Curriculum vitae

Since	1996	Activities as ecological advisor (also in Switzerland and China), as environmental expert, author of ecological articles and contributions to scientific publications and meetings, supervisor of several PhD students.
1990-	1996	President of the International Association for Ecology (INTECOL).
Since	1981	Member, 1992-2003 Speaker of the Deutscher Rat für Landespflege (German Council of Land Use Management)
1981-	1990	Member, since 1985 Chairman of the German Federal Council of Environmental Advisors and Editor of 5 important reports on the state of the environment.
1972-	1994	Member of the Advisory Committees for Nature Conservation of both the State of Bavaria Government and the German Federal Government.
1980-	1989	President of the Gesellschaft für Ökologie
1970		Co-founder of the Gesellschaft für Ökologie (Ecological Society of the German-speaking countries).
1966-	1994	Full Professor (lifetime) of Landscape Ecology at the Technische Universität München (TUM, Munich University of Technology), School of Landscape Architecture and Landscape Ecology (‘Landespflege’) at the Weihenstephan Campus of TUM. Teaching and research in general and landscape ecology, vegetation and ecosystem science, conservation biology, agro-ecology, and land use history.
1961-	1970	President of the German Orchid Society and Editor of its bimonthly journal "Die Orchidee".
1958-	1966	Junior Scientist, since 1962 Curator, Westphalian Museum of Natural History at Münster. Responsibility for, and research work in nature conservation and landscape management in Westphalia.
1954-	1957	Graduate studies in soil microbial ecology and theoretical ecology. Ph.D. 1957, Universities Hohenheim and Münster.
1949-	1954	Undergraduate studies in biology, chemistry, and geography, Universities of Münster, München (Munich), Basel (Switzerland), Hohenheim. M.Sc. in biology. Special interest in orchid growing.
1943-	1948	Military service, World War II (Italy), and captivity as prisoner of war (Italy, France)
1925		Born 13 September in Datteln, Westphalia, Germany. Elementary school and college in Datteln

Recipient of 5 national awards and prizes, including the German Environment Prize (1993), the highest German award for lifetime achievements in environmental sciences Travels, field trips, congress participations in many countries of all 5 continents

Research interest

• Land use ecology
• ecosystem management
• nature conservation