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Green Research Network

Building Climate Resilience for a Vital Environment (BRaVE): Identification of Vulnerabilities, Indicators and Implications for Actions

Interdisciplinary research network of the Centre for Climate Resilience

 

 

GOAL AND APPROACH

The aim of the Green Research Network Building Climate Resilience for a Vital Environment (BRaVE): Identification of Vulnerabilities, Indicators and Implications for Actions is to develop interdisciplinary methods to identify climate-related vulnerabilities and to derive quantitative and/or qualitative indicators for the early identification of risks. This will be used to develop sustainable solutions to mitigate these risks.

The vulnerabilities to be addressed cover a wide-range of disciplines at the Centre for Climate Resilience, including geoscientific, resource-economic, logistical, medical, social, political, and legal risks.
 
© University of Augsburg

The figure illustrates the general approach to be taken in three steps. In the first step (inner circle), the various risks to be addressed will be identified, e. g., through a standardised analysis of the literature. In the second step (middle circle), related vulnerabilities will be quantified or qualitatively described to derive the relevant indicators. In the third step (outer circle), risk and vulnerability indicators will be applied to case studies. The extent to which the methods and indicators can be used for the early identification of risks in practice will also be analysed. Based on this, corresponding measures (actions) will be derived. The added value of the interdisciplinary Green Research Network lies in the fact that the methods and indicators can be transferred and adapted to different disciplines.

 

 

 

The application and evaluation of the developed methods can be tested using:

 

  • a spatially and temporally delimited socio-economic system in the sense of a ‘real-world laboratory’,
  • analysis of empirical data,
  • quantification of the effects of the measures through model-based evaluation and planning models based on real data.

Finally, application-orientated recommendations for action (measures) will be derived, with the aim to develop measures with international applicability.

The research is orientated by the international Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
 
 

STRUCTURE & SUB-PROJECTS

The Green Research Network comprises 12 sub-projects, each of which will be funded with 0.5 doctoral positions over 3 years from the "Green Transformation" funds of the University of Augsburg. The sub-projects have started in the 3rd quarter of 2024 and will be completed at the end of the 4th quarter of 2027. In the spirit of the required interdisciplinarity, as many disciplines as possible currently involved in the CCR should be represented. In addition to the CCR, other researchers from the University of Augsburg, in particular the Environmental Science Center (WZU) and the Centre for Interdisciplinary Health Research (CIHR), are involved as tandem partners in the supervision of the BRaVE doctoral students. The sub-projects are as follows:

 

Coordinator:

Prof. Dr. Harald Kunstmann, Chair for Regional Climate and Hydrology (Faculty of Applied Computer Sciences, Institute of Geography)

 

Tandem-Partners:

Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Buermann, Chair for Physical Geography and Climate Science (Faculty of Applied Computer Sciences, Institute of Geography)

Dr. Christof Lorenz, Dr. Tanja Schober, Rebecca Wiegels, research associates at KIT-Campus Alpin in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, resort S2S

 

Abstract:

The consecutive dry years of 2018, 2019, 2020 and again in 2022 and 2023 have shown that water shortages are also becoming a challenge in Germany, a country of cool-temperate climate that has had to cope mainly with heavy precipitation and flooding extremes in the past.

Significant water deficits combined with anomalous high temperatures have stressed ecosystems and are even jeopardizing the water supply for municipalities at times and regionally. This PhD research has the objective to develop measures and quantitative indicators for resilience of water system states, particularly recovery of soil moisture and groundwater recharge after disturbances such as prolonged drought- and heat periods. The suggested approach is motivated from metrics developed and applied in ecosystem sciences (Ingrisch and Bahn, 2018) and aims to transfer a bivariate framework that jointly considers the disturbance impact and recovery rate (both normalized to an undisturbed system state) into hydrological sciences. The derived indicators will be analyzed using high resolution simulation fields for soil moisture, streamflow level and groundwater recharge proxies obtained from WRF-Hydro coupled model simulations for South Germany and the Eastern Alps in 2x2km2 spatial resolution. Here, both reanalysis runs from 1990 on and regional climate runs based on the RCP8.5 emission scenario till 2050 are available. To enable early warning of potentially problematic resilience states, the approach will finally be extended using subseasonal to seasonal predictions (S2S). This ensemble-based probability approach may allow early warning of droughts and heat waves and their impact on resilience up to seven months in advance.
 
