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Freshwaters play a central role when it comes to recreational activities. Markus Venohr and Christian Wolter are investigating how such activities affect the ecosystems of lakes and rivers in the new AQUATAG project.

On January 23rd the Berliner Nachtungen will enter the 10th round. This time Will Straw from McGill University Montreal will discuss media consumption at night with his audience. It starts at 8pm in the Center for Metropolitan Studies Berlin.

As energy supplier and stimulus of the internal clock, light is of fundamental importance to plants and animals. This also applies to fish and microscopic organisms in lakes. Like other species, they have adapted to the day-night rhythm during evolution. But what happens if a lake is illuminated by artificial lighting at night, or if not enough light penetrates into the water during the day? These questions are examined during this year's summer experiment at the Lake Lab.

Six tanks filled with water of River Spree and exposed to differently-colored artificial light: this is the core element of an art installation shown from July 5th to September 2nd 2018 in Berlin-Charlottenburg.

Climate change, pesticides and land use changes alone cannot fully explain the decline in insect populations in Germany. Artificial lighting at night could be another reason for declining insect populations.

Pesticides can cause big problems in ecosystems. That is the result of a new discussion paper of German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, in which effects of pesticides and options for action are explained based on recent scientific results.

Researchers warn: the impact of microplastics in soils, sediments and the freshwaters could have a long-term negative effect on terrestrial ecosystems throughout the world.

A look from space has confirmed the suspected rebound effect: both the intensity of artificial lighting and the illuminated areas are increasing worldwide – instead of decreasing.