Fachbereich Wald und Umwelt
Refine
Year of publication
Document Type
- Article (94)
- Conference Proceeding (25)
- Part of a Book (16)
- Contribution to a Periodical (12)
- Other (7)
- Book (6)
- Review (5)
- forschungsdaten (3)
- Master's Thesis (3)
- Bachelor Thesis (2)
Keywords
- UAV (4)
- Central Asia (3)
- agroforestry (3)
- Brandenburg (2)
- Germany (2)
- Kyrgyzstan (2)
- TransLearnN (2)
- Ukraine (2)
- biodiversity (2)
- deep learning (2)
This report presents an overview of the current state of sustainability strategy development at four European universities participating in the TransLearnN project: Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development (HNEE, Germany), Rzeszów University of Technology (RUT, Poland), Technical University of Liberec (TUL, Czech Republic), and Vilnius Gediminas Technical University (VILNIUS TECH, Lithuania). The analysis draws on institutional self-assessments, strategic documents, internal surveys, and supplementary materials such as presentations and posters. The report serves as a comparative reference for Ukrainian partner universities, who are developing their own sustainability governance frameworks in the context of post-war recovery and transformation.
From 5–8 December 2023, the Transformational Learning Network for Resilience project held its inaugural Kick-off and Boot Camp at a venue close to Eberswalde, Germany. This four-day workshop marked the formal launch of the project and brought together over 50 representatives from Ukrainian and EU partner institutions to initiate collaborative structures, thematic work-streams, and network coordination. This report provides an overview and documents the results of this event.
In Germany, online reputation management is mainly done by specialized firms that offer
customized reputation management plans for their clients. Individuals and businesses need
to continuously work with specialized firms by investing time and a large amount of money
to manage their online reputation. Although there are a large number of online platforms on
the Internet, none of them has been explicitly developed for the German market. The aim of
this research is to analyze the requirements, design and develop an online reputation
management platform suitable for Germany.
Based on the existing platforms and the opinions of industry experts, six key reputation
related functionalities are identified: 1). Reputation overview, 2). Optimize positives, 3).
Clean up social media, 4). Dark web scan, 5). Web scan and 6). Image scan. Reputation
overview was analyzed using the search results from Google.de domain. The user was asked
to label the search results into four categories: positive, negative, neutral and not belongs.
The reputation score was calculated by an algorithm initialized with the predefined values
for each label according to the position of the search result and considering various
parameters such as label, presence of any negative results and domain authority score.
Analyzing Facebook and Twitter social media profiles for better search engine optimization
and creating local high domain authority (DA) profiles like n-tv.de, focus.de and fr.de wereimplemented under the optimize positives functionalities. Social media photos and text
content that can be harmful to a user's online reputation were identified using the Google
Vision API and the in-house wordlist database in the social media cleanup section.
The dark web scan was implemented using an external API to capture any data breaches
related to the user. The functions to monitor the content and the images indexed by Google
were developed in the web scan and the image scan, respectively. A dedicated server
configured with a web server (Nginx and Apache), a database server (MySQL), Redis, cron
jobs, PHP, Composer, Node and a firewall was used to host the entire platform. The platform
was developed in two parts as 01). front-end and 02). back-end. The front-end was developed
as a universal application using HTML, CSS, JavaScript and two JavaScript frameworks
called Vue.js and Nuxt.js. The back-end was developed as a RESTful API using PHP and
the Laravel framework. Two main subscription options as Free and Premium and additional
subscription plans for high DA profile creation was developed. Payment processing was
implemented to allow users to pay via credit card, direct debit or PayPal through the Mollie
payment gateway. The token-based authentication system, subscription management,
platform administration and language translations were also developed to ensure the proper
functioning of the platform.
The front-end presented to the users was simple, clean and fast, which provided a better user
experience. The front-end was used with the RESTful API to perform back-end operations
and negerate appropriate exceptions in case of errors. Regarding reputation-related features,
data fetching and processing using the external APIs such as Google Vision API, SERP API
(Google search results and Google image search results), Facebook and Twitter were
performed without any major issues. The other functionalities that were developed to support the overall platform functionalities such as authentication, subscription management,payment processing and platform administration were performed smoothly as expected.
