Biosphere Reserves Institute
About
The Biosphere Reserves Institute is a scientific institution of the Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development (HNEE).
It was established in 2019 to promote education, research and training with a focus on the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Programme and the World Network of Biosphere Reserves as an instrument of its implementation.
Initially, the Biosphere Reserves Institute was established as HNEE's contribution to the biosphere.centre, a partnership between the Nationale Naturlandschaften e. V., the Michael Succow Foundation, and HNEE, launched in 2017. At HNEE, several professors and academic institutions – including the Centre for Econics and Ecosystem Management and the Centre for Sustainable Tourism – have initiated this partnership agreement with the aim of making their ongoing support for UNESCO Biosphere Reserves even more effective.
In 2022, the "biosphere.center" was integrated into the Biosphere Reserves Institute, and the Michael Succow Foundation and Nationale Naturlandschaften e.V. have become privileged partners.
Our mission
Established staring from 1976 under the auspices of the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Programme, biosphere reserves are currently conceived as models for sustainable development that aim to reconcile biodiversity conservation and socio-economic development through complex spatial and governance arrangements.
However, there is a big gap between this concept and practice. Our mission is to support biosphere reserves in their transition towards being model regions for sustainable development. We do so by educating and training competent management staff, by coordinating research that responds to the pressing challenges faced by biosphere reserves, and by facilitating the transfer of research results to biosphere reserve management practice.
Contact us
In Eberswalde:
Georg-Herwegh-Straße 18
Rooms 66.208-210
For correspondence:
Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development, Biosphere Reserves Institute
Schicklerstraße 5
D-16225 Eberswalde
Email: bri@hnee.de
Our Offers
a PhD programme focused on the research in, for, and with biosphere reserves (in cooperation with Leuphana University of Lüneburg)
Management
The Biosphere Reserves Institute is managed by the academic directors with the support of the managing director and the academic staff in charge of the master's study programme Biosphere Reserves Management (BIOM) and the graduate programme.
Joint Commission
About
The Joint Commission is an internal supervisory body of the Biosphere Reserves Institute. It is responsible for decisions concerning the development of the Biosphere Reserves Institute as a whole and supervises the Biosphere Reserves Institute in all areas of its activities, ensuring the quality and high academic standards of its performance.
Meetings
The Joint Commission meets every two months to discuss and decide on the strategy of the Biosphere Reserves Institute. The meetings are open to all members of Eberswalde University.
Membership
The Joint Commission consists of six professors, two members of academic staff, one member of non-academic staff and two M.Sc. BIOM students, thus playing an important role in liaising between the Biosphere Reserves Institute and the University structures.
The Joint Commission is appointed by the
Senate of Eberswalde University
on the basis of corresponding resolutions of the University’s departments that are co-founders of the Biosphere Reserves Institute. The term of office is one year for students and two years for other commission members.
Current Members
Professors:
Prof. Dr Erik Aschenbrand (Chair)
Prof. Dr Jan-Peter Mund (Deputy Chair)
Staff:
Kerstin Lehmann
Vera Clauder
Students:
Celine Christoffers
Ayomide Akinfasoye
Daniel Ojeda de Vicente (Deputy)
Partners
The Biosphere Reserves Institute partners network also includes biosphere reserves, NGOs, and universities, providing an ideal environment for sharing knowledge and working on common projects.
The Michael Succow Stiftung is based in Greifswald and was founded in 1999 as a non-profit foundation. It has been committed to nature, peatlands, climate protection, nature-friendly land use as well as the establishment and support of biosphere reserves in Germany and worldwide.
Nationale Naturlandschaften e.V. is the umbrella organization of all national parks, biosphere reserves and certified wilderness areas in Germany. We bring together experts and interested parties from all protected areas and beyond, so that positions can be coordinated, and projects implemented for the benefit of Nationale Naturlandschaften e.V.