Specific requirements and qualifications for applicants:
Excellent degree in environmental sciences, hydrology, meteorology, geoecology, geography or related fields such as physics. Very good knowledge in the field of hydrology and climatology as well as programming experience in Python, R or MATLAB are expected. Experience in physically based hydrological modeling is desired. Also in the area of ​​scientific computing on clusters.

Coordinator:

Prof. Dr. Katharina Waha, Climate Resilience of Human-made ecosystems, Head of Chair (Faculty of Applied Computer Sciences, Institute of Geography)

 

Tandem-Partner:

Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Buermann, Physical Geography and Climate Science, Head of Chair (Faculty of Applied Computer Sciences, Institute of Geography) 
 
Abstract:

To build climate resilience, local communities and national governments need to stabilize their ecosystems, both natural and managed ecosystems. The lack of systematic evaluation of past extreme events and their impacts and remaining challenges in representing the major management strategies in global impact models reduces our capacity to assess their usefulness for planning resilient ecosystem management. We will combine satellite data, ecosystem modeling for the entire biosphere and novel climate extreme detection methods to develop an improved understanding of the resilience of different ecosystems and methods for monitoring resilience over larger spatial scales. This project can be integrated with other BRaVE projects focusing on climate, economic or supply risks or other risks in human- managed ecosystems as a first step to understand risks and their implications. The PhD student will be trained in analyses of time series of satellite data, and computer modelling and benefit from expertise of the two main supervisors and integration in their national and international networks, as well as collaboration with PhD students from other disciplines to jointly develop methods for detecting climate risks applied on different scales.

 

Specific requirements and qualifications for applicants:

  • Interest (and possibly knowledge) in programming and working with large, also global geographical and climatological data sets
  • Interest (and possibly experience) in processing spatial data with R or Python
  • Very good English skills, oral and in writing, including scientific writing
  • Demonstrated capacity for timely completion of a high-quality research thesis

Coordinator:

Prof. Dr. Markus Keck, Chair for Urban Climate Resilience (Faculty of Applied Computer Sciences, Institute of Geography)

 

Tandem-Partner:

Prof. Dr. Peter Fiener, Professorship for Water and Soil Resource Research, (Faculty of Applied Computer Sciences, Institute of Geography)

 

Abstract:

High birth rates, political instability, and climate change are putting growing pressure on land use in Africa. In this context, smallholder farmers in the East African rift system are increasingly forced to cultivate very steep slopes that must be considered as "critical zones" as they are at risk to collapse in the near future. In this project, we take the eastern slopes of the Rwenzori Mountains in the Albertine Rift in Uganda as a showcase to investigate whether and to what extent it is possible to increase the resilience of this critical zone in order to prevent the collapse of the agricultural systems on steep slopes in this area. By combining perspectives from social and natural science, this interdisciplinary project provides empirical findings on the resilience of steep-slope agriculture in East Africa and serves as a starting point for international research cooperation dealing with the resilience of critical zones worldwide.

Coordinator:

Dr. Andrea Thorenz, Resource Lab of the Institute of Materials Resource Management (Faculty of Mathematics, Natural Sciences, and Materials Engineering)


Tandem-Partners:

PD Dr. Simon Meissner, Environmental Science Centre (Wissenschaftszentrum Umwelt, WZU)
Prof. Dr. Christoph Helbig, Chair for Ecological Resource Technology (Faculty of Engineering Science, University of Bayreuth)

 

Abstract:

Modern society's prosperity is deeply intertwined with a substantial demand for biotic and abiotic materials. This PhD project will examine the impact of climate change on the availability of raw materials. The implications are wide-ranging, from direct supply disruptions to demand increases through decarbonization technologies and climate change adaptation measures.

