Research

Ingrid Kögel-Knabner works on soil organic matter (humus) and its central role in the global carbon cycle. During the biomass formation/decomposition cycle carbon dioxide (CO₂), the most important climatic gas, is either released from soils or is stabilized as humic matter in soils. The elucidation of the biogeochemical processes that are part of this cycle is one of the most important and most pressing scientific challenges of our times. Man is intervening in the natural carbon cycle on a global scale. Soil processes and soil management, especially the type and intensity of land use, affect the global carbon cycle to a high extent.

To assess these processes requires a thorough understanding and quantification of the multiplicity of soil organic matter formation and decomposition processes and the way in which they are controlled by land use and soil management. To understand the complex system of biogeochemical processes in soils requires a high degree of integration between different disciplines, a strong link between modelling and observation, as well as between theoretical and experimental research. The seminal works of Ingrid Kögel-Knabner have laid out foundations to achieve a better understanding of these processes.

Career

• since 1995 Professor of Soil Science, Life Sciences Center, Technische Universität München at Freising-Weihenstephan, Germany
• 1992-1995 Professor of Soil Science (C3), Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Germany
• 1992 Habilitation and venia legendi for Soil Science, University of Bayreuth, Germany
• 1989, 1990 Visiting scientist, Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands
• 1988 Visiting scientist, US Geological Survey, USA
• 1987-1992 Postdoctoral Research Assistant, Lehrstuhl Bodenkunde, University of Bayreuth, Germany
• 1987 Ph.D. (Soil Science), University of Bayreuth, Germany
• 1983 Diplom Geoecology, (German University degree), University of Bayreuth, Germany
• 1978-1983 Studies in Geoecology, University of Bayreuth

Functions

• since 2009 Member of Senate and Joint Committee of Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Foundation)
• since 2008 Member of Kommission für Ökologie, Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
• since 2007 Member, committee on larger investments in the university sector of the Wissenschaftsrat (German Science Council)
• 2003-2006, since 2010 Vice dean, Life Sciences Center Weihenstephan
• 2002-2006 Scientific member of the Senate Commission on Collaborative Research in Geoscience of DFG (German Research Foundation)
• since 2000 Member of Vorstand des Bayerischen Forschungsverbunds Abfallforschung und Reststoffverwertung (Bayforrest)
• 2000-2010 Member, Advisory Board Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR), Hannover
• 2000-2003 Member of Senate of TU München
• 1998-2001 Meber, Scientific Advisory Board GSF - National Research Center for Environment and Health, Neuherberg
• since 1996 Scientific member of the Senate Commission on Substances and Resources in Agriculture of DFG (German Research Foundation), chairperson since 2006
• Editorial Board Assignments: Geoderma (Joint Editor-in-Chief), Soil Biology and Biochemistry (Subject Editor), Plant and Soil (Subject Editor), European Journal of Soil Science (Associate Editor), Organic Geochemistry (Associate Editor), Biology and Fertility of Soils (Associate Editor), Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science (Editorial Board), Soil Science ( Editorial Board 1996-2007)