Dr. Ellen Banzhaf
PhD - Senior Scientist
Department of Urban and Environmental Sociology
Helmholtz Centre
for Environmental Research - UFZ
Permoserstr. 15
04318 Leipzig, Germany
phone: ++49 341 6025 1738
Dr. Ellen Banzhaf
Working group
Research Areas
Quantitative analyses of spatial and temporal dynamics in urban regions and detection of urban structures by remote sensing techniques. Monitoring and change detection of land-use/land-cover (LULC) in the interdisciplinary field of urban transformation studies. Deriving urban structures and further spatial indicators to understand processes of spatial dynamics and linkage to socio-demographic and socio-economic parameters in neighbourhoods, cities and urban regions. Regional, national and international contexts are taken into account. Research in urban resilience has a strong focus on nature-based solutions.
- Monitoring urban land use and land cover at various scales from urban regions to neighbourhoods;
- Analysing impacts of land-use dynamics and population development as drivers for urban transformations;
- Investigating urban structures, especially their urban ecological and socio-economic parameters, for resilient urban development paths;
- Linking quantitative and qualitative information for equitable nature-based solutions;
- Continued development of interactive walkable floor maps as science-policy ínterface.
Current project
Completed projects
Publications
2025 (1)
- Jones, L., Anderson, S., Læssøe, J., Banzhaf, E., Jensen, A., Tubadji, A., Hutchins, M., Yang, J., Taylor, T., Wheeler, B.W., Fletcher, D., Tenbrink, T., Wilcox-Jones, L., Iversen, S., Sang, Å., Lin, T., Xu, Y., Lu, L., Levin, G., Zandersen, M. (2025):
Re-thinking people and nature interactions in urban nature-based solutions
Sustainability 17 (7), art. 3043 10.3390/su17073043
2024 (11)
- Banzhaf, E., Bause, I., Helbig, C., Elze, S. (2024):
Personal exposure to environmental pressures in different urban residential structures linking fieldwork and RS mapping
IEEE J. Sel. Top. Appl. Earth Observ. Remote Sens. 17 , 2789 - 2799 10.1109/JSTARS.2023.3340418 - Banzhaf, E., Branth Pedersen, A., Fitch, A., Fletcher, D., Hutchins, M., Iversen, S., Jones, L., Knopp, J., Levin, G., Russel, D., Sang, Å.O., Scheffler, J., Spanier, M., Taylor, T., Wyn-Owen, D., Zandersen, M. (2024):
Recommendations for potential target values in cities. REGREEN Deliverable 3.5
Zenodo
10.5281/zenodo.10466785 - Banzhaf, E., Kabisch, S., Rink, D. (2024):
Das Stadtlabor Leipzig am UFZ
In: Kabisch, S., Rink, D., Banzhaf, E. (Hrsg.)
Die resiliente Stadt: Konzepte, Konflikte, Lösungen
Springer Spektrum, Berlin, Heidelberg, S. 91 - 94 10.1007/978-3-662-66916-7_6 - Elze, S., Petersen, C., Læssøe, J., Banzhaf, E., Jensen, A., Russel, D., Anderson, S. (2024):
Meeting on the map: Innovative platform for stakeholder learning, dialogue and engagement with nature-based solutions (NbS). REGREEN Policy Brief 12/12
REGREEN - Nature-Based Solutions, 4 pp. 10.5281/zenodo.10732498 - Kabisch, S., Rink, D., Banzhaf, E. (Hrsg., 2024):
Die resiliente Stadt: Konzepte, Konflikte, Lösungen
Springer Spektrum, Berlin, Heidelberg, XXI, 296 S. 10.1007/978-3-662-66916-7 - Owen, D., Fitch, A., Fletcher, D., Knopp, J., Levin, G., Farley, K., Banzhaf, E., Zandersen, M., Grandin, G., Jones, L. (2024):
Opportunities and constraints of implementing the 3-30-300 rule for urban greening
Urban For. Urban Green. 98 , art. 128393 10.1016/j.ufug.2024.128393 - Petersen, C.J., Russel, D.J., Jensen, A., Branth Pedersen, A., Banzhaf, E., Kaltenegger, I. (2024):
Walkable maps and policy innovation for nature: a novel methodology for understanding policy learning