Particularly, the changing material flows due to adaptation measures have been barely scientifically investigated yet. Enormous material requirements are to be expected through technical adaptation measures. The PhD project will develop an indicator-based quantitative method for assessing future demands of adaptation measures, paving the way for early identification of potential impacts and vulnerabilities, such as supply bottlenecks or contradictions with mitigation goals. Finally, the project will apply the method to a case study, verifying the approach and deriving strategies to address potential impacts and vulnerabilities.
The project's outcomes will contribute to SDGs 2, 3, 6, 7, 9, 11, 13 and 15.ulty of Mathematics, Natural Sciences, and Materials Engineerin

Coordinator:

Prof. Dr. Maria Backhouse, Chair of Environmental Sociology with a Focus on Socio-Ecological Transformation, Resilience Design and Climate (Faculty of Philosophy and Social Sciences)

 
Tandem-Partner:

Prof. Dr. Jens Soentgen, Environmental Science Centre (Wissenschaftszentrum Umwelt, WZU)

 
Abstract:
The projects in the Amazon basin aimed at generating certificates for the voluntary carbon offset market have made only a small contribution to forest and climate protection to date.
Simultaneously, they are associated with socio-ecological risks such as biodiversity loss due to monocultural tree plantations or the growing vulnerability of traditional communities resulting from the restriction of their land use practices. Nonetheless, many stakeholders from the state, civil society, and the private sector continue to support this climate protection mechanism, hoping for a new boom in the context of the UN Climate Change Conference in Brazil in 2025 (COP30). Against this backdrop, the qualitative research project examines the international negotiations on how to address the already recognized socio-ecological risks of the emerging carbon offset market in an unequal global context. Discourse analysis will also be used to clarify the impacts of this compensation approach on the discourse of green transformation in the context of global inequalities. For this purpose, publications, expert interviews, and participant observations will be analyzed within the context of COP30 and the counter-summit.

Coordinator:

Prof. Dr. Angela Oels, Chair for Political Science with a specialization in climate politics (Faculty of Philosophy and Social Sciences)

 

Tandem-Partner:

Prof. Dr. Simone Müller, DFG-Heisenberg Professor for Global Environmental History and Environmental Humanities(Faculty of Philology and History)

 
Abstract:
The objective of the project is to develop interdisciplinary methods to assess and rethink existing practices of identification of vulnerability in former colonial territories, especially in the Caribbean region. The (colonial and other) trajectories of inequality are placed into focus which perpetuate certain patterns of vulnerability. WP1 of the project brings together the disciplines of history and political science in investigating discourses and practices of “vulnerability” in the Caribbean from both a decolonial Political Ecology perspective and a discourse perspective.
WP2 involves field work on the island state of Dominica. Which constructions of “vulnerability” inform policies of early warning and planned relocation in the face of climate change will be investigated via interviews with both government and citizen/ civil society actors. WP3 produces interdisciplinary guidance on how the decolonization of indicators of vulnerability could be operationalized.
 
Specific requirements and qualifications for applicants:
  • completed Master’s degree in Political Science or International Relations, Human Geography or a related field
  • experience with Foucaultian discourse analysis (or related approaches) and/or ethnographic approaches in the M.A. or B.A. thesis or in course work is required (please attach evidence to your application)
  • Willingness to live and work up to 6 months in the Caribbean doing fieldwork
  • a passion for and excellent knowledge of poststructuralist, feminist or decolonial perspectives in political science
  • previous experience with the subject matter of climate change and/ or migration (for example in an internship or in course work) is an advantage
  • experience in research management is an advantage
  • excellent command of the English language is a requirement
  • German language skills are an asset
  • International and intercultural experience is an asset
  • You are a loyal and committed team-player, capable of independent and critical thinking
  • You are willing to relocate to a place in or near Augsburg

Please submit your application in English as a single PDF-file (please reduce the file size to less than 4 MB). Your application should include the following parts (in this order):

  • your CV and list of publications/ presentations (if applicable)
  • a letter of motivation that describes your qualification for/ interest in the position
  • a writing sample proving familiarity with discourse analysis or poststructuralist, decolonial or feminist theories (a publication, course work or your M.A. thesis)
  • a reference letter by a senior university lecturer/professor (in English or German) who supports your application (this is mandatory)
  • relevant transcript of records, B.A. and M.A. certificates (for MA no later than 01.09.2024)
  • references from former employers, including internships

