GIScience / Geoinformatics Research Group

The GIScience Research Group is engaged in innovative basic and applied research at the interface between geography and the computational sciences. We thereby focus on the investigation of user-generated geographical content (VGI, Crowdsourcing, Citizen Science), for which we develop innovative methods and analytical approaches.
More specifically, our thematic focuses are on volunteered geographic information (VGI), big spatial data analytics, smart mobility and humanitarian aid, such as disaster management.
Through the Heidelberg Institute for Geoinformation Technology (HeiGIT gGmbH) at Heidelberg University, we have the opportunity to translate our research work into practical solutions.
In addition, we support our institute's study programmes in geography with numerous courses on relevant GI methods that allow our students to formally specialize in geoinformatics.
Please note our vacancies.
Latest News
News from our daily work can be found at giscienceblog.uni-heidelberg.de (also available as RSS-Feed). You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date.
The 15-minute city concept is gaining traction in urban planning, aiming to ensure that essential services are within a short walk or bike ride. As the older population grows, walking remains a key factor in their well-being, yet their mobility is highly dependent on the built environment. A new research project, Silver Ways, is tackling […]
Today, on February 11th, together with the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, we are celebrating women and girls in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Established by the United Nations, this day underscores the need for gender equality in scientific fields and recognizes the contributions of women scientists around the world. Despite […]
The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) generated significant health concerns worldwide, leading policymakers and health care experts to implement nonpharmaceutical public health interventions to mitigate the spread of the virus. While these interventions played a crucial role in controlling transmission, they also resulted in substantial economic and societal costs, necessitating strategic deployment, particularly during periods of […]
Fig. 1: New feature: combining attributes We recently added the attribute completeness indicator to the Ohsome Dashboard, and we’re now happy to introduce major upgrades to its functionalities. The ohsome quality API (OQAPI) and the ohsome dashboard The ohsome quality API was built to provide data quality estimations for OpenStreetMap data. There are currently four […]
Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) play a crucial role in maintaining ecological balance and public health and are essential for advancing social sustainable development goals. However, the diverse architectural styles, scales, and environmental contexts of WWTPs—shaped by climate, topography, and regional economic conditions—pose significant challenges for generalizing segmentation algorithms. To address this, integrating knowledge from different […]
Road traffic and residential heating are the two main sources of CO₂ emissions in many cities. HeiGIT´s new emission inventories map these emissions and can simulate the effects of new policies and interventions. We calculated how emissions would change in Heidelberg, Germany, if we introduced a 30 km/h road speed limit and replaced oil and […]
Free and open-source map data has become a keystone for research across diverse fields. The extensive coverage of OpenStreetMap (OSM) data allows scientists to conduct independent studies without relying on corporate collaborations or investing heavily in proprietary datasets. However, OSM data coverage completeness varies significantly by location. Moreover, the latest data updates cannot always be […]
The renewable energy (RE) sector is a cornerstone of global climate action, yet its workforce remains marked by gender inequality. Women are significantly underrepresented, often relegated to lower-paid, non-technical roles. Traditional analyses of this disparity frequently ignore the spatial dimensions that influence women’s employment opportunities—factors like public transportation access, safety, and neighborhood walkability. Addressing these […]
Studies have long assessed people’s accessibility to amenities through public transportation, typically using General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS) data. GTFS reflects planned transportation schedules, detailing the intended services and routes of transit systems. However, this approach raises an important question: are we missing critical insights by not incorporating real-time information? A recent study led by […]
The ohsome-py Python package is a client for the ohsome API, designed to facilitate the extraction and analysis of historical OpenStreetMap (OSM) data. The package simplifies handling API requests and responses by converting them into pandas or GeoPandas data frames, making data analysis and visualization easier. With ohsome-py, you gain all the functionalities of the […]
In the field of humanitarian aid, Anticipatory Action (AA) is emerging as an important strategy to mitigate the impacts of natural disasters. At HeiGIT, we have been actively working with this approach to support local communities in building resilience. Unlike traditional reactive responses, AA aims to initiate predefined actions based on weather forecasts and risk […]
Pictures of the Group
In Memoriam Peter Meusburger

On 18 December 2017, Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Peter Meusburger died far too soon. We mourn for a great scientist, teacher and colleague. In the mid 90s he implemented the first GIS pool at Heidelberg University and started GIS related research. He will not be forgotten. ((Message of the University)