EXC 3121:  TERRA: Terrestrial Geo-Biosphere Interactions in a Changing World

• Subject Area: Geology and Palaeontology ; Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine ; Atmospheric Science, Oceanography and Climate Research ; Geography ; Microbiology, Virology and Immunology ; Plant Sciences ; Water Research
• Term: since 2026
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 533771652

The air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat, and other resources we use, have resulted from interactions between the Earth’s geosphere and biosphere. Understanding these interactions is thus essential for human survival and wellbeing, which are endangered by anthropogenically induced climate and land-use change. While contemporary anthropogenic pressures are unprecedented, the processes and natural laws governing the Earth System remain universal. Interactions between the geosphere (rocks, soils, water, atmosphere, the Earth’s surface) and the biosphere (microorganisms, fungi, plants, animals) determine how the Earth System responds to change. Past research has largely considered geosphere and biosphere responses to Earth-System changes separately. TERRA, by contrast, develops an integrated understanding of how geo-biosphere interactions in terrestrial systems induce and respond to environmental changes, using evidence from both the geological past and the present to improve projections of future global change impacts and assess the effectiveness of mitigation and adaptation strategies. Understanding feedbacks between diversity and stability in the geo- and biosphere lies at the heart of TERRA. In particular, we hypothesize that diversity in the geosphere stabilizes the biosphere, and that vice versa biodiversity is key to stabilizing the geosphere. Harnessing our tradition of linking geo- and biosciences, TERRA represents an interdisciplinary Earth-System-Science approach in four interconnected themes. (1) We will integrate observational, experimental, and modeling approaches spanning different periods of Earth history, incorporating the full spectrum of geological and biological sciences. (2) We will analyze past geo-biosphere interactions preserved in geological records to elucidate how the Earth System responded to conditions that have not yet been encountered in historical times but may be encountered in future. (3) A mechanistic understanding of processes will be achieved by studying contemporary geo-biosphere interactions on different spatial scales. (4) Syntheses across spatio-temporal scales will be provided by advancing integrative models merging machine learning and process-based approaches. These models will be used to evaluate the effectiveness of mitigation and adaptation measures to cope with global change. In line with these four themes, TERRA will establish a new infrastructure that includes the Center for Integrative Modeling, the Facility for Dating and Analysis of Rocks and Terrestrial Sediments, the Molecular Biodiversity Laboratory, and the Diversitorium, a facility for field and laboratory experiments where the diversity of one sphere is selectively manipulated to study effects on the other sphere. The TERRA FutureLab will facilitate experimental research-based teaching and public-engagement activities to improve links between the university, research institutes and society to explore a sustainable future.

• DFG Programme: Clusters of Excellence (ExStra)
• Applicant Institution: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen
• Participating Institution: Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung (SGN)
• Participating University: Universität Hohenheim
• Spokespersons: Professor Dr.-Ing. Olaf A. Cirpka; Professorin Dr. Michaela Dippold; Professorin Dr. Kira Rehfeld
• Participating Researchers: Professor Dr. Hervé Bocherens; Professor Dr. Oliver Bossdorf; Professorin Dr. Madelaine Böhme; Professor Dr. Reinhard Drews; Professorin Susanne Fritz, Ph.D.; Professor Dr. Philipp Hennig; Professor Dr. Thomas Hickler; Professor Dr. Andreas Kappler; Professorin Dr. Deborah Leigh; Professor Dr. Jakob Macke; Professorin Dr. Isabel Monte; Professor Dr. Andreas Mulch; Professor Dr. Kevin Norton; Professorin Dr. Yvonne Oelmann; Professor Dr. Thomas Scholten; Professor Dr. Frank Schurr; Professor Dr. Andreas Schweiger; Professor Ronny Schönberg, Ph.D.; Professor Dr. Thilo Streck; Professorin Dr. Katja Tielbörger; Professorin Dr. Sumiko Tsukamoto; Professorin Dr. Christiane Zarfl