Coordinator: 

Prof. Dr. Florian Diekert, Professorship of Environmental Economics (Faculty of Business and Economics)

 

Tandem-Partner:

Prof. Dr. Harald Kunstmann, Chair for Regional Climate and Hydrology (Faculty of Applied Computer Sciences, Institute of Geography)

 
Abstract:
Early warning systems (EWS) can be very valuable as they may allow decision-makers to prepare for extreme events, or even avoid them altogether. The proposed project OpEWS studies conceptual questions that need to be answered for an actual application of EWS- theory: Could EWS provide incentives to rely on them and thus take too much risk? What willingness to pay would decision-makers have in strategic situations? And above all, how can EWS be used in dynamic decision-making situations?

Coordinator:

Prof. Dr. Manuel Ostermeier, Professorship of Resilient Operations (Faculty of Business and Economics)

 

Tandem-Partner:

Prof. Dr. Sebastian Schiffels, Professorship of Digital Health & Medical Decision Making (Faculty of Business and Economics)

 
Abstract:
Uncertainty along the value chain has become increasingly relevant in recent years.
Climate change and global disasters are disrupting established supply chains and affecting our daily lives. Supply chains for the health and food sectors, which are fundamental to our supply of vital products, are coming under particular scrutiny. This research project is therefore particularly concerned with the vulnerability of these supply chains to climate-induced changes and the question of how multi-level planning problems can contribute to the resilience of these systems.
 
Specific requirements and qualifications for applicants:

Outstanding university degree in business informatics, industrial engineering, business mathematics or comparable degree programs with a focus on Operations Research. Very good knowledge of quantitative planning methods in the field of supply chain management, production and/or logistics. In addition, knowledge of applications in healthcare and/or food logistics is desirable. Programming skills (preferably in C++/Java) as well as experience with optimization and simulation software are required, in particular knowledge in the implementation of exact and heuristic solution methods. Experience in Sustainable SCM and/or Operations as well as a good command of German and English are also desirable.

Coordinator:

Prof. Dr. Sebastian Utz, Professorship of Financial Economics with a focus on Climate Finance (Faculty of Business and Economics)
 
Tandem-Partner:
Prof. Dr. Marco Wilkens, Chair of Finance and Banking (Faculty of Business and Economics)
 
Abstract:
This research project investigates the usefulness of metrics used by financial market participants to assess the impact of corporate activities on biodiversity (e.g., SDGS 14 & 15) for the early identification of financial and economic risks and how their consideration can increase the resilience of financial actors. To this end, the metrics of different providers, so- called biodiversity footprints, are examined for consistency, and reasons for deviations are identified. It is particularly important to understand for which groups of companies the footprints deviate strongly so that the additional risk due to inaccurate metrics can be considered in financing and investment decisions. In this context, the influence of these deviations on the efficient pricing of risks is investigated.
 
Specific requirements and qualifications for applicants:
Excellent degree in economics with a focus on sustainable finance or related fields. Excellent knowledge of empirical capital market research and programming experience in R, Python, or STATA are expected. Methodological focus on quantitative statistical and econometric methods, independent programming, and handling of large empirical data sets.

Coordinator:

Prof. Dr. Sina Fontana, Chair for Public Law and Crisis Resilience (Faculty of Law)
 
Tandem-Partner:
Prof. Dr. Matthias Rossi, Chair for Constitutional and Administrative Law, European Law and Legislative Theory (Faculty of Law)
 
Abstract:
A "climate check" for all draft legislation was agreed upon in the current coalition agreement.
Such an instrument is also being discussed in the scientific community. All draft legislation shall be reviewed in terms of its impact on the climate and its compatibility with climate protection targets and accompanied by a corresponding justification. So far, however, no standardized methodology for presenting the benefits or consequences of legislation exists. According to the "climate check", there are particular challenges, where the most far-reaching ecological, macroeconomic and social consequences of legislation in the long term have to be addressed, depending on reliable indicators and scientific findings. On this basis, the project aims to develop methods for a "climate check" in the sense of a climate-related regulatory impact assessment.
 