The Google search engine results retrieved from the SERP API for a particular user was a
critical factor to consider, as all reputation analysis was performed on this basis. It could
lead to an incorrect online reputation overview if the results retrieved from the platform
differed from the actual Google search results. The platform was tested with different
keywords and the results obtained from the platform and Google search website were
compared to confirm the accuracy of the data. The biggest limitation of the platform wasthat a single user account can only monitor one keyword, one Facebook profile and one
Twitter profile. Users who need to monitor multiple keywords and social media profiles
must create a separate user account for each of these profiles. This forces users to monitor
more than one user account at a time, making it difficult to maintain the concept. In the
future, it is important to update the platform to accommodate multiple keywords and social
media profiles for a single user account.
Keywords: online reputation, online reputation management platform, reputation
overview, social media clean up, Google search
With the development of new imaging and near field remote sensing UAV technologies, the field of forest canopy and tree crown investigations in the context of rainforest ecology gained new perspectives in recent years. This study demonstrates the feasibility of structural analysis of canopy for the assessment of succession states of tropical lowland rainforests using a consumer UAV and open access ground reference data. Therefore, the canopy of 22 small-scale forest plots in the Ecuadorian Andes and the Mata Atlântica were captured with an UAV between October 2017 and February 2018. The fully remote image acquisition used automated flight plans consisting of crossed flights with different incident camera angles and did not require ground control points (GCP) as further ground reference. Photogrammetric Point Clouds (PPC), image meshes and crown height models (CHM) were created with Structure from Motion (SfM), combined with a Digital Terrain Model from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), in order to analyze structural parameters of the canopy. The standard deviation of the height values of the PPC and the CHM differs statistically significant between succession stages. Investigation plots in climax or late succession show a mean PPCSD of 6.7 m with a standard error of 0,3 m. Plots in early succession show a PPCSD of 4.8 m with a standard error of 0.3 m and degraded plots show 2.8m with a standard error of 0.2m. This result proves the applicability of the proposed workflow under typical NGO conditions and other applied science research with limitations in budget and access to sophisticated survey equipment.
Severe storm events are the biggest driving factor for biomass loss in European forests. Besides the damages caused by the storm itself, there are subsequent damages due to biotic, abiotic and market factors with far reaching implications for forestry and conservation. These subsequent damages can be minimized if the amount and spatial distribution of the windthrown trees is known and can be used to optimize salvage operations and calamity management.
Traditional methods and space born remote sensing can only provide estimations of the affected area, whereas remote sensing with aerial sensors is able to obtain the spatial distribution of the stems with detection rates up to 92% but not to quantify single logs due to an insufficient spatial resolution. Recent approaches utilizing UAVs are promising but a methodology for the quantification of windthrown trees is not published yet.
The presented work closes this gap by analyzing UAV-orthomosaics with Deep Learning techniques to obtain precise information of the spatial distribution and estimate the volume of the windthrown trees. Therefore, the U-Net was included in a bottom-up object detection based on a skeletonization algorithm including a reconstruction of occluded stem parts by a voting system based on morphological heuristics. For the subsequent quantification of the detected stems, the diameter is determined every 25 cm and the volume is calculated as sum of truncated cone volumes.
In the scope of this work, 21 orthomosaics of beech, spruce and mixed stands with a ground sampling distance of mostly less than 2 cm were used, on which 1747 windthrown tree stems were manually outlined for the training of the models “Spruce”, “Beech” and “General” for pure and mixed stands, respectively. Additionally, 710 trees were digitized and measured for the validation of the methodology.
It could be proven that the proposed methodology is able to detect windthrown tree stems with an average detection rate of 93.8% for spruce stands and with 93.3% for beech and mixed stans (error rates between 4.3% and 6.3%). Thereby, the detected volumes were overestimated by the specific models for spruce (11.8%) and beech stands (10.7%) while the “General” model was underestimating the volume by 5.8%, on average. Generally, specialization on certain tree species carries the risk of lower detection rates for unfamiliar scenes and species, while a general model is associated with a higher rate of classification errors. Further, it could be shown that the performance of the proposed methodology is affected by the quality of the used orthomosaics.
