Federal Ministry funds new research group at HU on resilient urban landscapes
Dr Thilo Wellmann develops monitoring tools for green municipal infrastructure
Three new research groups for young scientists are working at Humboldt University in Berlin (HU), including Dr Thilo Wellmann's group at the Institute of Geography in Adlershof, which is funded by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR):
Resilient Urban Landscapes: Developing a Municipal Monitoring System for Nature-Based Solutions in Cities
Climate change and biodiversity loss pose major challenges for local authorities in Germany. Local trends such as increasing land consumption are exacerbating the situation. Both require local authorities to transform themselves towards greater sustainability and resilience – for example, by introducing nature-based solutions such as green roofs, water-permeable pavements, urban forests, and exposed rivers.
To support municipalities in increasing local biodiversity and improving quality of life, the research group “Resilient Urban Landscapes in Global Change” at HU is working with environmental policy stakeholders to develop a novel monitoring system.
This is based primarily on data from satellite images and is intended to provide small and medium-sized municipalities in particular with accessible, understandable, and practical information throughout Germany. This includes, for example, drought damage to street trees, the loss of valuable garden areas or developments in the field of environmental justice — i.e., the connection between socio-economic reality and environmental quality. The data serves to enable sustainable decisions to be made and to make the local environment more resilient and equitable.
The project will receive approximately €1.86 million in funding from the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology, and Space, running from November 2025 to October 2030. The project partners are Kommbio-Kommunen für Biologische Vielfalt e.V, and Biologische Station Westliches Ruhrgebiet e.V.
Contact:
Dr. rer. nat. Thilo Wellmann
Institute of Geography
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
+49 30 2093-6803
thilo.wellmann(at)geo.hu-berlin.de
In addition, two research groups have commenced their work at the Thaer-Institute of Agricultural and Horticultural Sciences. For more information, please refer to the full press release from HU.
Credit: HU Berlin, 12 February 2026