from 2012 to 2017. Magda established the university’s Plant Genetic Characterization Laboratory in 2002 and its Seed Conservation and Germination Laboratory in 2009, focusing on conserving endemic species and creating protected areas for endangered plants.
Magda co-founded the NGO Jouzour Loubnan, dedicated to rehabilitating degraded Mediterranean forest ecosystems. In 2022, she joined the European Forest Institute as Principal Researcher and Team Leader for the Mediterranean Facility in Barcelona, where she develops conservation policies and restoration strategies for forest ecosystems in Europe and the Mediterranean to address climate change challenges.
A member of several high-profile scientific advisory boards, Magda serves on the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund for the Mediterranean (CEPF Med), the Circular Bioeconomy Alliance, and the Advisory Board of the European Biodiversity Partnership Biodiversa+. She is also part of the steering committee of the International Barcode of Life Consortium (iBOL).
Since 2019, Magda has been a National Geographic Explorer. Her accomplishments have been widely recognized: she received the UNESCO-L’Oréal “For Women in Science” grant in 2008, was named a Knight of the Order of Academic Palms by the French Republic in 2021, and was elected a Corresponding Member of the French Academy of Agriculture in 2023.