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Dr. Bettina Wenzel

Dr. Bettina Wenzel

Insitute of Social and Cultural Anthropology

Disaster Research Unit (DRU)

Research Associate

Academic Positions

  • since 10/2012 Research Associate at the Disaster Research Unit, Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology, Freie Universität Berlin
  • since 10/2015 BMBF-Project „INVOLVE: Initiate Volunteerism to counter Vulnerability“ (INVOLVE)
  • 09/2013 - 08/2016 BMBF-Project "ENablement of Urban Citizen SUpport for Crisis Response" (ENSURE)
  • 10/2012 - 08/2013 BMBF-Project "Security, Perception, Situation Reports, Conditions, and Expectations – A Monitoring of Security in Germany" (BaSiD)
  • 09/2005 - 08/2011 Research Associate with Teaching Duties at the Centre for Development Studies, Working Group Prof. Kreutzmann, Institute for Geographical Sciences, Freie Universität Berlin
  • 05/2004 - 08/2005 Freelancer and Research Assistant, e.g. for the Chamber of Crafts of Berlin on "Education Needs of Migrants"
  • 09/2000 - 04/2004 Teaching Assistant at the Centre for Development Studies, Institute for Geographical Sciences, Freie Universität Berlin

Education and Training

  • 2016 Doctoral Degree, Dissertation: "Livelihood Security and Risk Management of Rural Households in Northern Kyrgyzstan" (in German, with English summary)
  • 2006, 2007 and 2009 Field studies in Kyrgyzstan funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)
  • 04/2004 Degree "Diplom-Geographer" from Freie Universität Berlin; Thesis: "Effects of Post-Soviet Transformation on Rural Kyrgyzstan" ("Auswirkungen des Transformationsprozesses auf den ländlichen Raum Kirgistans")
  • 10/1996 - 01/2004 Studies of Geography, Sociology and Agricultural Sciences at Freie Universitaet Berlin and Humboldt Universitaet Berlin; 
  • 09/2002 and 06-08/2003 Field Studies for Diplom-Thesis in rural areas of Kyrgyzstan, funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)
  • 09/1999 - 04/2000 Graduate Student in Geography and Enviromental Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Canada

Teaching Experience at Freie Universität Berlin

2012 - 2017
  • Guest lectures in courses of Prof. Dr. Martin Voss on
  • Sustainable Livelihoods Approach
  • Human Behaviour in Disasters
  • Vulnerability
  • Community Based Disaster Risk Management
2005 - 2010
  • ES 24 401: Einführung in die Anthropogeographie II
  • AS 24 408: Weltbevölkerung und Migration. Neuere Ansätze und Entwicklungen
  • ES 24402: Einführung in die Anthropogeographie II (Modul 202)
  • AS 24409: Bevölkerungsgeographie (Modul C2)
  • VS 24405 und PG 24406: Modul D2 – Entwicklungschancen strukturschwacher Regionen in Brandenburg (zusammen mit Dr. Christina Alff)
  • ES 24401 und ES 24402: Modul A2 – Einführung in die Anthropogeographie I
  • ES 24403 und ES 24404: Modul A3 – Einführung in die Inhalte, Ergebnisse und Anwendung der Anthropogeographie (Anthropogeographie II)
  • AS 24408: Geographische Entwicklungsforschung mit Regionalbezug zu den Transformationsländern Zentralasiens
  • ES 24403: Modul A3 – Einführung in die Inhalte, Ergebnisse und Anwendung der Anthropogeographie (Anthropogeographie II)

Research Interests

  • Social Vulnerability and Resilience
  • Human Behavior in Extreme Situations
  • Risk, Risk Perception
  • Sustainable Resource Management
  • Transformation Processes in Kyrgyzstan and Central Asia

