People involved
Dr. Ahmed Abdelfattah
Microbiome Biotechnology
Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy (ATB)
"I am focused on understanding how plant-associated microbes are transmitted between generations and how global change may influence their community composition. The main goals of Microbiome Management are to understanding the interlinked effects of the microbiome in circular bio economy; Developing microbiome-based products and microbiome management strategies; and establishing integrative, eco-evolutionary understanding of microbiomes for sustainable future."
E-Mail: aabdelfattahuatb-potsdampde
CV
Prof. Dr. Robert Arlinghaus
Integrative Recreational Fisheries Management
Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) & Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
"I study fish and fisheries mainly in inland waters and coastal environments. I am interested in fundamental understanding of fish behavior, ecology and evolution and the features and dynamics of social-ecological interactions of fish, aquatic systems and human exploiters. I am keen to apply scientific principles to conservation and management problems of fisheries and aquatic ecosystem management. I also like to shape practice in transdisciplinary settings with fisheries and conservation stakeholders."
E-Mail: robert.arlinghausuigb-berlinpde
CV
Prof. Dr. Gabriele Berg
Microbiome Biotechnology
Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy (ATB) & University of Potsdam & Graz University of Technology
"Fascinated by the microbial world, I am interested in discovering novel microbiomes and their functions, understanding rules of microbiome ecology and disentangling microbiome interplay with eukaryotic hosts. Moreover, I am working on developing sustainable microbiome management strategies for one and planetary health."
E-Mail: GBerguatb-potsdampde
CV
PD Dr. Niels Blaum
Plant Ecology & Nature Conservation
University of Potsdam
"My main research interest is on understanding the impacts of land use and climate change on all levels of biodiversity (diversity of species, structures and genes) including studies on population ecology and behaviour. I am a field ecologist and particularly fascinated to explore how the variability of animal movements, as a key process linking all levels of biodiversity, contribute to maintain and shape communities. My study organisms range from arthropods over reptiles to mammals."
E-Mail: blaumuuni-potsdampde
CV
Prof. Dr. Luc De Meester
Evolving Metacommunities
Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) & Freie Universität Berlin
"I am fascinated by how communities and populations respond to environmental gradients, and to what extent ecological and evolutionary processes interact in shaping these responses. My research interests are broad, ranging from the ecology of lakes and ponds to ecological genomics, but with a special interest in evolutionary ecology, eco-evolutionary dynamics and (evolving) metacommunity ecology in the context of Global Change."
E-Mail: Luc.DeMeesteruigb-berlinpde
CV
Prof. Dr. Elke Dittmann
Microbiology
University of Potsdam
"I am intrigued by chemical mediators and their role in structuring microbial communities and host-microbe interactions. My focus is the investigation biosynthetic pathways of specialized compounds in cyanobacteria as well as their evolutionary diversification, biotechnological exploitation and spatial and temporal distribution in microbial communities."
E-Mail: edittuuni-potsdampde
CV
Prof. Dr. Jana Eccard
Animal Ecology
University of Potsdam
"In my group we use different ecological, life-history and behavioural tools to better understand the evolutionary adaptation of animals to their environment. We are specifically interested in animal behaviour and look at it regarding different aspects and scales. The topics we are researching range from fundamental research topics, like for example the connection between inter-individual differences and learning, coexistence, movement-mediated biodiversity research and the landscape of fear."
E-Mail: animal-ecologyuuni-potsdampde
CV
Prof. Dr. Bertrand Fournier
Landscape Ecology
University of Potsdam
"The aim of our research is to understand the mechanisms that drive the spatial and temporal patterns of biodiversity. We focus on how human activities alter ecological processes in anthropogenic landscapes across a broad range of scales and taxonomic groups."
Prof. Dr. Ursula Gaedke
Ecology & Ecosystem Modelling
University of Potsdam
"We investigate plankton communities and food webs in field, laboratory and model studies to contribute to ecological theory building and to the solution of pressing ecological problems such as the consequences of biodiversity loss. A core area of my research is the interplay between the dynamics of ecological systems and their functional diversity, which determines their adaptability to changing environmental conditions."
E-Mail: gaedkeuuni-potsdampde
CV
Dr. Lynn Govaert
Eco-Evolutionary Dynamics
Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB)
"I am an evolutionary ecologist. My goal is to understand how trait changes and trait variation affect community structure and functioning of ecosystems in time and space. My main research interest focuses on the quantification of absolute and relative contributions of ecological and evolutionary processes and how these shape communities and metacommunities in their response to environmental change."
E-Mail: lynn.govaertuigb-berlinpde
CV
Prof. Dr. Volker Grimm
Ecological Modelling
Helmholtz-Centre of Environmental Research (UFZ) & University of Potsdam
"I am interested in strategies and methods for making ecological modelling more coherent and efficient. The ultimate aim is to develop preditive models that provide mechanstic understanding of ecological systems and that are transparent and structurally realistic enough to support environmental decision making."
