Elisabeth Quendler

Elisabeth Quendler serves as Associate Professor at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU), within the Department of Agricultural Sciences and the Institute of Agricultural Engineering. Her academic career spans over three decades, with significant contributions to agricultural work science, ergonomics, and social inclusion within farming systems.

Her educational background includes a First Degree in Agriculture (DI) in 1991, an MSc in Agricultural and Food Chain Systems in 1994, a controlling diploma in 2000, and a doctorate in 2002. She achieved her Privatdozent (PD) qualification in 2010 and was appointed Associate Professor in 2012.

Professor Quendler's research focuses on optimizing work processes in agricultural operations from labor management, ergonomic, and social perspectives. Her work addresses critical issues including Linear Programming for farms, Organic Farming, Ergonomics, and Energy efficient and climate neutral construction. She has pioneered research on social inclusion of people with disabilities in agricultural settings, particularly in urban and peri-urban horticulture.

Her recent publications reveal a strong emphasis on social-ecological models for inclusion processes, smart technologies in pasture management, and labor optimization in various farming systems. The research demonstrates a consistent trajectory toward integrating technological solutions with social sustainability considerations in agricultural work environments.

• High Merit Award in Recognition of distinguished services to CIGR (2018)
• Dr. -Karl-Schleinzer-Preis (1991)

Professor Quendler has supervised numerous master's and doctoral theses on topics ranging from forest and nature preschool organization to seasonal labor shortages in fruit farming. Her grant portfolio includes significant projects funded by the European Commission, Austrian Research Promotion Agency, and Federal Ministries, with recent work focusing on socially sustainable frameworks for imparting natural knowledge to preschool children and inclusion of disabled people in horticultural farming processes.

She leads research teams exploring the intersection of agricultural engineering, social inclusion, and sustainable work practices, with particular emphasis on creating accessible agricultural environments and developing models for integrating diverse populations into farming systems.