Exterior view of the institute

Welcome at the Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry


Focus on the Earth

Our research is dedicated to the study of global biogeochemical cycles describing the interactions between the biosphere, the atmosphere, the geosphere and the entire climate system. We aim to better understand how living organisms - including humans - exchange basic resources such as water, carbon, nutrients, and energy with their environment and how this affects ecosystems and climate at regional to global scales. 

We stand for a Thuringia open to the world

We support the initiative Weltoffenes Thüringen!

We are committed to ensuring that people from different backgrounds live and work together respectfully.

A hand holds a cardboard sign into the air. "Equality in Diversity" is written on it in capital letters.

Equal Opportunities

Equal opportunities for all - this principle is upheld both in the Max Planck Society and at our institute. We promote employees regardless of gender, nationality, religion, disability, age, cultural origin and sexual identity, because their diversity is the basis for cutting-edge research.

News

In close cooperation with the Max Planck Institutes for Biogeochemistry and Geoanthropology the Institute for Geosciences at the Friedrich Schiller University is offering a new Master’s program, “Biogeosciences of the Anthropocene”.
Excellent research is promoted and rewarded at Beutenberg Jena
The Cluster of Excellence “Balance of the Microverse” at the University of Jena has awarded the Microverse Early Career Scientist Awards 2025 to Dr. Beatrix Heinze and Dr. Harikumar R. Suma.

Events

Scientific events

ELLIS Summer Lecture Series - Explainability & Understanding of Models

Jun 1, 2026 - Jul 8, 2026
Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Inselplatz 5, Room: Letcure Hall, Room 005

4th General Assembly & Phase 2 Kick-off of the "Integrated Greenhouse Gas Monitoring System for Germany (ITMS)"

Sep 29, 2026 02:00 PM (Local Time Germany) - Oct 1, 2026 02:00 PM
Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry (Hans Knöll Straße 10, 07745), Jena, Room: Hörsaal (C0.001)

Public events & Presentations

Flora Incognita & PollenNet

Flora Incognita & PollenNet bei der Ilmenauer Wissenschaftsnacht
Jun 20, 2026 05:00 PM - 11:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

Public kick-off event for research project (GENAI-X)

Public kick-off event for research project (GENAI-X)
Jun 22, 2026 04:00 PM - 06:00 PM (Local Time Germany)
Rosensäle, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena

Lange Nacht der Wissenschaften 2026

Nov 20, 2026 06:00 PM - 11:55 PM (Local Time Germany)
MPI-BGC

Seminars & colloquia

Seminar: Mauricio Lima

A generative framework for ecosystem-weather interactions
Jun 18, 2026 02:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

Colloquium: Ning Zeng

Wood Vault: Burying Woody Biomass to Fight Climate Change - a Simple Idea that Actually Works
Jun 19, 2026 11:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

Seminar: Luana Basso

Global methane emissions: insights from atmospheric inversion modelling
Jul 2, 2026 02:30 PM (Local Time Germany)

Colloquium: Christian Lessig

(title t.b.a.)
Jul 16, 2026 02:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

Recent Publications

Nishina, K.; Ito, A.; Tian, H.; Nagashima, T.; Osugi, Y.; Pan, N.; Pan, S.; Kou-Giesbrecht, S.; Maggi, F.; Jain, A. K. et al.; Vuichard, N.; Zaehle, S.: Impacts of land-use change on century-scale global soil NO emissions using the biogeochemical model VISIT. Environmental Research Letters 21 (10), 104023 (2026)
Webb, H.; Fuchs, M.; Abbott, B. W.; Douglas, T. A.; Elder, C. D.; Ernakovich, J. G.; Euskirchen, E. S.; Göckede, M.; Grosse, G.; Hugelius, G. et al.; Jones, M. C.; Koven, C.; Kropp, H.; Lathrop, E.; Li, W.; Loranty, M. M.; Natali, S. M.; Olefeldt, D.; Schädel, C.; Schuur, E. A. G.; Sonnentag, O.; Strauss, J.; Virkkala, A.; Turetsky, M. R.: A review of abrupt permafrost thaw: Definitions, usage, and a proposed conceptual framework. Current Climate Change Reports 11 (7), pp. 1 - 15 (2026)
Giesse, C.; Notz, D.; Ulrich, M.; Brovkin, V.; Overduin, P. P.; Strauss, J.; Arndt, K. A.; Call, F.; Fritz, M.; Gallego-Sala, A. V. et al.; Göckede, M.; Hauck, J.; Kleinen, T.; Kvalevåg, M. M.; Le Fouest, V.; Nielsen, D. M.; Parmentier, F.-J. W.; Rachold, V.; Ramage, J.; Riedel Escobar, A.: Research priorities for the coupled arctic land–ocean carbon cycle: Integrating scientific and policy perspectives. In Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 107 (5), pp. E1159 - E1169. Workshop on the Arctic Land–Ocean Carbon Cycle and Its Role in the Remaining Global Carbon Budget, Berlin, Germany, September 22, 2025 - September 23, 2025. American Meteorological Society (2026)
Thum, T.; Pacheco-Labrador, J.; Aurela, M.; Barr, A.; Honkanen, M.; Johnson, B.; Lindqvist, H.; Magney, T.; Migliavacca, M.; Pierrat, Z. A. et al.; Quaife, T.; Stutz, J.; Zaehle, S.: Using different radiative transfer schemes for solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) in evergreen coniferous forests with a terrestrial biosphere model. Biogeosciences 23 (10), pp. 3541 - 3565 (2026)
Guha-Sapir, D.; Scales, S. E.; Gans, F.; Ndugwa, J.; Huang, P.; Guerrero Torres, Á. J.; Doocy, S.; Reichstein, M.; Smits, J.; Tollefsen, A. F. et al.; Urdal, H.; Zaitchik, B.; Enenkel, M.: The MERGE dataset: A harmonized global resource for climate disaster impacts and human vulnerability. Scientific Data (2026)
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