José Dörner is Full Professor at the Institute of Agricultural Engineering and Soils, Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Universidad Austral de Chile (UACh). He is also a member of the Research Center on Volcanic Ash Soils at UACh. He was Dean of the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences and Rector of the Universidad Austral de Chile. He received his Bachelor’s degree from Universidad Austral de Chile and specialised in Soil Physics at the Cristian Albrechts University of de Kiel, Germany, where he obtained the degree of Doctor of Agricultural Sciences. His main research interests are related to the study of the physical behaviour of volcanic ash soils under a wide range of land uses. In this context, he has studied: i) how the soil's water storage function can be improved through the management and conservation of the soil structure, ii) the effect of grazing on the mechanical strength and hydraulic properties of the soil, and iii) how the land use change of different volcanic has soils affects the transport of water, air and heat in the profile.