Research Projects and Field Studies

  • since 10/2015 BMBF-Project INVOLVE: INitiate VOLunteerism to counter VulnErability" (Project Head: Prof. Dr. Martin Voss)
        • 04/2017 Fieldwork in Odisha, India, on perception and management of heat waves
        • 2015-2017 Fieldwork in Elbe-Havel, Berlin and Jena on perception and management of flooding and heatwaves
  • 09/2013-08/2016 BMBF-Project "ENablement of Urban Citizen SUpport for Crisis Response" (ENSURE)
  • 10/2012-08/2013 BMBF-Project "Security, Perception, Situation Reports, Conditions, and Expectations – A Monitoring of Security in Germany" (BaSiD)
  • since 09/2005 Dissertation Project: "Livelihood Security and Risk Management of Rural Households in Northern Kyrgyzstan"
  • 09/2006, 02-03/2007 and 09/2009 Fieldwork on Risk Perception, Livelihood Security and Risk Management of Rural Households in Northern Kyrgyzstan
  • 10-12/2004 Fieldwork on Education Needs of Migrants in Berlin, Germany
  • 09/2002 and 06-08/2003 Field Studies on Post-Soviet Transformation of Agrarian Livelihoods in Rural Areas of Northern Kyrgyzstan
  • 02/2000 Field Studies during Student Research Project on Infrastructures in Rural Areas of Kwazulu Natal, South Africa
  • Reiter, Jessica; Wenzel, Bettina; Dittmer, Cordula; Lorenz, Daniel F.; Voss, Martin (2018): The 2013 flood in the community of Elbe-Havel-Land in the eyes of the population. Research report of the quantitative survey. KFS Working Paper 08. Berlin: KFS. Download. DOI: 10.17169/FUDOCS_document_000000028852
  • Reiter, Jessica; Wenzel, Bettina; Dittmer, Cordula; Lorenz, Daniel F.; Voss, Martin (2017): Das Hochwasser 2013 im Elbe-Havel-Land aus Sicht der Bevölkerung. Forschungsbericht zur quantitativen Datenerhebung. KFS Working Paper 04. Berlin: KFS. Download.  DOI: 10.17169/FUDOCS_document_000000027713  
  • Dittmer, Cordula; Lorenz, Daniel F.; Reiter, Jessica; Wenzel, Bettina (2016): Drei Jahre nach dem Deichbruch – Über die Gegenwart einer nicht abgeschlossenen Katastrophe, Notfallvorsorge 4/2016, 17-25.
  • Reiter, J.; Wenzel, B.;  Dittmer, C.; Lorenz, D.F.; Voss, M. (2016): The Social Dimension of Heat Waves – Blind Spots in Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Management in Germany and India, in: Ghafory-Ashtiany, M. Izadkhah, Y.O.; Parsizadeh, F. (Ed.):  Proceedings of Extended Abstracts 7th International Conference on Integrated Disaster Risk Management Disasters and Development: Towards a Risk Aware Society, Teheran, 353-355.
  • Wenzel, B.; Reiter, J.; Dittmer, C.; Lorenz, D.F.; Voss, M. (2016): The Harmonization of People's Needs and Professional NGO Assistance. The Case of Flooding in Germany, in: Ghafory-Ashtiany, M. Izadkhah, Y.O.; Parsizadeh, F. (Ed.):  Proceedings of Extended Abstracts 7th International Conference on Integrated Disaster Risk Management Disasters and Development: Towards a Risk Aware Society, Teheran, 171-172.
  • Wenzel, Bettina (2016): Existenzsicherung und Risikomanagement im ländlichen Raum Nordkirgistans. Eine multidimensionale geographische Analyse. (includes english summary) Dissertation at the Dpt. of Geosciences at Freie Universität Berlin. Berlin. 349 p.

  • Lorenz, Daniel F.; Voss, Martin; Wenzel, Bettina (2015): Zur Katastrophenstatistik in Deutschland – eine (katastrophensoziologische) Bestandsaufnahme, in: Haferkamp/Arnold: Subjektive und objektivierte Bedingungen von (un-)Sicherheit. Studien zum Barometer Sicherheit in Deutschland (BaSiD), Berlin. p. 87-115.

  • Lorenz, Daniel F.; Voss, Martin; Wenzel, Bettina (2015): Experten, Laien und die soziale Konstruktion von Sicherheit im Raum – Die Methode der Partizipativen Fotobegehung in der Sicherheits- und Katastrophenforschung, in: Haferkamp/Arnold: Subjektive und objektivierte Bedingungen von (un-)Sicherheit. Studien zum Barometer Sicherheit in Deutschland (BaSiD), Berlin. p. 251-262.

  • Schulze, Katja; Lorenz, Daniel F.; Wenzel, Bettina; Voss, Martin (2015): „Verhalten der Bevölkerung in Katastrophen: Potenziell hilfsbereit“, in: Notfallvorsorge 1/2015, S. 21-28.

  • Heesen, Jessica; Lorenz, Daniel F.; Voss, Martin; Wenzel, Bettina (2015): Reflections on Ethics in Mapping as an Instrument and Result of Disaster Research. In: Max Wyss und Silvia Peppoloni (Hg.): Geoethics. Ethical challenges and case studies in earth sciences. Amsterdam: Elsevier, S. 251–262.

  • Lorenz, Daniel F.; Voss, Martin; Wenzel, Bettina (2014): „Risikoattribuierung im Raum bei Katastrophen und technischen Großunglücken (RisikoRaum)“, Berlin, 83 Seiten

  • Heesen, Jessica; Lorenz, Daniel F.; Nagenborg, Michael; Voss, Martin; Wenzel, Bettina (2014): "Blind Spots on Achilles’ Heel. On the Limitations of Vulnerability and Resilience Mapping in Research", International Journal of Disaster Risk Science. Vol. 5 (1), 74-85, DOI: 10.1007/s13753-014-0014-5

  • Mueller (Wenzel), Bettina (2004): "Villages in Kyrgyzstan in Transformation Processes. Tasma and Toru Aigyr in a Biosphere Reserve" ("Dörfer im Transformationsprozess Kirgistans. Tasma und Toru Aigyr im Biosphärenreservat Issyk-Kul"), Berlin (=Occasional Paper Geographie, Heft 25)

  • Mueller (Wenzel), Bettina, Hillmann, Felicitas (2004): "Needs for advanced industrial Teaching of Migrants in Berlin." ("Weiterbildungsbedarf von Berliner Migrantinnen und Migranten im Handwerk"), Berlin. Available from Berliner Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (BGZ): http://www.bgz-berlin.de.
  • Hillmann, Felicitas, Mueller (Wenzel), Bettina, Gilewski, Astrid (2006): "A Case Study about the Fate of Graduates in Geography at the Freie Universität Berlin: years 2000 to 2004. Study Processes and the fate on the job market. Evaluation of the field of Studies." ("Studie über den Verbleib der Absolventen und Absolventinnen des Diplomstudienganges Geographie an der Freien Universität Berlin: Jahrgänge 2000 bis 2004. Studienverlauf - Verbleib auf dem Arbeitsmarkt - Bewertung des Studiums.") Published on the website of the Institute of Geographical Sciences, Freie Universität Berlin: March 2006. (in German)