Int. J. Qual. Meth. 23 , 1 - 13 10.1177/16094069241254006 - Petsani, E., Anderson, S., Banzhaf, E., Barra, M., Beber, J., Pedersen, A.B., Cai, X.-X., Ellmer, H.-P., Fletcher, D., Grandin, G., Guo, Z., Hardiman, R., Iversen, S., Jensen, A., Jones, L., Knopp, J., Læssøe, J., Levin, G., Ma, Y., Sang, Å.O., Petersen, C., Prevot, A.-C., Russel, D., Tedeschini, F., Tuerk, A., Vogel, N., Wheeler, B., Wu, R., Wu, W., Xing, Q., Xu, D.-F., Xu, Y., Yang, Y., Yuan, Q., Zhao, B., Zhao, J., Zhou, S.-Q., Zandersen, M. (2024):
REGREEN NBS Handbook from concept to action for ecosystem restoration & urban resilience. REGREEN Deliverable D7.4. REGREEN - Fostering nature‐based solutions for smart, green and healthy urban transitions in Europe and China. Horizon2020 Grant No. 821016
REGREEN - Nature-Based Solutions, 100 pp. 10.5281/zenodo.11065278 - Weidmüller, N., Knopp, J.M., Beber, J., Mikulčić Krnjaja, G., Banzhaf, E. (2024):
Local planning scenario for shading from trees as an urban nature-based solution
City Environ. Interact. 23 , art. 100154 10.1016/j.cacint.2024.100154 - Wu, W., Guo, F., Elze, S., Knopp, J., Banzhaf, E. (2024):
Deciphering the effects of 2D/3D urban morphology on diurnal cooling efficiency of urban green space
Build. Environ. 266 , art. 112047 10.1016/j.buildenv.2024.112047 - Zandersen, M., Banzhaf, E., Knopp, J.M., Scheffler, J., Levin, G., Guell, C., Wicke, M. (2024):
Naturbasierte Lösungen zur Stärkung der Resilienz in Städten
In: Kabisch, S., Rink, D., Banzhaf, E. (Hrsg.)
Die resiliente Stadt: Konzepte, Konflikte, Lösungen
Springer Spektrum, Berlin, Heidelberg, S. 145 - 164 10.1007/978-3-662-66916-7_10
2023 (3)
- Anees, M.M., Banzhaf, E., Wang, J., Joshi, P.K. (2023):
Quality index approach for analysis of urban green infrastructure in Himalayan cities
Land 12 (2), art. 279 10.3390/land12020279 - Knopp, J.M., Levin, G., Banzhaf, E. (2023):
Aerial data analysis for integration into a green cadastre - an example from Aarhus, Denmark
IEEE J. Sel. Top. Appl. Earth Observ. Remote Sens. 16 , 6545 - 6555 10.1109/JSTARS.2023.3289218 - Wu, B.-W., Ma, J., Banzhaf, E., Meadows, M.E., Yu, Z.-W., Guo, F., Sengupta, D., Cai, X.-X., Zhao, B. (2023):
A first Chinese building height estimate at 10 m resolution (CNBH-10 m) using multi-source earth observations and machine learning
Remote Sens. Environ. 291 , art. 113578 10.1016/j.rse.2023.113578
2022 (7)
- Banzhaf, E., Anderson, S., Grandin, G., Hardiman, R., Jensen, A., Jones, L., Knopp, J., Levin, G., Russel, D., Wu, W., Yang, J., Zandersen, M. (2022):
Urban-rural dependencies and opportunities to design nature-based solutions for resilience in Europe and China
Land 11 (4), art. 480 10.3390/land11040480 - Banzhaf, E., Bulley, H.N., Inkoom, J.N., Elze, S. (2022):
Mapping open data and big data to address climate resilience of urban informal settlements in Sub-Saharan Africa
Climate 10 (12), art. 186 10.3390/cli10120186 - Bird, D.N., Banzhaf, E., Knopp, J., Wu, W., Jones, L. (2022):
Combining spatial and temporal data to create a fine-resolution daily urban air temperature product from remote sensing land surface temperature (LST) data
Atmosphere 13 (7), art. 1152 10.3390/atmos13071152 - Elze, S., Banzhaf, E. (2022):
High-precision monitoring of urban structures to understand changes in multiple ecosystem services
Urban For. Urban Green. 73 , art. 127616 10.1016/j.ufug.2022.127616 - Jones, L., Anderson, S., Læssøe, J., Banzhaf, E., Jensen, A., Bird, D.N., Miller, J., Hutchins, M.G., Yang, J., Garrett, J., Taylor, T., Wheeler, B.W., Lovell, R., Fletcher, D., Qu, Y., Vieno, M., Zandersen, M. (2022):
A typology for urban Green Infrastructure to guide multifunctional planning of nature-based solutions
Nature-Based Solutions 2 , art. 100041 10.1016/j.nbsj.2022.100041 - Wu, W., Luo, X., Knopp, J., Jones, L., Banzhaf, E. (2022):
Refined land cover for Beijing, Shanghai, Ningbo in China and Paris Region, Velika Gorica, Aarhus in Europe under different scenarios in 2030 [Data set]
Zenodo 10.5281/zenodo.6997232 - Wu, W., Luo, X., Knopp, J., Jones, L., Banzhaf, E. (2022):