The quantification of the amount of windthrown wood and the reconstruction of occluded stem parts are unique features compared to other recently published approaches with far reaching implications for forestry, ecology, and biodiversity conservation. The proposed methodology provides additional information for decision-making in the planning of salvage loggings and for monitoring of biomass and carbon cycles. Further, it can contribute to a better understanding of windthrow dynamics and therewith, will support the development of sustainable management strategies which focus on resilient forest ecosystems.
Der fortschreitende Klimawandel stellt die Resilienz von Waldökosystemen vor enorme
Herausforderungen, was die Suche nach neuen Ansätzen zur Stärkung der Vitalität von Wäldern dringend erforderlich macht. Die vorliegende Studie wurde von der NV-Energie-Stiftung initiiert, um eine innovative Methode hinsichtlich ihrer potenziellen Wirkung auf die Pflanzen- und Bodenvitalität wissenschaftlich zu untersuchen. Das Ziel der Arbeit war eine rein empirische Wirkungsmessung dieser potenziellen Effekte von installierten Energieboxen in einem gemäßigten Wald. Die explorative Forschungsarbeit prüfte daher, ob messbare Veränderungen kausal auf die Behandlung zurückzuführen sind oder durch natürliche Standortfaktoren erklärt werden können. Konkret wurde untersucht, (1) wie sich die Pflanzenvitalität und (2) wie sich die Bodenvitalität über ein Jahr in Abhängigkeit von der räumlichen Nähe zu den Energieboxen entwickeln. Zur Klärung dieser Zusammenhänge wurde diese Arbeit als verblindetes Experiment konzipiert, bei dem 16 Energieboxen (8 aktive, 8 Dummies) installiert wurden. In einem heterogenen Waldgebiet wurden in 17 Untersuchungsparzellen über vier Erhebungszeitpunkte die Vegetationsvitalität (nach BraunBlanquet), die Baumvitalität (Stammdurchmesserzuwachs, Symptomatik) und die Bodenvitalität (Haney-Test, u.a. Bodenatmung, pH, C:N) erfasst. Die statistische Auswertung erfolgte mittels nonparametrischer Analyseverfahren (z.B. Wilcoxon-Test) und verglich Parzellen im angenommenen Wirkungsradius (<10 m) aktiver Boxen mit einer Kontrollgruppe. Nach einem Jahr konnte über alle untersuchten Ebenen hinweg kein robuster Effekt der Energieboxen nachgewiesen werden. Ein initial signifikanter Zusammenhang der Pflanzenvitalität in der Krautschicht erwies sich nach der Kontrolle der Standortfaktoren als nicht belastbar. Auch bei der Baum- und Bodenvitalität unterschieden sich Behandlungs- und Kontrollgruppe nicht signifikant.
Urban expansion, particularly in the global south, has brought numerous environmental consequences which require regular investigation. The current study assessed the growth of built-up areas in the Chbar Ampov district (Phnom Penh, Cambodia) using the Indices-Based Built-Up Index (IBI) derived from Landsat 8 satellite imagery. We applied the IBI method to satellite images from 2013 to 2021 to determine changes in the built-up area over time and their correlation with land surface temperature (LST). The research revealed generally consistent urban expansion (1.68 square kilometres per year) in the study area within the period. Despite minor inconsistencies due to temporary land-use changes and cloud interference, the results support the study's major conclusions. The findings reinforce the necessity of meticulous monitoring and management of urban expansion. Dynamic analysis and practical research methods can contribute to sustainable urban development practices, thus ensuring a balance between human progress and environmental preservation.