Biosphere Reserves
Biosphere reserves are instrumental to the implementation of the UNESCO "Man and the Biosphere" Programme. Conceived as model regions for sustainable development, they are sites for testing innovative approaches to managing complex socio-ecological systems under conditions of global change. Biosphere reserves are key partners of the Biosphere Reserves Institute and the focus of its activities. The Biosphere Reserves Institute seeks to become a center of competence for biosphere reserves worldwide.
News Archive
26 NOVEMBER - 2 DECEMBER 2024 // COOPERATION WITH THE NORTH-EAST TOBAGO BR
The BRI participated in a workshop at the North-East Tobago Biosphere Reserve (NETMABR) together with representatives from other German universities, Tobago’s regional government and civil society. The goal of the workshop was to contribute to NETMABR's evaluation and monitoring programme. The conference culminated with the signing of MoUs (Memorandum of Understanding), which will enable exchange visits for students and researchers from Germany and Tobago.
9 SEPTEMBER 2024 // JOINT PAPER ON TRANSDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH PUBLISHED
During a lunch break a few years ago, BRI PhD students thought about what their work had in common. This brainstorming set forth a collaborative research work at the BRI that resulted in the recently published paper “Biosphere Reserves as Model Regions for Transdisciplinarity? A Literature Review”, in the journal Sustainability Science. The student-led team includes 5 PhD students, 3 BIOM students, 2 post-docs and 3 professors.
Discover more.
2 SEPTEMBER 2024 // COMPLETION OF BRI PHD PROJECT ON FOREST INSECTS
Fabio Weiß defended his doctoral thesis “Long-term trends in carabid communities of old lowland beech forests in the context of severe drought” at the Leuphana University Lüneburg. The research was developed in the scope of the the BRI Graduate Programme and supervised by Prof. Dr. Andreas Linde (HNEE) and Prof. Dr. Henrik von Wehrden (Leuphana University). Fabio identifies the diversity of tasks he conducted as one of the main highlights of his PhD. Congratulations!!
5 JULY 2024 // BIOM STUDENT RECEIVES UNESCO MAB YOUNG SCIENTIST AWARD
Saleem Haddad, a student of the BRI Master’s programme Biosphere Reserves Management (BIOM) is one of the winners of the MAB Young Scientist Awards 2024. Saleem's research focuses on political and cooperation dimensions of Mediterranean biosphere reserves. He is supervised by Prof. Erik Aschenbrand (BRI/HNEE) and Dr. Mari Carmen Romera (International Center for the Mediterranean Biosphere Reserves), a collaboration between two UNESCO Category 2 Institutes. Congratulations!
Discover more.
21 JUNE 2024 // COMPLETION OF BRI PHD PROJECT
Charlotte Gohr defended her doctoral thesis “Assessing the effectiveness of UNESCO biosphere reserves – towards a global monitoring tool of ecological functioning”, which investigates forests in 119 biosphere reserves worldwide. The PhD includes 5 papers and a research visit in the NASA Jet Propulsion Lab. The research was developed in the scope of the the BRI Graduate Programme and was supervised by Prof. Dr. Pierre Ibisch (HNEE) and Prof. Dr. Henrik von Wehrden (Leuphana University Lüneburg). Congratulations!!
19 JUNE 2024 // SIGNATURE BRI DESIGNATED UNESCO CATEGORY 2 INSTITUTE
The contract that establishes BRI as a UNESCO Category 2 Institute was signed in Paris by the UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay, the Ambassador of the Permanent Delegation of Germany to UNESCO Kerstin Pürschel, and the HNEE President Matthias Barth. The signature follows the unanimous decision of the UNESCO General Conference 42nd Session, which approved the designation of BRI as a Category 2 Institute under the auspices of UNESCO. Thanks to all who helped achieve this impressive recognition!
17 - 20 JUNE 2024 // TRANSECTS PROGRAM INSTITUTE CANADA
The 2024
TRANSECTS Program Institute focused on assessing progress and co-developing strategies for the second half of the project, in a meeting at the Vancouver Island University. The German team, including members of the BRI and representatives of the Elbe River Landscape Biosphere Reserve, facilitated a workshop on stakeholder communication. The team also visited the Mount Arrowsmith and the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Regions.