A European-Chinese exploration: Part 2 – Urban ecosystem service patterns, processes and contributions to environmental equity under different scenarios
Remote Sens. 14 (4), art. 3488 10.3390/rs14143488
2021 (2)
- Banzhaf, E., Wu, W., Luo, X., Knopp, J. (2021):
Integrated mapping of spatial urban dynamics—A European-Chinese exploration. Part 1—Methodology for automatic land cover classification tailored towards spatial allocation of ecosystem services features
Remote Sens. 13 (9), art. 1744 10.3390/rs13091744 - Wu, W.-B., Ma, J., Meadows, M.E., Banzhaf, E., Huang, T.-Y., Liu, Y.-F., Zhao, B. (2021):
Spatio-temporal changes in urban green space in 107 Chinese cities (1990–2019): The role of economic drivers and policy
Int. J. Appl. Earth Obs. Geoinf. 103 , art. 102525 10.1016/j.jag.2021.102525
2020 (5)
- Anees, M.M., Mann, D., Sharma, M., Banzhaf, E., Joshi, P.K. (2020):
Assessment of urban dynamics to understand spatiotemporal differentiation at various scales using remote sensing and geospatial tools
Remote Sens. 12 (8), art. 1306 10.3390/rs12081306 - Banzhaf, E., Bird, D.N., Blanco, E., Fletcher, D., Jones, L., Knopp, J., Luo, X., Wu, W., Yang, Y., Bachiller‐Jareno, N., Hutchings, M., Ma, J., Miller, J., Vieno, M., Zhao, B. (2020):
Synthesis report on current datasets and their applicability of ecosystem services mapping and modelling. Deliverable N°3.1. WP N°3 Mapping and modelling ecosystem services
REGREEN - Nature-Based Solutions, 76 pp. - Banzhaf, E., Kollai, H., Kindler, A. (2020):
Mapping urban grey and green structures for liveable cities using a 3D enhanced OBIA approach and vital statistics
Geocarto Int. 35 (6), 623 - 640 10.1080/10106049.2018.1524514 - Fletcher, D., Zhao, B., Grandin, G., Yang, J., Barra, M., Ruzic, M., Vinther Larsen, L., Iversen, S., Xu, Y., Chen, C., Banzhaf, E., Knopp, J., Luo, X., Wu, W., Vesuviano, G., Jones, L. (2020):
Report on assessment of drivers and pressures leading to urban challenges, across the ULLs, including spatial and temporal components. Deliverable D2.1. for EU H2020 REGREEN project
REGREEN - Nature-Based Solutions, 41 pp. - Palliwoda, J., Banzhaf, E., Priess, J.A. (2020):
How do the green components of urban green infrastructure influence the use of ecosystem services? Examples from Leipzig, Germany
Landsc. Ecol. 35 (5), 1127 - 1142 10.1007/s10980-020-01004-w
2019 (3)
- Banzhaf, E., de la Barrera, F., Reyes-Paecke, S. (2019):
Urban green infrastructure in support of ecosystem services in a highly dynamic South American city: a multi-scale assessment of Santiago de Chile
In: Schröter, M., Bonn, A., Klotz, S., Seppelt, R., Baessler, C. (eds.)
Atlas of ecosystem services : drivers, risks, and societal responses
Springer International Publishing, Cham, p. 157 - 165 10.1007/978-3-319-96229-0_25 - Wang, J., Pauleit, S., Banzhaf, E. (2019):
An integrated indicator framework for the assessment of multifunctional green infrastructure—Exemplified in a European city
Remote Sens. 11 (16), art. 1869 10.3390/rs11161869 - Wang, J., Xu, C., Pauleit, S., Kindler, A., Banzhaf, E. (2019):
Spatial patterns of urban green infrastructure for equity: A novel exploration
J. Clean Prod. 238 , art. 117858 10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.117858
2018 (5)
- Banzhaf, E., Arndt, T., Ladiges, J. (2018):
Potenziale städtischer Gewerbebrachflächen für eine integrierte Stadtentwicklung. Monitoring für ein nachhaltiges Flächenmanagement am Beispiel der wieder wachsenden Stadt Leipzig. Potential performance of commercial urban Brownfield sites in integrated urban development – Monitoring for sustainable land-use management based on the example of the city of Leipzig
disP - The Planning Review 54 (2), 26 - 43 10.1080/02513625.2018.1487643 - Banzhaf, E., Arndt, T., Ladiges, J. (2018):
Potentials of urban brownfields for improving the quality of urban space
In: Kabisch, S., Koch, F., Gawel, E., Haase, A., Knapp, S., Krellenberg, K., Nivala, J., Zehnsdorf, A. (eds.)