Der Erhalt der Biodiversität und intakter Ökosysteme ist überlebenswichtig für Mensch und Natur. Dennoch schreitet der Verlust von Biodiversität sowohl in Deutschland – dem Fokus dieses Papiers – wie auch weltweit dramatisch voran. Die Politik hinkt dem zunehmenden Handlungsdruck allerdings weit hinterher. Bestehende Verpflichtungen wurden bisher nicht erfüllt, gesteckte Ziele nicht erreicht. Daher muss die neue Bundesregierung Verantwortung übernehmen und die Ursachen für den Verlust der Biodiversität, die in verschiedenen Politikfeldern liegen, bereits im Koalitionsvertrag adressieren. Der wirksame Schutz von Biodiversität kann nicht alleine mit der Ausweisung von Schutzgebieten erreicht werden, sondern ist eine Integrationsaufgabe. Die Adressaten dieses Textes sind daher politische Akteure, die Biodiversitätsziele in ihren Verantwortungsbereichen (Ressorts) und in allen relevanten Strategien integrieren sowie die relevanten Stakeholder mitnehmen müssen.
Die hier beitragenden und zeichnenden Wissenschaftler*innen aus unterschiedlichsten Disziplinen werben gemeinsam für ein deutlich größeres Engagement für Biodiversität und legen hierfür die folgenden
Handlungsempfehlungen für deutsche und europäische Politik vor. Sie appellieren an die politischen Verantwortungsträger*innen, diese vielfältigen Herausforderungen entschlossen anzugehen und unsere natürlichen Lebensgrundlagen wirkungsvoll zu schützen.
Across Central Asia, agriculture largely depends on irrigation due to arid and semi-arid climatic conditions. Water is abstracted from rivers, which are largely fed by glacier melt. In the course of climate change, glaciers melt down so that a reduced glacier volume and reduced water runoffs are expected to be available for irrigation. Tree wind breaks are one option to reduce water consumption in irrigated agriculture and build resilience against climate change. This paper therefore assesses the water consumption of major crops in Kyrgyzstan and adjacent areas, i.e., cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.), wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), corn (Zea mays L.), rice (Oryza sativa L.), potato (Solanum tuberosum L.), and barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) in combination with tree wind breaks. Crop water consumption was assessed through the Penman Monteith approach. Tree wind break types investigated were single rows from poplars (Populus spec.) and multiple rows with understory vegetation by elm (Ulmus minor L.) and poplar, respectively. Tree water consumption was determined through sapflow measurements. The seasonal reference evapotranspiration (ETo) for field crops was 876–995 mm without wind breaks and dropped to less than half through multiple row wind breaks with understory vegetation (50 m spacing). Tree water consumption was 1125–1558 mm for poplar and 435 mm for elm. Among the wind break crop systems, elm wind breaks resulted in the highest reductions of water consumption, followed by single row poplars, at spacing of 50 and 100 m, respectively. However, elm grows much slower than poplar, so poplars might be more attractive for farmers. Furthermore, single row wind breaks might by much easier to be integrated into the agrarian landscape as they consume less space.
This guide provides a structured methodology for developing and critically assessing strategies for sustainable food and biomass production through a participatory and systemic approach. It responds to the limitations of mainstream policies and strategies in agriculture and bioeconomy, which often prioritize technological solutions and lack bottom-up engagement of local stakeholders in knowledge-building and decision-making.
The PARSCO methodology presented in this guidebook is an adaptation of the MARISCO toolbox (Adaptive MAnagement of vulnerability and RISk at COnservation sites) developed at the Centre for Econics and Ecosystem Management. It has been tailored to assess and improve food and biomass production systems based on local knowledge, diverse stakeholder perspectives, and a systemic situation analysis using knowledge mapping and multi-criteria analysis tools. PARSCO is a landscape-based method primarily designed for application in local or regional settings, involving a series of participatory workshops with local stakeholders. It was developed over a period of five years at Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development and tested in workshops with smallholder farmers and other local actors in rural Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Pakistan.
The guidebook serves as a step-by-step manual for practitioners, planners, and transdisciplinary researchers applying PARSCO in project planning, policy evaluation, and sustainable land management. It emphasizes the importance of systemic thinking—understanding the interconnectedness and complex dynamics of social-ecological systems—and participatory decision-making to ensure inclusive, effective, and context-specific solutions. As a standalone guidebook, it can also be used as a complementary resource to existing MARISCO guides by offering more detailed guidance on the facilitation of participatory processes.