Many changes in the climate system are already irreversible for centuries to millennia due to past and future greenhouse gas emissions and will intensify in direct relation to increasing global warming. This includes an increase in the frequency and intensity of heat extremes, heavy rainfall events or droughts.
Dense building development, the expansion of transport infrastructure and the sealing and building of climatically important open and green spaces will make cities in particular even more vulnerable to the consequences of climate change. The negative consequences of such environmental risks include dangers to life and limb of the population, risks to the existence and usability of buildings and infrastructure, and generally the loss of economic values.
It is therefore obvious that the resilience of local urban and regional systems to environmental risks must be improved. At IÖR, we use the concept of resilience, which is increasingly being applied worldwide, to help cities and regions deal with the risks and uncertainties associated with climate change hazards. Another challenge is that there are significant differences in the level of knowledge about different types of environmental risks with regard to adaptation strategies and measures.
While there is still a considerable need for research on heat or drought, there is already an extensive international body of knowledge on floods, especially river floods. It is crucial that studies go beyond individual risks and consider mutually reinforcing hazards (such as heat and drought) as well as path dependencies resulting from their interactions. Appropriate solutions for adaptation could include multifunctional land uses or nature-based solutions (NBS), including green-blue infrastructure.
Regine Ortlepp expertise lies primarily in the area of risk assessment and the adaptation of buildings to natural hazards such as flooding, heavy rain, heat and earthquakes. Her research aims to make buildings and cities more resilient in the long term.
Christoph Schünemann is primarily concerned with the assessment of summer heat stress and the effect of adaptation measures in buildings as well as in open spaces. He also uses social modelling approaches to investigate the implementation dynamics of adaptation measures in society.
Marco Neubert develops risk analyses and adaptation options for climate change-related environmental influences, in particular flooding and drought. To this end, it models the corresponding climate impacts using geographical information systems with the aim of adapting society to the expected climate impacts.
Reinhard Schinke is primarily concerned with the question of how buildings are at risk from flooding and other effects of climate change. This includes analysing how well precautionary measures and adaptation strategies work. An important task here is the development of computer models that show how damage to buildings can develop during such events, as well as the creation of databases with specialised knowledge in this area.