Dr. Cory Whitney
Senior Scientist and Privatdozent (PD)
Institute of Crop Science and Resource Conservation (INRES), University of Bonn
Biography
I study how farmers, communities and policymakers make decisions about land use and food systems when the outcomes are uncertain. As a human ecologist, I build simulation models together with these decision makers, so that their knowledge enters the models alongside the data. The models compare options, show risks and trade-offs, and reveal where better information would change the choice.
Interests
- Human Ecology
- Decision Analysis
- Agroecology
Education
Habilitation in Agroecology and Sustainable Development, 2026
University of Bonn
PhD in Agricultural Sciences, 2018
University of Kassel
MSc in Sustainable International Agriculture/International Organic Agriculture, 2011
George-August University Göttingen/University of Kassel
Research
My research has three connected themes:
- Decision analysis under uncertainty. Probabilistic models, built with stakeholders, that compare interventions before money is spent on them.
- Agroecology and agroforestry. Why smallholders adopt, adapt or abandon trees on their farms, and what restoration and carbon schemes deliver.
- Food, nutrition and ethnobotany. How homegardens and wild plants contribute to diets, and how communities know, use and value plants.
Selected Publications
(2026).
A decision-analysis framework for school garden investments in Vietnam: evaluating trade-offs for nutrition, biodiversity, and economic outcomes.
Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, (13), 1, pp. 580, https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-026-07204-0.
(2025).
Comparing nature conservation policies using a Bayesian belief network: Modeling sequential effects on adoption, farming practices, and biodiversity.
Conservation Science and Practice, pp. e70146, https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.70146.
(2025).
Markets and incentives strongly drive agroforestry adoption: insights from ethnic minority smallholders in Son La, Vietnam.
Agroforestry Systems, pp. 99:129, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10457-025-01199-4.
Experience
Senior Scientist
University of Bonn, Institute of Crop Science and Resource Conservation (INRES), Horticulture Institute
Teaching graduate courses, graduate student supervision, project management
Guest Researcher
Center for Development Research (ZEF)
Teaching interdisciplinary graduate courses in programming and modeling.
Scientific Staff
Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences, Faculty of Life Sciences
Teaching undergraduate courses in horticulture.
Contact
- cory@cory-whitney.com
- +49 228 73 4643
- Auf dem Hügel 6, Bonn, NRW 53121
- Monday 10:00 to 13:00
Wednesday 14:00 to 16:00