E-Mail: volker.grimmuufzpde
CV
Prof. Dr. Mark Hauber
Host-Parasite Interaction
University of Illinois
"I am a behavioral ecologist, conservation scientist, and comparative psychologist, focusing on the evolution of recognition systems, and using land- and seabirds to address questions about how individuals recognize themselves, their mates, their young, their prey, and their predators. Shifting gears between behavioral, developmental, and molecular tools, my lab has been studying the social and genetic consequences of species recognition in avian brood parasites, such as cuckoos and cowbirds. "
E-Mail: mhauberuillinoispedu
CV
Prof. Dr. Ulrike Herzschuh
Polar Terrestrial Environmental Systems
Helmholtz-Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) & University of Potsdam
"Polar regions are some of the most sensitive and vulnerable regions on Earth. In particular, the long-term interactions between climate, ecosystems and humans in polar continental areas are still poorly understood. Therefore, my research group investigates past climate dynamics, high-latitude vegetation change, arctic lake system dynamics and biodiversity change in high latitudes."
E-Mail: Ulrike.Herzschuhuawipde
CV
Prof. Dr. Heribert Hofer
Leibniz-IZW Director
Leibniz Institute for Zoo- and Wildlife Research (IZW) & Freie Universität Berlin
"Our goal is to understand the adaptability of wildlife in the context of global change and to contribute to the enhancement of the survival of viable wildlife populations. For this purpose, we investigate the diversity of life histories, the mechanisms of evolutionary adaptations and their limits, including diseases, as well as the interrelations of wildlife with their environment and people. We use expertise from biology and veterinary medicine in an interdisciplinary approach to conduct fundamental and applied research."
E-Mail: direktoruizw-berlinpde
CV
Prof. Dr. Florian Jeltsch
Plant Ecology & Nature Conservation
University of Potsdam
"One of the driving questions of my academic career is how mechanisms at the level of single organisms scale up to populations, communities and biodiversity. In the last 30 years I addressed this question in a large number of different (mainly modelling but also empirical) projects covering plant, animal, community and landscape ecology. One important aspect of my work is the refinement and development of ecological theory and concepts as well as modelling strategies."
E-Mail: jeltschuuni-potsdampde
CV
Prof. Dr. Jonathan Jeschke
Ecological Novelty
Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) & Freie Universität Berlin
"Ecological novelty is an umbrella term for unprecedented, human-mediated changes at different ecological levels, from organisms and populations to communities, ecosystems and landscapes. These direct and indirect effects of human action lead, for instance, to novel organisms and novel communities which we investigate in our group."
E-Mail: jonathan.jeschkeuigb-berlinpde
CV
Prof. Dr. Stephanie Kramer-Schadt
Ecological Dynamics
Leibniz Institute for Zoo- and Wildlife Research (IZW) & Technische Universität Berlin
„My research is focused on understanding wildlife population dynamics in space and time, and across gradients of human altered environments. I investigate how fitness consequences of processes acting at the individual level, such as host-pathogen interactions, shape population and community dynamics.”
E-Mail: krameruizw-berlinpde
CV
Prof. Dr. Anja Linstädter
Biodiversity Research & Systematic Botany
University of Potsdam
"Our working group is interested in mechanisms maintaining biodiversity and how biodiversity is affected by land-use changes, climate change and other human influences, particularly in agricultural landscapes. We focus on the ecology of invasive plant species, on ecosystem functions, on plant-soil interactions and on evolutionary ecology of plant species in the face of climate change."
E-Mail: biodiversityuuni-potsdampde
CV
Prof. Dr. Ulrike Lucke
Complex Multimedia Application Architectures
University of Potsdam
"My research activities include institutional infrastructures for education, research and administration. I am especially interested in mobile and pervasive applications, E-Learning and -Science and interoperability in heterogeneous environments."
E-Mail: ulrike.luckeuuni-potsdampde
CV
Dr. Valeria Mazza
Animal Ecology
University of Potsdam
"I am a behavioural ecologist interested in understanding the reciprocal relationships between behaviour and evolution, and particularly how this interaction plays out in the context of current human-induced rapid environmental changes."
E-Mail: vamazzauuni-potsdampde
CV
Prof. Dr. Ralf Metzler
Theoretical Physics
University of Potsdam
"Our research focuses on non-equilibrium statistical physics, soft matter and theoretical biological physics, as well as physically motivated data science. Key topics include the theory and applications of normal and anomalous stochastic processes, gene regulation, crowding in biological cells, (bio)polymer physics, as well as Bayesian maximum likelihood and machine learning analyses."
E-Mail: rmetzleruuni-potsdampde
CV
Prof. Dr. Claas Nendel
Landscape & Ecosystem Modelling
Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) & University of Potsdam
"I am working in agricultural research on applied integrated modelling of water, nitrogen and carbon dynamics, organic matter decomposition, crop growth, product quality, and farm economics in special crops (grapevine, vegetables) and major agricultural crops. My main focus is the carry-over effect within crop rotations and the consequences for yield and product quality."
E-Mail: nendeluzalfpde
CV
Dr. Viktoriia Radchuk
Ecological Dynamics
Leibniz Institute for Zoo- and Wildlife Research (IZW)
"I am a quantitative ecologist interested in wildlife responses to global change. I study mechanisms that allow animal populations, species and communities to cope with global change. My work lays at the intersection of population ecology, community ecology, disturbance ecology and conservation biology. I apply advanced statistical tools and simulation models to assess biological responses to global change with the ultimate goal of providing conservation advice for mitigating possible negative impacts."
