Burkard Richter

Burkard Richter is Professor of Geography and its Didactics at the University of Education Schwäbisch Gmünd, where he serves as Director of the Institute for Social Sciences and Head of the Geography Department. His academic career spans over three decades, with significant contributions to geography education across multiple institutions including the University of Freiburg and the University of Education Schwäbisch Gmünd, where he has been a full professor since 2010.

Richter's research spans multiple domains of geography, with particular emphasis on geography education methodology. His work in human geography focuses on settlement patterns, transportation systems, and tourism development, while his physical geography research centers on geomorphology, especially glacial processes. Regionally, he has developed deep expertise in Southeast Asia (particularly Thailand and Indonesia), the Mediterranean region (especially Greece), the Alpine region, Baden-Württemberg, and Australia. A distinctive feature of his approach is the integration of fieldwork and excursion methodology into geography education, reflected in his numerous organized excursions across Europe, Southeast Asia, and beyond.

His recent publications demonstrate evolving research interests in disaster risk management in Southeast Asia, sustainable tourism development in vulnerable regions, and the geographical characteristics of remote island communities. Richter's work increasingly addresses contemporary challenges including climate change impacts on geographical systems, sustainable resource management, and the geopolitical dimensions of tourism development.

Richter has supervised numerous scientific theses across diverse topics in geography education, with particular focus on cartography, excursion methodology, sustainable development education, and regional studies of Southeast Asia and the Mediterranean. His teaching encompasses both subject-specific geography courses and didactic approaches to geography education.

Through his leadership of the Institute for Social Sciences and the Geography Department, Richter has shaped curriculum development and pedagogical approaches in geography teacher education. His extensive fieldwork experience, documented through numerous excursions from 1995-2023 across diverse geographical regions, forms the foundation of his practical approach to geography education.