Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences - Geography Department

Thilo Wellmann leads the BMFTR-funded junior research group “Resilient Cityscapes” at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. His research explores how cities can develop their green infrastructure under changing climatic and societal conditions. His main interests include adaptation to heat and drought, biodiversity conservation, and the equitable distribution of urban environmental benefits.

His group brings together remote sensing and ecological research with social science and planning approaches. It aims to establish a robust evidence base for the strategic development of nature-based solutions. The group investigates how their condition and effects can be monitored and assessed to inform municipal decisions. Its work considers both individual interventions and the interactions among elements of green infrastructure across neighbourhoods and cities.

Collaboration between research and municipal practice is central to his work. Together with professionals in public administration and planning, the group develops research questions, indicators, and monitoring approaches that respond to practical knowledge needs and fit existing workflows. It also examines the institutional conditions that enable scientific evidence to inform planning and implementation. Digital tools are intended to make this knowledge accessible and help municipalities set priorities and assess the long-term effects of their interventions.

At the international level, RemoteSensingForCities.org aims to unlock the potential of remote sensing for urban development and improve access to relevant findings and applications.

Newest Publications:

• Lausch, A., Bumberger, J. [...] Wellmann, T., Trabert, T., Banzhaf, E., 2026. Monitoring Urban Land Use Intensity with Remote Sensing and Urban Traits: A Review. Smart Cities 2026, 9(7), 107; https://doi.org/10.3390/smartcities9070107
• Ellerbrok, J.S., Spatz, T., Braunisch, V., Strohbach, M., Haase, D., Januschke, K., Kaiser, J., Mehring, M., Wellmann, T., Bruelheide, H., et al., 2026. Corrigendum to “Most habitat's and species' assessments in German Natura 2000 sites reflect unfavourable conservation states” [Basic and Applied Ecology 87 (2025) Pages 128-143]. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.baae.2026.01.006
• Ellerbrok, J. S., Sporbert, M. [...] Wellmann, T., Bruehlheide, H., 2026. Determinants of Terrestrial and Limnic Species Richness in Germany. Diversity and Distributions 32(3), e70170. https://doi.org/10.1111/ddi.70170
• Dekan Carreira, V., Achtenberg [...] Wellmann, T., Pinho, P., 2026. Drivers of aquatic macroinvertebrate communities across European cities. Journal of Ecohydraulics, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/24705357.2026.2626072
• Ellerbrok, J.S., Spatz, T., Braunisch, V., Strohbach, M., Haase, D., Januschke, K., Kaiser, J., Mehring, M., Wellmann, T., Bruelheide, H., et al., 2025. Most habitat’s and species’ assessments in German Natura 2000 sites reflect unfavourable conservation states. Basic and Applied Ecology 87, 128–143. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.baae.2025.07.001

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