Find Academic Supervisors

Bonadonna CostanzaView profile

Professor

• Volcanic Ash Dispersal
• Volcanic Risk Assessment
• Physical Volcanology
• +2 more

Costanza Bonadonna is a Full Professor at the University of Geneva (since 2019), specializing in volcanic hazards and Earth sciences. She holds a PhD supported by the European Commission (1998–2000) and has held academic positions across institutions including the University of South Florida and University of Hawaii. Her research focuses on volcanic ash dispersal modeling, risk assessment, and physical volcanology, with notable contributions to understanding tephra deposits and eruption dynamics. Bonadonna has received prestigious awards such as the 2020 AGU Volcanology presidency and the International Galileo Galilei Award. She leads the CERG-C (Centre for Environmental Risk Studies) and has organized major international workshops on volcanic risk and ash dispersal. Her work integrates numerical modeling, field investigations, and geophysical observations to enhance volcanic hazard forecasting and community resilience strategies. Research Grants: 2019–2023: SNSF Probabilistic volcanic risk framework 2018–2021: H2020 NEWTON-g and EUROVOLC networks 2017–2020: SNSF Gravitational instabilities in volcanic clouds Awards: 2020 President elect of AGU Volcanology Division Galileo Galilei Award (2020) Outstanding Woman in Science (2004, GSA) She has advised numerous international projects and collaborates with global institutions through initiatives like MeMoVolc and NEMOH. Her research bridges geophysical observations with computational models to address multi-hazard scenarios and improve disaster preparedness.

Gabriel FelbermayrView profile

Professor

• International Trade Theory and Policy
• Climate Economics
• Labor Markets in Open Economies
• +7 more

Gabriel Felbermayr is a Professor of Economics at Vienna University of Economics and Business (WU) and Director of the Austrian Institute of Economic Research (WIFO) since 2021. He holds a PhD in Economics and has held academic positions at the University of Munich (ifo Center for International Economics), Kiel University (Chair in Economics), and the University of Tübingen. University Professor: WU Vienna (2021–) Director: WIFO Vienna (2021–) President: Kiel Institute (2019–2021) Research Interests include international trade theory, labor markets in open economies, European integration, migration economics, and climate-trade intersections. His work combines theoretical models with empirical policy analysis, focusing on globalization challenges, supply chain disruptions, and economic sanctions. Current Projects Trump 2.0 Transatlantic Tariff Scenarios Scientific Awards include recognition for his research contributions, though specific award names are not detailed in the text. He has led major projects for institutions like the Austrian Economic Chamber and the Foundation for Family Businesses. Education includes studies at the University of Linz and University of Florence (PhD). His publications span journals like Journal of International Economics , Review of World Economics , and World Development .

• Natural Hazards
• Disaster Risk Reduction
• Wildfire Vulnerability
• +3 more

Maria Papathoma-Köhle is an Associate Professor at the Institute of Alpine Natural Hazards , University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna. She holds a PhD in Tsunami Vulnerability Assessment from Coventry University (UK) and has held roles as Academic Coordinator of the MSc 'Risk Prevention and Disaster Management' at University of Vienna. Her research focuses on natural hazard vulnerability , particularly wildfire and flood risks in alpine regions, with methodological expertise in indicator-based vulnerability assessment and physical vulnerability indices . Education: PhD in Natural Hazards (Coventry University, UK) MSc in Environmental Management (University of Durham, UK) Geology Degree (University of Athens, Greece) Research: Specializes in wildfire vulnerability indices, flood risk modeling, and climate change adaptation frameworks. Developed the Physical Vulnerability Index (PVI) for buildings and contributed to EU-funded projects like FLOODLABEL and EXTEND. Awards: Elise Richter Scholarship (2016) Back to Research Grant (2012) Young European Scientist Award (2002) Projects: Led FWF-funded research on physical vulnerability indicators and collaborated on EU programs for wildfire preparedness. Current work includes climate change adaptation tools for Austrian infrastructure. Advising: Supervised 6 Master's/PhD students on wildfire and flood vulnerability topics. Publications: Over 106 peer-reviewed works; recent articles focus on wildfire indices, IPCC risk diagrams, and dynamic flooding assessment.

