Vital resources such as drinking water and the air we breathe are created by interactions between the Earth’s geo- and biosphere. Understanding these interactions in detail is therefore essential for the well-being of humankind. The current human impact on ecosystems is unprecedented, but the underlying laws of nature always apply. The TERRA Cluster of Excellence will investigate how geo-biosphere interactions both respond to and influence environmental change. TERRA tests the hypothesis of whether the geosphere’s diversity stabilizes the biosphere and, vice versa, whether the biosphere’s diversity stabilizes the geosphere – and asks: if this is the case, how?
TERRA stands in the established Tübingen tradition of joint research in the geosciences and life sciences, and includes researchers from the University of Hohenheim and the Senckenberg Society for Nature Research in Frankfurt. TERRA pursues an integrative approach, combining fieldwork, experiments, and data studies analysing different periods of the Earth's history.

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Doctoral and postdoctoral positions are now available online.

Welcome to the online representation of our research group "Environmental Systems Analysis". If you do not find what you are looking for please do not hesitate to contact  us. Thanks a lot for your interest!

Who we are

We are a group of researchers who are convinced that our interdisciplinary research can contribute to solving pressing environmental challenges. Our scientific co-operations combine complementary expertise to create synergies that enable us to advance our understanding of environmental processes and interdependencies, to provide the knowledge for policy decisions and sustainable management, and to raise public awareness and responsibility for our environment.

What we are looking for

We focus on interdisciplinary approaches to analyze the processes and interactions of environmental systems. In order to deepen our knowledge on mechanism and influencing parameters our research combines methods from system science and experimental data with mathematical modeling.

What we teach

For the study programs Geoecology, Geoscience, Environmental Sciences and Applied Environmental Geoscience we teach the scientific methodologies to analyze and understand complex environmental systems. On the basis of specific objectives or research questions students learn how to identify system elements, interactions and boundaries, their translation into mathematical/quantitative descriptions and their analysis including uncertainty and sensitivity.

How you can contact us

If you would like to learn more about our activities please have a look at the up-coming events and our publications or feel free to contact us.

Our latest research