3 - 7 JUNE 2024 // MEETING OF UNESCO BIOSPHERE RESERVES (EUROMAB) 2024
The BRI was at the
EuroMAB
- the biannual conference of biosphere reserves from Europe and North America - in the Elbe River Landscape Biosphere Reserve. The meeting, held under the motto
Climate for Change, fostered networking and learning. The BRI team co-organised two workshops: good practices to develop research strategies, and ethics, diversity and inclusion. Students from the master's programme BIOM supported the organisation and participated in the Youth Conference that preceded the main event.
22 MARCH 2024 // FINAL CEREMONY INNOVATION AND CAREER CENTRE (IKC) PROBIO-LAB
This ceremony marks the end of the IKC "Process Design for the Implementation of Biodiversity-Conserving Land Use - Focus on Biosphere Reserves (ProBio-LaB)", which gave rise to the Biosphere Reserves Institute. It showcased the IKC journey, since the first ideas to establish a competence center about biosphere reserves, to a diversity of activities developed in that period. Participants included representatives of biosphere reserves, partner organizations, BIOM and PhD students and BRI/HNEE staff.
14 MARCH 2024 // BRI PHD-STUDENT DEFENDED DOCTORAL THESIS
Mrs Caroline Hélène Dabard successfully defended her doctoral thesis entitled "Enhancing the transformative potential of sustainability innovations: Insights from two European Biosphere Reserves" in Lüneburg. The dissertation was written as part of the Biosphere Reserves Institute in collaboration with Leuphana University Lüneburg. It was supervised by Prof. Dr. Berta Martín-López (Leuphana University Lüneburg) and Prof. Dr. Carsten Mann (HNEE). Congratulations on this great achievement!
13 - 16 FEBRUARY 2024 // INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH WORKSHOP
The workshop took place at the HNEE and brought together 30 participants, including researchers and practitioners from 16 countries and different biosphere reserves (BRs). It promoted networking and learning on BRs’ research progress, gaps and collaborations, and data accessibility/management. Given the broad interest and importance of the topic, it was decided to develop a proposal for the organisation of a follow-up workshop at the upcoming EuroMAB meeting at the Elbe River Landscape BR.
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15 JANUARY 2024 // FIRST BRI PHD-STUDENT DEFENDED DOCTORAL THESIS
Soon to be Dr. rer. pol. Martin Balaš defended his doctoral thesis “Measuring and managing sustainability impacts of tourism from a subnational perspective” at the Leuphana University. Congratulations! The very interesting and successful presentation was based on 4 research papers. The work was supported by the IKC Process Design for the Implementation of a Biodiversity-Conserving Land Use - focus on Biosphere Reserves (ProBio-LaB), funded by the Brandenburg Ministry of Science, Research and Culture.
25 - 28 OCTOBER 2023 // TRANSECTS PROGRAMME INSTITUTE GERMANY 2023
The international research and teaching project TRANSECTS organized a workshop at HNEE with guests from universities and biosphere reserves from Canada, South Africa and Germany. Understanding was deepened of possibilities and methods of transdisciplinary research in science, education and practice. Transdisciplinary international learning labs (TILLs), are held annually and alternately in Germany, Canada and South Africa. HNEE students can also apply for these 6-8-week learning labs.
Discover more
here.
06 OCTOBER 2023 // KICKOFF MEETING RESEARCH WORKSHOP 2024
On the 6th of October 2023 was the kickoff meeting of the project Res4Reserves, focused on the organisation of the International Workshop “Research in European UNESCO Biosphere Reserves”. The workshop aims to advance research in biosphere reserves, by promoting an active exchange between managers and responsible staff. This event is part of series of workshops funded by the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN). Applications are now open until 29.11.2023.
Learn more and apply
here.
