It is one of the big topics of the future: The cities must become greener, nature must be given more space in order to mitigate the consequences of climate change. The German Research Foundation (DFG), which supports young researchers at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), has also recognized how important this topic is. From April 2022 onwards, it will initially fund the graduate college “Urban Green Infrastructure – Scientific Training for Future Experts in Integrated Urban Planning” for four and a half years.
The focus is on the redevelopment of the cities with a sustainable, natural infrastructure that is adapted to the new climatic conditions. Stephan Pauleit, Professor of Strategy and Management of Landscape Development in Weihenstephan, is the spokesperson for the college. For research on the topic, the funding of the college means an enormous boost. The TUM can now advertise 13 doctoral positions, as well as a postdoc and half a coordination position, an extension is possible.
Interdisciplinary cooperation is required
Such a graduate school is something special, says Pauleit. There are currently only four at the entire TU Munich, plus four others with TUM involvement. In this case there is also the fact that it is very interdisciplinary, as Pauleit explains, the doctoral students came from very different disciplines such as biology and ecology, soil science, mobility sciences, architecture, urban and landscape planning through to medicine. They should work closely together “to develop new types of green infrastructures”. Such interdisciplinary working methods are “urgently required to successfully solve the complex challenges of modern cities, such as climate change,” says Pauleit. This is because a deeper knowledge of the relationships between people, animals and plants in their shared urban environment is necessary.
Ecosystems that have a positive effect on the urban climate include green spaces such as parks, urban forests, gardens, but also street trees or green roofs. They provide a habitat for plants and animals and, on hot days, can help cool the air through evaporation and shading, or that rainwater can seep away. In addition, green roofs and planted facades naturally insulate buildings. For Pauleit, however, other aspects also count, such as the importance of green spaces as a place to relax or a meeting point.
Importance of green for the urban climate
The researchers want to work closely with partners from practice, such as the planning department and the climate and environmental protection department of the city of Munich. Together with the state capital, an interdisciplinary team led by the Weihenstephan Chair has been researching the importance of greenery for the urban climate in six different quarters in Munich for three years. The project received national attention, and the team of scientists was only recently one of the three finalists for the German sustainability award.
The work of the graduate school is thematically “closely related”, says Pauleit, a regular exchange of knowledge is sought, as well as with other urban research projects at TUM chairs. Eleven professors from the TUM School of Life Sciences in Weihenstephan and the School of Engineering and Design are involved in the graduate college, as well as scientists from the University of Augsburg and the Helmholtz Center in Munich.
According to Pauleit, the transformation of cities and their open spaces is urgently needed so that on hot days, which will continue to increase due to climate change, “the health of people is not endangered and rainwater does not flood the cellars and underpasses in heavy rain”. Through contact with nature, city dwellers could also live healthier and would not have to sit in the car to drive into the surrounding area. Or leave the city completely and thus promote urban sprawl. Without these changes, Pauleit sums up, “we will not achieve a more sustainable urban development that is adapted to climate change”.