Sonja Sudimac

Sonja Sudimac is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center for Environmental Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin. Her research investigates neural and physiological mechanisms through which natural and urban environments influence stress, emotions, and cognitive processes using fMRI and physiological monitoring.

Her educational background includes:

• Dr. rer. nat. (2024) from Freie Universität Berlin
• MSc in Cognitive Science (2019) from Technische Universität Kaiserslautern
• MSc in Educational Psychology (2016) from University of Belgrade
• BSc in Psychology (2015) from University of Belgrade

Sudimac's research centers on environmental impacts on brain function, with specific focus on amygdala reactivity during stress exposure, gender-specific responses to nature, and neural correlates of restorative experiences. She employs controlled one-hour walk paradigms in forest versus urban settings to isolate physiological and cognitive changes, emphasizing applications for mental health optimization through environmental design.

Analysis of her publication record reveals consistent methodological emphasis on fMRI to quantify neural plasticity changes, particularly in limbic system structures. Recurring themes include nature-induced amygdala deactivation, hippocampal plasticity linked to cognitive restoration, and perceptual processing differences in urbanized environments, spanning interdisciplinary intersections of neuroscience, environmental psychology, and urban planning.

No scientific awards are mentioned in available sources.

No advisees or research grants are detailed in the provided institutional profile.

Sudimac actively contributes to the Environmental Neuroscience Research Team, which conducts collaborative studies on environmental-brain interactions using multimodal neuroimaging and physiological assessment to inform evidence-based design of health-promoting spaces.