This research area deals with the natural environment from the perspective of landscapes, ecosystems and biodiversity, whereby the primary interest is socio-ecological aspects of open space in regions, cities and urban districts. The focus is on the analysis and evaluation of transformation processes and the development of strategies, concepts, (legal) instruments and incentives for their control. With our research, we aim to develop liveable landscapes as well as to maintain and improve the performance of ecosystems and biodiversity. Key concepts for us are, for example, nature-based solutions or green and blue infrastructure.
In the Research Group Urban Human-Nature Resonance, an interdisciplinary Leibniz-junior research group, we are developing and testing the innovative concept of human-nature resonance in an urban context that focuses on the (re)connection between human and nonhuman nature in cities as potential lever for sustainability transformation.
The central research questions of the research area are: