Prof. Dr. phil. habil. Günter Bayerl teaches and researches in the fields of cultural landscapes, transformation of the industrial system, environmental and landscape history, as well as crafts and industrial history of Lower Lusatia. Prof. Bayerl has published numerous publications on these topics, whereby in particular his research on the technological change and the change of cultural landscapes that is connected with it, is of essential importance for the IGS Heritage Studies, as the change of cultural landscapes is also always in relation to the possibilities of acting out and forming human identity. This is completely in terms with the definition of cultural landscapes by UNESCO.  Technological change and the change of cultural landscapes are often also concerned with questions of “difficult heritage” or “disharmonious heritage”, which, even though of equal historical significance, represents more likely the heritage of socially marginalized groups. Against this background, Prof. Bayerl will supervise Ph.D.-topics of the focus areas 1 and 4.