Martin HeintelView profile

Associate Professor

• Regional Development
• Human Geography
• European Spatial Planning
• +5 more

ao. Univ.-Prof. Dr. Martin Heintel is an Associate Professor at the Department of Geography and Regional Research, University of Vienna. With over 30 years of experience, he focuses on regional development, cross-border cooperation, and sustainable urban-rural linkages. His work spans Europe, Southeast Asia, and North America, emphasizing participatory governance and evidence-based policy. International guest professorships: University of New Orleans, Hebrew University, German University of Technology in Oman Recipient of Marshall Plan Chair and bm:bwk research grants Keynote speaker at conferences in Austria, Germany, Croatia, and Japan Research interests include collaborative governance, regional disparities, and transformative planning in megacities. His recent publications explore EU cohesion policy, cross-sectoral cooperation, and urban resilience frameworks. He has advised regional governments on demographic shifts and sustainable development. Notable trends in his 293+ publications: 100% focus on regional development, 75% sustainable practices, 60% cross-border governance, and 45% urbanization in the Global South. His work bridges academic theory with practical policy interventions. Scientific engagement: Editorial Advisory Board, Europa Regional (2008-2023) Speaker at 243+ international events Media coverage in Der Standard , Österreichische Medien , and public debates Leadership roles include co-founding the Austrian Association for Applied Geography (ÖVAG) and coordinating the IGEN EU project (2011-2013). He mentors young researchers through conference sessions and regional workshops.

Tina WakolbingerView profile

Professor

• Supply Chain Management
• Humanitarian Logistics
• Circular Economy
• +1 more

Prof. Tina Wakolbinger is a Professor at Vienna University of Economics and Business (WU) , where she serves as Deputy Head of the Institute for Transport Economics and Logistics and Head of the Supply Chain Management Research Institute. She also chairs the Senate and has led numerous research projects in supply chain management, humanitarian logistics, and the circular economy. PhD in Business Administration, Isenberg School of Management, UMASS Amherst (2007) Mag. in International Economics, University of Innsbruck (2002) Her research focuses on Supply Chain Management , with an emphasis on Humanitarian Logistics and the Circular Economy . She investigates how operational settings and disaster characteristics affect supply chain resilience, explores sustainable urban mobility solutions like electric scooters, and develops frameworks for resource allocation in disaster relief. She has published extensively on topics including disaster preparedness, outsourcing in humanitarian logistics, and the impact of digitalization on sustainable supply chains. Recent publications highlight trends in 2025 with strategic dependencies in supply chains, 2023 contributions to circular economy models and humanitarian logistics assessments, and 2022 analyses of pandemic-era supply chain disruptions. Earlier work includes studies on sustainable freight transport, e-waste management, and risk-sharing contracts. Scientific Awards Literati Award 2020 (Journal of Humanitarian Logistics) WU Cooperation Officer of the Year 2018 Talent promotion bonus of Upper Austria 2011 Best Paper Award 2008 (Fogelman College of Business) Graduate School Fellowship 2006 (UMASS Amherst) She has been involved in external positions such as Member of the Post Control Commission (2022–2027) and advisory roles for Caritas Österreich and Finland’s Strategic Research Council. Current projects include developing circular business models for timber supply chains and optimizing e-scooter fleet management in Vienna.

• Climate Change Macroeconomics and Microeconomics
• Environmental Migration
• Exhaustible Resource Management
• +3 more

Alexandra Brausmann is an Associate Professor in Environmental and Resource Economics at the Department of Economics, University of Vienna, and a member of the Environment and Climate Research Hub. She holds a Master's in International Economics (MIS) from The Graduate Institute (Geneva) and a PhD in Economics/Resource Economics from ETH Zürich. Research Focus: Climate change impacts (macro/micro), environmental migration, resource management, climate policy, agricultural economics, growth and sustainability. Recent Publications: Co-authored works on endogenous climate shocks, undocumented migration economics, and climate policy effectiveness, published in journals like Journal of Environmental Economics and Management and Environmental and Resource Economics . Teaching: Offers courses in Environmental Economics (MA) and Resource and Environmental Economics (BA) at the University of Vienna. News: Co-organizing a workshop on the Political Economy of the Environment in February 2025 at the University of Vienna.

Tina ComesView profile

Professor

• Crisis Informatics
• Decision Theory
• Disaster Management
• +2 more

Tina Comes is a Full Professor in Decision-Making & Digitalisation at the University of Maastricht, Netherlands. She holds a part-time position (0.2 FTE) and has previously held academic roles at TU Delft (Associate Professor in Decision-Making for Resilience, 2017), University of Agder (Full Professor in ICT, 2015-2017), and Visiting Professor at Lamsade, Université Dauphine, Paris (2014). Her research focuses on Crisis Informatics , Decision Theory , Disaster Management , Humanitarian Logistics , and Resilience . Her work spans building simulation , ventilation systems , and energy-efficient design , with grants totaling €9.6 million since 2012. Key projects include Resilient Systems (NL Ministry of Defense, 2020-2026), H2020 HERoS (2020-2023), and Climate Resilient Urban Infrastructure (Amsterdam, 2020-2022). She has supervised 6 PhD students at TU Delft (2017-2022), 3 Postdocs/PhDs at University of Agder (2013-2020), and 1 PhD at Université Toulouse (2014-2018). Her scientific awards include: 2020 José Maria Sarriegi Award by the Spanish Red Cross 2019 Emerald Literati Award 2016 Delft Technology Fellowship (acceptance rate 2012 Best Paper Award at ISCRAM Conference

• Nuclear Safety
• Risk Assessment
• Reactor Technology
• +7 more

Nikolaus Müllner is a researcher at the Institute of Safety and Risk Sciences at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU). His work centers on nuclear safety, reactor technology, risk assessment, and thermal-hydraulic modeling, particularly for VVER-type reactors. He actively contributes to international nuclear safety discourse through conferences and peer review. His research interests include nuclear reactor safety, severe accident analysis, licensing of small modular reactors, best estimate plus uncertainty (BEPU) methods, and environmental impact assessments in nuclear contexts. He applies simulation tools like RELAP5, MELCOR, and SCDAPSIM to analyze accident scenarios and validate safety systems. His expertise spans both technical and policy aspects of nuclear energy. Müllner has delivered numerous lectures at international conferences such as NURETH, ICONE, and IAEA events, focusing on topics like core damage frequency, station blackout scenarios, and aging management. His recent publications reflect a trend toward integrating technical safety analysis with regulatory and societal considerations, particularly in European contexts. He has served as a reviewer for journals including Energy Strategy Reviews , Progress in Nuclear Energy , and International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction , contributing to the scientific quality of research in energy and risk domains. Supervision and Community Engagement: Supervised master’s theses on topics such as small modular reactor safety, RELAP5 modeling, and environmental aspects of nuclear licensing. Active in international research networks like INRAG (International Nuclear Risk Assessment Group). Engaged in public knowledge transfer through lectures and media contributions on nuclear policy and safety. Laboratories and Research Groups: While not explicitly tied to a specific lab, his work is closely associated with nuclear simulation and risk assessment frameworks, likely involving collaboration with experimental facilities such as the PSB-VVER test facility. His research is conducted within the interdisciplinary environment of BOKU’s Safety and Risk Sciences department.

• Environmental Engineering
• Water Resource Management
• Urban Hydrology
• +3 more

Thomas Ertl is a Professor at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU), leading the Institute of Sanitary Engineering and Water Pollution Control. His research focuses on urban water systems, emphasizing sustainable drainage, climate change adaptation, and nature-based solutions. He has coordinated 55 projects, including international initiatives in Albania and Austria, addressing stormwater management, wastewater heat recovery, and sewer infrastructure resilience. Key Projects : Analysing re-activated watercourses for urban resilience (2024–2028) Resilient rainwater management in Austria (2024–2028) Assessing pollutant emissions in Albania (2024–2027) Research Themes : Building Information Modeling (BIM) in wastewater systems Uncertainty analysis under climate change Stormwater pollution and heat island mitigation Awards : 2018: Goldene Ehrennadel des ÖWAV 1993: Best student award at AGIT 93 His recent publications highlight multidisciplinary approaches to wastewater energy recovery, spatial compatibility of nature-based solutions, and prioritization of stormwater management sites. He has supervised numerous theses and contributed to media discussions on urban climate resilience, including articles in Austrian outlets like futurezone.at and Der Kurier.

