Alex Appiah Mensah

I hold a doctorate degree in forestry (skoglig doktor) from SLU. Since my disputation in June 2022, I have been working broadly with forest resource analytics using novel statistical and biological methods.

Responsible for the module (Theme 2): Forest stand dynamics - Classical Modelling Approaches in the course Silviculture - the science of forest stand management (MSc in Sustainable Forest Ecology and Management).

My research involves:

1. Long and short term growth assessment on basis of survey data, i.e., NFI and experiments.

2. Quantitative evaluation of forest site productivity on basis of the following classical tenets: the site index (height-age) hypothesis; the Eichhorn's model (common yield level) and the Special yield level model by Assmann.

3. Forest site index and age mapping utilising bi-temporal ALS data and NFI data within a framework of the area-based and model-based inference approaches. 

4. Quantification of harvested volume on basis of multispectral Sentinel-2 satellite data and NFI data.

5. Multivariate growth modelling for enhanced remote sensing data assimilation.

6. Inventory of storm-felled areas on basis of balanced sampling. 

I am involved in SLU's environmental monitoring and assessment programmes related to carbon and biomass dynamics, as well as forest growth. 

I obtained a doctorate in forestry at SLU (2018-2022) in Sweden. In addition, I also have a background in forest resource management from Ghana during my bachelor studies and from Europe during my studies in the Sustainable Forest and Nature Management programme.

1. Potential of remote sensing for quantification of volume response after fertilization - Master thesis (preliminary).

2. The estimation of the time for first thinning in Scots pine stands using repeated airborne laser scanning data - Master thesis (2021-2022).

Appiah Mensah, A., Petersson, H., Dahlgren, J., Elfving, B. (2023). Taller and slenderer trees in Swedish forests according to data from the National Forest Inventory. Forest Ecology and Management 527, 120605. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2022.120605

Appiah Mensah, A., Holmström, E., Nyström, K. & Nilsson, U. (2022). Modelling potential yield capacity in conifers using Swedish long-term experiments. Forest Ecology and Management, 512, 120162. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2022.120162

Petersson, H., Ellison, D., Appiah Mensah, A., Berndes, G., Egnell, G., Lundblad, M., Lundmark, T., Lundström, A., Stendahl, J., Wikberg, P-E. On the role of forests and the forest sector for climate change mitigation in Sweden. (2022). GCB – Bioenergy, 00:1-21. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcbb.12943

Appiah Mensah, A., Holmström, E., Petersson, H., Nyström, K., Mason, E. G., & Nilsson, U. (2021). The millennium shift: Investigating the relationship between environment and growth trends of Norway spruce and Scots pine in northern Europe. Forest Ecology and Management, 481, 118727. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2020.118727

Adusei, Y.Y., Quaye-Ballard, J., Adjaottor, A.A., Appiah Mensah, A. (2021). Spatial prediction and mapping of water quality of Owabi reservoir from satellite imageries and machine learning models. The Egyptian Journal of Remote Sensing and Space Science, 24 (3), 825-833, ISSN 1110-9823. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejrs.2021.06.006

Appiah Mensah, A., Petersson, H., Saarela, S., Goude, M., & Holmström, E. (2020). Using heterogeneity indices to adjust basal area – Leaf area index relationship in managed coniferous stands. Forest Ecology and Management, 458, 117699. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2019.117699 

Saarela, S., Wästlund, A., Holmström, E., Appiah Mensah. A., Holm, S., Nilsson, M., . . . Ståhl, G. (2020). Mapping aboveground biomass and its prediction uncertainty using LiDAR and field data, accounting for tree-level allometric and LiDAR model errors. Forest Ecosystems, 7(1), 43. https://doi:10.1186/s40663-020-00245-0

Appiah Mensah, A., Akoto Sarfo, D., and Partey, S.T. (2019). Assessment of vegetation dynamics using remote sensing and GIS: A case of Bosomtwe Range Forest Reserve, Ghana. The Egyptian Journal of Remote Sensing and Space Sciences, 22(145-154).  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejrs.2018.04.004

Daniel S. Akoto, Manfred Denich, Samuel T. Partey, Oliver Frith, Michael Kwaku, Alex Appiah Mensah and Christian Borgemeister. Socioeconomic Indicators of Bamboo Use for Agroforestry Development in the Dry Semi-Deciduous Forest Zone of Ghana. Sustainability 2018, 10(7), 2324. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10072324