Specific requirements and qualifications for applicants:
  • Academic law studies at a university, preferably above average
  • Interest in an in-depth academic study of legal issues relating to constitutional and state law, environmental and climate law and legislative theory
  • Interest in interdisciplinary work

Coordinator:

Prof. Dr. Claudia Traidl-Hoffmann, Chair for Environmental Medicine (Faculty of Medicine)
 
Tandem-Partner:

Prof. Dr. Sarah Friedrich, Chair for Mathematical Statistics and Artificial Intelligence in Medicine (Institute of Mathematics, Faculty of Mathematics, Natural Sciences, and Materials Engineering)

 
Abstract:
Pollen allergies are among the most frequent non-communicable diseases. Due to climate change, they have become more intense, owing to longer pollen seasons and higher pollen concentrations. Approaches to improve climate resilience in pollen allergics include pollen monitoring and alerts.
We recently developed a local pollen forecast, which we integrated it into an allergy app. The app and its functions were then evaluated in a controlled clinical trial, where we measured a benefit of the app’s pollen forecast for allergic rhinitis patients.
We plan to:
  • Optimise, train and validate our existing air-pollutant forecast with open-access data
  • Include new pollen taxa in our pollen forecast, test and optimise its performance in future pollen seasons
  • Correlate the forecasted pollen with symptoms of a running allergic rhinitis panel study (2024-2026)
  • In collaboration with the UFS “Schneefernerhaus”: Integrate recent findings on pollen long-distance transport and temperature data into the existing pollen forecast

Specific requirements and qualifications for applicants:

  • Master’s or equivalent degree in informatics, bioinformatics or medical informatics
  • Programming skills in Python, R, C++
  • Willingness to learn and adapt methods
  • Diligent and organized working style
  • Interest in working with medical and environmental data
  • Ability to work in a highly interdisciplinary field
  • Excellent communication skills (inter-disciplinary and international team)
  • Excellent level of English language, both oral and written
  • Analytical but also open and creative mind
  • Interest in scientific writing and presentation
  • A background in the field of modelling environmental data is appreciated, but not a strict requirement

Coordinator:

Prof. Dr. Elke Hertig, Chair for Regional Climate Change and Health (Faculty of Medicine)

 

Tandem-Partners:
Dr. Christian Merkenschlager, Chair for Regional Climate Change and Health (Faculty of Medicine)
Prof. Dr. Harald Kunstmann, Chair for Regional Climate and Hydrology (Faculty of Applied Computer Sciences, Institute of Geography)
Dr. Mandy Schäfer, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Greifswald
Dr. Renke Lühken, Bernhard-Nocht-Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg
 
Abstract:
The project aims at the development of an early-warning system with respect to the risk of mosquito-borne diseases in Germany. Due to climate change, invasive mosquitoes are spreading, and native species are experiencing habitat changes, increasing the risk of mosquito-borne diseases (MBDs). All mosquitoes have in common that their evolution and establishment are tied to specific temperature and precipitation thresholds. Because of the relatively short life-cycle stages of mosquitoes, changes in weather can have substantial impacts on reproduction rate, abundance, and survival. Since the weather in Central Europe is strongly influenced by large- scale teleconnection patterns like the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), the project tries to establish a link between the character of these teleconnections and the seasonal abundance and distribution of native and invasive species in Germany. In addition, the project will investigate smaller-scale weather patterns and its impact on the different life-cycle stages of mosquitoes. If relationships can be confirmed, the project will make a significant contribution to the fight against MBDs.
 
Specific requirements and qualifications for applicants:
Degree in geography, meteorology, ecology or similar fields of study. Very good knowledge in the field of climatology as well as programming skills in R, Python or MATLAB are expected. Methodological focus is on quantitative statistical analysis, programming as well as on climate and vector modelling.

 

 

 

CONTACT PERSONS

Scientific Coordination:
Dr. Andrea Thorenz
Senior Researcher, Head of Resource Lab
Institute of Materials Resource Management

Homepage:

Email:

Prof. Dr. Axel Tuma
Beauftragter für Grüne Transformation
University of Augsburg

Email:

 

 

Organisation and Administration:

Dr. Clemens Heuson
Managing Director
Centre for Climate Resilience

Email:

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