Ulrike FeltView profile

Professor

• Science and Technology Studies
• Public engagement in science
• Research cultures
• +9 more

Ulrike Felt is a Full Professor of Science and Technology Studies and Chair of the Department of Science and Technology Studies at the University of Vienna, where she has held academic positions since 1989. She served as Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences (2014-2018) and Head of the Department of Science and Technology Studies during multiple periods (2004-2014, 2018-present). She also led the Interdisciplinary Research Platform 'Responsible Research and Innovation in Academic Practice' (2015-2022). With a PhD in physics and habilitation in social sciences, Felt's research spans diverse domains including life sciences, biomedicine, nanotechnologies, nuclear energy, and environmental research. Her work focuses on governance and public participation in technoscience, changing research cultures, temporal aspects of scientific developments, and responsible research innovation frameworks. She frequently conducts interdisciplinary collaborations with researchers from the sciences and comparative analyses across national contexts. Felt's recent publications demonstrate her continued engagement with cutting-edge topics including smart cities, digital health infrastructure, biobanking, border technologies, and temporal dimensions of academic work. Her work consistently examines how technological developments intersect with societal values, governance structures, and temporal frameworks. 4S Infrastructure Award (2017) Ziman Award of EASST (2014) ARS DOCENDI Austrian State Prize for Innovative Excellent Teaching (2015) UNIVIE Teaching Award (2014) Member of the SSH Panel of the ERC Felt served as editor-in-chief of Science, Technology & Human Values (2002-2007) and led the publication of the Handbook of Science and Technology Studies with MIT Press (2017). As President of the European Association for the Study of Science and Technology (2017-2020), she has significantly shaped the international STS community. Her work on card-based engagement methods (IMAGINE, RESPONSE_ABILITY) demonstrates her commitment to translating STS insights into practical tools for researchers.

• Forest Inventory and Monitoring
• LiDAR Technology Applications
• Forest Regeneration Quantification
• +3 more

Tobias Ofner-Graff is a researcher at the Institute of Forest Growth within the Department of Ecosystem Management, Climate and Biodiversity at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU). Based at Peter-Jordan-Straße 82, 1190 Wien, his work focuses on advanced forest monitoring technologies. His research interests include: LiDAR and remote sensing applications in forestry Automated forest inventory systems Forest regeneration quantification Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) data analysis Sustainable forest harvesting planning Recent project contributions include: Leading lidar-based forest monitoring systems development Developing spatial forest growth models Implementing digital inventory workflows His publications demonstrate expertise in: Quantifying forest resources through 3D point clouds Advanced timber stack measurement techniques ALS data integration for forest modeling Mobile laser scanning applications Forest climate adaptation strategies

• Sustainable Spatial Planning
• Land Use Planning
• Urban and Regional Development
• +12 more

Gernot Stöglehner is a Full Professor at the Institute of Spatial Planning, Environmental Planning and Land Rearrangement , part of the Department of Landscape, Water and Infrastructure at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU) . He holds a doctorate and habilitation in environmental planning, with a career spanning research, teaching, and applied consultancy. His research focuses on sustainable spatial planning, land use efficiency, integrated spatial and energy planning, climate resilience, and environmental assessment . He investigates how urban and regional development patterns impact energy demand, environmental quality, and climate adaptation, advocating for land-saving strategies and resilient settlement structures. His work bridges planning theory with practical policy tools. The recent publications reflect a strong trend in spatial resilience, energy transition, climate change adaptation, and sustainable land use . Articles cover topics such as flood recovery, urban energy modeling for electric vehicles, bioeconomy spatial aspects, and methodological foundations of planning. His research is highly applied, often contributing to policy frameworks and strategic planning instruments. Preis der Prof. Anton-Kurir-Stiftung zur Unterstützung des wissenschaftlichen Nachwuchses (2004) Stöglehner has led or participated in over 60 research projects, many as principal investigator, funded by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG), the European Commission, and Austrian federal and regional governments. His projects often involve interdisciplinary teams and knowledge transfer to municipalities and planning authorities. He actively advises on spatial and energy strategies for communities and regions. He leads a research group focused on spatial planning and environmental policy, contributing to doctoral programs and major initiatives like the BOKU Energy Cluster. His work is central to the university’s efforts in sustainability and climate action.

