Contact
Email:
lotta.ortheil(@)gmx.de
Lotta Ortheil completed her PhD in the environmental humanities at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich in April 2026. Her doctoral research was conducted within the Rachel Carson Center’s interdisciplinary doctoral program Environment and Society and included a research residency in Rio de Janeiro in 2022, carried out in collaboration with the Museum of Tomorrow, Goethe-Institut, Swissnex, and Pro Helvetia.
Lotta’s research interests include human–environment relations, decolonial feminism, and community-based practices. In her dissertation, she examined how urban agroforestry initiatives contribute to biocultural diversity and whether they address social injustices within food systems. Drawing on ethnographic methods and a relational, situated approach to research, she contrasts initiatives in Brazil and Europe. Her work invites readers to rethink and experiment with alternative forms of coexistence with plants in urban spaces.
Lotta holds a master’s degree in art theory, media philosophy, and media arts from the Karlsruhe University of Arts and Design. In 2019, she completed a Master of Research degree in climate change science and management at Ca’ Foscari University of Venice in collaboration with the Climate Service Center Germany in Hamburg. She has also worked as a freelance journalist for Futurzwei.