Successful DFG Research Training Groups at KIT

DFG funds international project on global land systems and extends funding for KD²School for designing biosignal-adaptive systems
Alexander Mädche and Almuth Arneth A. Bramsiepe / M. Breig, KIT
Double success: Ecosystem researcher Almut Arneth (right), spokesperson for the newly funded DFG research training group C4LaNd, and Information Systems expert Alexander Mädche, spokesperson for the renewed RTG KD²School.

On Thursday last week, the German Research Foundation (DFG) announced funding for eleven new research training groups  (RTG) and continued funding for ten existing ones. Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) was successful with one new RTG and one renewal.

Solutions For the Overuse of Land Resources

The newly funded international research training group C4LaNd is investigating how the growing demand for food, renewable energy, and materials can be reconciled with the protection of biodiversity and the climate. Working together with the Universities of Melbourne and Hohenheim, the graduate school aims to develop an integrated understanding of the global land system in order to develop solutions for the overuse of land resources.

“With C4LaNd, we are preparing a new generation of researchers to solve the complex conflicts of interest in land use – with courage, analytical strength, and an eye for the big picture,” says Professor Almut Arneth from the Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research – Atmospheric Environmental Research at KIT.

New Approaches to Decision-Making Processes

The RTG KD²School will receive funding for another five years. Here, KIT is collaborating with the Universities of Bremen and of Oldenburg to research the design of biosignal-adaptive systems for decision-making processes in economic contexts as well as in private and professional life.

“Biosignals open up new ways of understanding decision-making processes in a context-sensitive manner and designing adaptive systems in a human-centered way. We achieve this through a consistently interdisciplinary approach combining psychology, neuroscience, economics, information systems, and computer science – which also enables young researchers to gain excellent qualifications,” Professor Alexander Mädche from KIT’s Institute for Information Systems explains.

RTGs are a central instrument for promoting young talent in the German science system. They offer doctoral students a structured, particularly supportive environment with professional supervision and further training as well as financial security. For universities, RTGs are an opportunity to specifically form and profile research priorities.

jha, December 1, 2025