E-Mail: radchukuizw-berlinpde
CV
Prof. Dr. Matthias Rillig
Plant & Mycorrhizal Ecology
Freie Universität Berlin
"Our research focus is on soil ecology and global change biology, with most people in the lab working on fungi. We work with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and also saprobic fungi. A current focus in the lab is on the
concurrent influence of many environmental drivers, and on the effects of microplastics."
E-Mail: rilliguzedat.fu-berlinpde
CV
Prof. Dr. Masahiro Ryo
Artificial Intelligence
Leibniz Centre of Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) & Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus - Senftenberg
"I see myself in the face of the challenge as both 'theoretical ecologist' and 'data scientist'. As a theoretical ecologist, I look for basic rules about how dynamic systems work, which can direct us how we should study natural and ecological systems. As a data scientist, I discover key information from complex data, using machine learning tools."
E-Mail: Masahiro.Ryouzalfpde
CV
Prof. Dr. Katharina Scheiter
Educational Sciences & Digital Education
University of Potsdam
"In the empirical-quantitative research, my working group deals with the investigation of learning and teaching processes when using digital media, the design of learning-effective digital learning materials and digitally supported teaching-learning contexts as well as with digitization-related skills of teachers in the school context."
Dr. Ulrike Schlägel
Movement Ecology & Statistical Ecology
University of Potsdam
"I have a passion for statistics and mathematics, as well as nature in general and birds in particular. I put this to work to answer questions at the intersection of movement ecology, community ecology, and quantitative ecology. In particular, I’m interested in better understanding animal space use strategies and how these affect community composition, and in providing the statistical methods for the data analyses needed in this endeavour."
Prof. Dr. Thomas Schmitt
Entomology & Biogeography
Senckenberg German Entomological Institute Müncheberg & University of Potsdam
"My main research interests are the dynamics of distribution ranges as well as ecology, evolution and conservation biology. As model organisms, I mostly use butterflies and burnet moths, but also other insect groups. In my research, I try to understand the influence of Pleistocene climatic fluctuations but also other geological events on the distribution dynamics of different biogeographical groups with a focus on Europe and the Mediterranean, but also the entire Eurasian continent."
E-Mail: thomas.schmittusenckenbergpde
CV
Prof. Dr. Ralph Tiedemann
Evolutionary Biology/ Systematic Zoology
University of Potsdam
"My working group is interested in Evolutionary Biology, Molecular Evolution, and Zoological Systematics. We apply various molecular genetic methods (single gene analysis, transcriptome analysis, ddRAD sequencing, qPCR, AFLP, microsatellite typing), morphometrics, genetic modelling as well as field research. We are also experienced in evolutionary research for applied purposes (conservation genetics, biodiversity assessment)."
E-Mail: tiedemanuuni-potsdampde
CV
Prof. Dr. Britta Tietjen
Theoretical Ecology
Freie Universität Berlin
"I am fascinated by how individuals, populations and their interactions also with their abiotic environment shape the functioning and resilience of whole ecosystems. I use different model approaches to study the impacts of global change on ecosystems and their functions and services, and the role of biodiversity in this context."
E-Mail: britta.tietjenufu-berlinpde
CV
PD Dr. Christian C. Voigt
Evolutionary Ecology
Leibniz Institute for Zoo- and Wildlife Research (IZW)
"I am mostly working on questions related to the movement ecology and conservation of bats with a special focus on migratory bats, light pollution and wind energy production. Ultimately, I am interested in transforming human-wildlife conflicts into coexistence. Therefore, besides studying wildlife species I also seeks to better understand the human dimensions of conflicts."
E-Mail: voigtuizw-berlinpde
CV
apl. Prof. Dr. Guntram Weithoff
Aquatic Ecology
University of Potsdam
"I am an aquatic ecologist and I am interested in how the environment influences individuals, populations and communities and how species respond to environmental changes. To study this, I am working with freshwater phytoplankton and zooplankton."
E-Mail: weithoffuuni-potsdampde
CV
Prof. Dr. Justyna Wolinska
Disease Evolutionary Ecology
Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) & Freie Universität Berlin
"I study evolutionary and ecological processes mediated by parasitism in aquatic ecosystems. Parasites are ubiquitous and impose strong selection on their hosts to evolve resistance, while themselves being under strong selection to undermine host defenses. My research group aims to develop a better understanding of the interface between such host-parasite co-evolution and major ecological processes in the face of global environmental change."
E-Mail: wolinskauigb-berlinpde
CV
Prof. Dr. Damaris Zurell
Ecology & Macroecology
University of Potsdam
"I am a geoecologist and macroecologist with a strong interest in biodiversity dynamics and the cross-scale processes driving these. My research typically deals with modelling and data analyses to understand the factors limiting species niches and ranges, and to predict how species and communities will respond to ongoing global change."
E-Mail: damaris.zurelluuni-potsdampde
CV