01 AUGUST 2023 // R-FORCE PROJECT STARTED
On August 01, 2023, the R-Force group with more than ten participants started their exchange on learning and programming in R with a kick-off meeting.
The group's resources and goals were identified by Dr. Jarne Jargow. Best practice examples were presented by Prof. Jens Müller in the "Coding Club" on the basis of submitted questions and problems. Regular exchange meetings are to follow.
10 MARCH 2023 // TILL (TRANSDISCIPLINARY INTERNATIONAL LEARNING LABORATORY)
Within the framework of the projects Internationalization 2.0&
Transdisciplinary Education Collaboration for Sustainable Development (TRANSECTS), the second learning laboratory has taken place, this time in cooperation with the Schorfheide-Chrorin Biosphere Reserve. 17 master and PhD students from different disciplines and eight countries have participated.
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01 MARCH 2023 // INTERNATIONAL BIOSPHERE RESERVES INSTITUTE PhD-COLLOQUIUM
PhD-students from 3 different time zones presented their projects to an interested audience of peers, team members and supervisors from HNEE and Leuphana university. Topics span from assessment of forest functioning in Biosphere Reserves worldwide, to mire and peatland evaluation, sustainability assessment of Ecosystem Services in forests, to the wiggliness of insect decline. The group had lively discussions about what would benefit Biosphere Reserves worldwide.
24 NOVEMBER 2022 // FURTHER COOPERATION WITH PARTNERS SEALED
On November 24, 2022, the Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development, the
Michael Succow Stiftung and the
Nationale Naturlandschaften e. v. signed a partnership agreement for further collaboration as a successor to the biosphere.center. The three partners are now committed to the further support and development of global biosphere reserves in the framework of the Biosphere Reserves Institute. Discover more.
16-20 MAY 2022 // INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
Early career scientists and research managers working with the World Network of Biosphere Reserves reflected upon research in biosphere reserves and developed strategies for future action during the international conference"Science and Research in, for and with UNESCO Biosphere Reserves
organised by the Biosphere Reserves Institute.
Discover more
31 MARCH 2022
//
MINISTER OF EDUCATION AND RESEARCH INTERESTED IN THE BIOSPHERE RESERVES INSTITUTE
Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (FDP) of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research visited Eberswalde University. During a short tour around the campus, she showed great interest in the activities of the Biosphere Reserves Institute. The professors Vera Luthardt and Denise Matias presented the history of the Biosphere Reserves Institute and its fields of activity. Discover more
18 MARCH 2021 // CHILDREN & YOUTH UNIVERSITY
As part of the Children and Youth University organised by Eberswalde University, the Biosphere Reserves Institute held a webinar on biosphere reserves for students in grades 5-6. The children learned about the concept of a biosphere reserve, took a quiz, and applied their knowledge in zoning the fantasy biosphere reserve "Eberswalde".
07 OCT 2020 // START OF THE NEW MASTER'S PROGRAMME
The start of the master's programme Biosphere Reserves Management (BIOM) was celebrated with a multi-faceted event. It was kicked off by student competition for a mini-master's degree. During the official part, representatives of partner organisations and experts exchanged views on the new study programme, and several agreements were signed with biosphere reserves willing to support its implementation. The students received a welcome gift and the evening ended with refreshments and small talks.
10 MARCH 2020 // CHILDREN & YOUTH UNIVERSITY
As part of the
Children and Youth University
organised by University of Eberswalde, the Biosphere Reserves Institute conducted a workshop on biosphere reserves. The children learned about the concept of a biosphere reserve and its historical background and constructed their own biosphere reserve from natural materials.
29 NOV 2019 // BIOSPHERE RESERVES INSTITUTE INAUGURATION CEREMONY
Eberswalde University celebrated the establishment of the Biosphere Reserves Institute which will be the world's first scientific institution of its kind. The inauguration ceremony was attended by policy makers, representatives of partner organisations, the Biosphere Reserves Institute staff, and students of Eberswalde University.