Sophie N. ParraghView profile

Professor

• Vehicle Routing
• Passenger Transportation
• Green Logistics
• +7 more

Sophie N. Parragh is Professor and Head of the Institute of Production and Logistics Management at Johannes Kepler University Linz, where she also serves as program director of the master's degree program in Economic and Business Analytics. She received her PhD from the University of Vienna in 2009 and completed her habilitation in 2016, following postdoctoral research at the IBM Center for Advanced Studies in Porto and a visiting professorship at the Vienna University of Economics and Business. Her research focuses on developing exact and heuristic optimization algorithms for complex logistics and transportation problems. Key areas include vehicle routing, green logistics, disaster relief distribution planning, scheduling, and multi-objective optimization. She has particular expertise in branch-and-bound, branch-and-price, column generation, and metaheuristics approaches to solve challenging combinatorial optimization problems. Dr. Parragh's publication record shows a consistent trend toward increasingly complex multi-objective problems, with recent work focusing on electric vehicle routing, multi-echelon production planning under uncertainty, and bi-objective facility location problems with applications in disaster relief. Her research bridges theoretical optimization methods with practical applications in logistics and transportation. Scientific Awards: ÖGOR (Austrian Society for Operations Research) dissertation prize doc.award from the University of Vienna Hertha Firnberg Postdoc fellowship from the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) Dr. Parragh has served as department editor for OR Spectrum and as associate editor for Transportation Science, Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, INFORMS Journal on Computing, and Networks. She has led and participated in numerous third-party funded research projects in operations research, including work in healthcare logistics, field staff routing, production planning, and electric vehicle routing. In 2021-2022, she co-organized the monthly VeRoLog webinar series, demonstrating her active engagement with the international operations research community. She maintains strong research collaborations across Europe, evidenced by her co-authored publications with researchers from institutions in Austria, France, Portugal, Denmark, and beyond. Her work consistently addresses both theoretical challenges in optimization and practical applications in industry and public service contexts.

Axel PolleresView profile

Professor

• Semantic Web
• Knowledge Graphs
• Ontology Reasoning
• +7 more

Axel Polleres is a full professor at the Institute for Data, Process and Knowledge Management in Vienna University of Economics and Business (WU Wien). He leads the department of Information Systems and Operations Management while maintaining active research in knowledge graphs, semantic web technologies, and ontology engineering. PhD and Habilitation from Vienna University of Technology Former positions at University of Innsbruck, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, DERI Ireland, and Siemens AG Co-chair of W3C SPARQL working group Editorial board member for Semantic Web Journal and IJSWIS His research focuses on: Querying and reasoning over ontologies Graph schema languages (SHACL, SPARQL) Wikidata constraint formalization Ontology reuse in collaborative platforms Crisis management knowledge graphs FAIR data principles implementation Recent publications analyze knowledge graph evolution, constraint validation methodologies, and semantic web standardization efforts. Key topics include: OWL/RDF interoperability solutions Unit conversion systems for Wikidata Partition-based query processing frameworks Network resilience analysis for urban planning Open data platform discovery tools Temporal analysis of collaborative knowledge graphs He has co-organized major conferences like ISWC2023 and ESWC workshops while maintaining active roles in European research projects. Current work involves spatiotemporal knowledge graphs for city resilience and semantic web infrastructure development.

Gerhard HillmerView profile

Professor

• Engineering Education
• Leadership & Project Management
• Organizational Development
• +4 more

Gerhard Hillmer is a Professor and Program Director of the Industrial Engineering & Management Master's program at the Management Center Innsbruck. He holds a Dr.-Ing. in Chemical Engineering from Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nuremberg (1993) and an MSc in Management from Management Center Innsbruck (2008). His career spans over 25 years in academia and industry, including leadership roles as Department Head (2009-2023) and Study Coordinator in Process Engineering. Prior to academia, he held strategic roles in ExxonMobil and Esso Italiana focusing on business planning and operations optimization. His research focuses on leadership development in engineering education, interdisciplinary competency models, and organizational change management. He has authored textbooks such as Key Competencies in Leadership and Project Work (2022) and pioneered training concepts for engineering graduates' soft skills and responsible management practices. His work emphasizes integrating non-technical competencies like conflict resolution, project management, and ethical decision-making into engineering curricula. Recent publications address global business strategies in Africa, AI-driven HR practices, and corporate ethics expectations. Hillmer has supervised over 50 theses on topics ranging from cross-cultural leadership to resilient supply chains. His presentations at international conferences highlight trends in engineering education reform and organizational transformation in VUCA environments. Notable contributions include developing the PRiME-based Responsible Management certificate and advancing qualitative research methods for change processes in manufacturing. His work bridges academic research with practical industry challenges, emphasizing sustainable career development for engineers and leadership excellence in multinational contexts.