Rafael Assis holds a PhD in Ecology and Natural Resource Management from the Norwegian University of Life Sciences, a master’s degree in Botany from the National Institute for Amazonian Research (INPA), and a degree in Biological Sciences from the State University of Londrina (UEL). He was a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oslo, where he coordinated the Biodiversity Research Consortium Brazil-Norway. Currently, as a researcher at ITV DS, he works on the ecology of Amazonian ecosystems, forest dynamics, ecological succession, and phytosociology, with an emphasis on soil-plant interactions and tree regeneration.