+++ SAVE THE DATE: 11.-13.3.24 Annual Meeting LTER-D (UBA, Dessau) +++

LTER-D - the German network for long-term ecological and ecosystem research

LTER-D, the German network for long-term ecological and ecosystem research, is a platform for cooperation and exchange in long-term, system-oriented and interdisciplinary environmental monitoring in Germany. Long-term research approaches are particularly important in the study of biodiversity and environmental change because these changes are often subject to short-term fluctuations that only become identifiable as trends over longer periods of time.

The LTER-D network was established in 2006 and now consists of more than 30 , spanning across Germany and encompassing a variety of ecosystems from the German Alps to the North and Baltic Seas and even the Arctic Ocean. Research in these LTER areas is supported and conducted by non-university research institutions, universities, national parks and biosphere reserves, and associations.

LTER-D is a member of the international LTER network ILTER (International Long-Term Ecological Research) and the regional network LTER-Europe . ILTER and LTER-Europe are networks of networks defined by common goals and enable international exchange.
Currently, the European infrastructure eLTER RI is being established, which will bring harmonised observations and financial support to national LTER networks. Read more at

The national and international LTER networks cover ecosystem-related research and monitoring topics with a broad spectrum:

  • Key LTER topics such as hydrological and biogeochemical processes and biodiversity.
  • Other ecosystem processes and ecosystem disturbances
  • Ecosystem services (e.g., photosynthesis, climate regulation, soil fertility, forest and agricultural production, carbon assimilation, water resources, habitat regeneration, recreation)
  • Societal impact on ecosystem function (e.g., policy decisions, land use)
  • Impacts of conservation and resource use on local communities
  • Local environmental conflicts
In particular, the goals of LTER-D are:
  • Networking of actors and areas in long-term ecological-ecosystem research
  • Initiation of joint projects (see )
  • Contribute to an infrastructure for long-term site-specific ecosystem and biodiversity research - including climate change effects - as national elements for eLTER RI
  • Support collaborations and scientific exchanges at national and international levels
  • Link to NFDI (National Research Data Infrastructures NFDI e.V. ; disciplinarily we are linked to NFDI4Biodiversity and NFDI4Earth ; keyword: Open Science) to improve data availability and data intersection options