Urban transformations - Sustainable urban development through resource efficiency, quality of life and resilience
Future City 10
Springer International Publishing, Cham, p. 221 - 232 10.1007/978-3-319-59324-1_12 - Banzhaf, E., Knapp, S., Koch, F. (2018):
Part III. Quality of life and ecosystem services: Outline
In: Kabisch, S., Koch, F., Gawel, E., Haase, A., Knapp, S., Krellenberg, K., Nivala, J., Zehnsdorf, A. (eds.)
Urban transformations - Sustainable urban development through resource efficiency, quality of life and resilience
Future City 10
Springer International Publishing, Cham, p. 233 - 234 10.1007/978-3-319-59324-1 - Banzhaf, E., Reyes-Paecke, S.M., de la Barrera, F. (2018):
What really matters in green infrastructure for the urban quality of life? Santiago de Chile as a showcase city
In: Kabisch, S., Koch, F., Gawel, E., Haase, A., Knapp, S., Krellenberg, K., Nivala, J., Zehnsdorf, A. (eds.)
Urban transformations - Sustainable urban development through resource efficiency, quality of life and resilience
Future City 10
Springer International Publishing, Cham, p. 281 - 300 10.1007/978-3-319-59324-1_15 - Wang, J., Banzhaf, E. (2018):
Towards a better understanding of Green Infrastructure: A critical review
Ecol. Indic. 85 , 758 - 772 10.1016/j.ecolind.2017.09.018
2017 (5)
- Banzhaf, E., de la Barrera, F. (2017):
Evaluating public green spaces for the quality of life in cities by integrating RS mapping tools and social science techniques
2017 Joint Urban Remote Sensing Event, Dubai, UAE, 06-08 March 2017
Joint Urban Remote Sensing Event (JURSE) 2017
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), New York, NY, p. 1 - 4 10.1109/JURSE.2017.7924559 - Banzhaf, E., Kabisch, S., Knapp, S., Rink, D., Wolff, M., Kindler, A. (2017):
Integrated research on land-use changes in the face of urban transformations – an analytic framework for further studies
Land Use Pol. 60 , 403 - 407 10.1016/j.landusepol.2016.11.012 - Cabral, I., Keim, J., Engelmann, R., Kraemer, R., Siebert, J., Wolf, F., Banzhaf, E., Bonn, A. (2017):
Assessing the contribution of urban gardens to ecosystem services and biodiversity in the city of Leipzig
In: Kabisch, N., Stadler, J., Duffield, S., Korn, H., Bonn, A. (eds.)
Proceedings of the European Conference “Nature-based Solutions to Climate Change in Urban Areas and their Rural Surroundings“ Bonn, Germany, 17-19 November 2015
BfN-Skripten 456
Bundesamt für Naturschutz (BfN), Bonn, p. 68 - 69 10.19217/skr456 - Haase, D., Kabisch, S., Haase, A., Andersson, E., Banzhaf, E., Baró, F., Brenck, M., Fischer, L.K., Frantzeskaki, N., Kabisch, N., Krellenberg, K., Kremer, P., Kronenberg, J., Larondelle, N., Mathey, J., Pauleit, S., Ring, I., Rink, D., Schwarz, N., Wolff, M. (2017):
Greening cities – To be socially inclusive? About the alleged paradox of society and ecology in cities
Habitat Int. 64 , 41 - 48 10.1016/j.habitatint.2017.04.005 - Wang, J., Banzhaf, E. (2017):
Derive an understanding of Green Infrastructure for the quality of life in cities by means of integrated RS mapping tools
2017 Joint Urban Remote Sensing Event, Dubai, UAE, 06-08 March 2017
Joint Urban Remote Sensing Event (JURSE) 2017
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), New York, NY, p. 1 - 4 10.1109/JURSE.2017.7924585
2016 (3)
- de la Barrera, F., Reyes-Paecke, S., Banzhaf, E. (2016):
Indicators for green spaces in contrasting urban settings
Ecol. Indic. 62 , 212 - 219 10.1016/j.ecolind.2015.10.027 - de la Barrera, F., Rubio, P., Banzhaf, E. (2016):
The value of vegetation cover for ecosystem services in the suburban context
Urban For. Urban Green. 16 , 110 - 122 10.1016/j.ufug.2016.02.003 - Kindler, A., Banzhaf, E., Reyes-Paecke, S., Weiland, U., Müller, A. (2016):
Escenarios para ordenamiento territorial y gestión del riesgo por inundación
In: Barton, J.R., Kopfmüller, J. (eds.)
Santiago 2030 : escenarios para la planificacion estrategica
RiL Editores, Santiago, p. 131 - 160