We are pleased to announce that Prof. Dr. Benjamin Burkhard has been appointed Editor-in-Chief of the Section “Landscape Ecology” in Land (ISSN 2073-445X, IF 3.398).

Prof. Dr. Benjamin Burkhard is a Full Professor of Physical Geography and a Director at the Institute of Physical Geography and Landscape Ecology at Leibniz University, Hannover. He is a geographer with a Ph.D. in ecology and is involved in many international and national projects, research initiatives and networks. His main research focus is on landscape ecology, mapping of ecosystem service supply and demand, and applications in environmental management. He is Co-Chair at the Ecosystem Services Partnership ESP and Vice President of the International Association of Landscape Ecology IALE.

The following is a short Q&A with Prof. Dr. Benjamin Burkhard, who shared his vision for the Section with us as well as his views on the research area:

1. What appealed to you about the journal that made you want to take the role as its Section Editor-in-Chief?
I like the open access strategy of the journal, relatively modest pricing and comparably quick article processing times.

2. What is your vision for the Section?
To be attractive for contributions from traditional as well as modern fields of landscape ecological research that deal with urgent questions of human–environmental interactions.

3. What does the future of this field of research look like, in your view?
Landscape ecology is a very traditional field of science, and relevant knowledge on the subject is urgently needed in times of increasing environmental problems and landscape degradation. Here, I think emerging transdisciplinary approaches and modern methods such as modelling, spatial sciences and big data analyses will increasingly push landscape ecology forward.

4. What do you think of the development of Open Access in the publishing field?
Open Access is urgently needed in order to make scientific outcomes available to anyone who is interested. Article Processing Charges need to be affordable for people from all countries while covering the publishers’ expenses.

5. Who should contribute to this Section?
Anyone dealing with landscapes, no matter the scales or types they are interested in.

We warmly welcome Prof. Dr. Benjamin Burkhard as the Section Editor-in-Chief of “Landscape Ecology”, and we look forward to achieving many milestones under his leadership.