Johanna Deak Sjöman

I am a researcher in the field of landscape planning with focus on long term management via the lense of urban ecology and complex adaptive systems. My research focuses on revealing small-scale processes in urban ecosystems and decision-making, and on how these relate to large-scale policies and landscape planning. I am also interested in how ecosystem functions can be supported through operational maintenance, as well as long-term management and governance perspectives. 

I am involved in five research projects – four focusing on climate adaptation and extreme weather conditions, and one focusing on investigating how numerical values for nature have implications for politics, planning and management.

PhD Supervision

Zhengdong Sun, Achieving multifunctional, holistic and sustainable stormwater management in existing development in collaboration with Luleå University of Technology

Ella Uppala, Designed plant communities in the nature-based city, Department of Urban and Rural Development, SLU Ultuna

Sixten Lundqvist Bio-engineered Nature-based Solutions, SLU Alnarp.

PUBLICATIONS (selected)

2025 Deak Sjöman, J. The Speed of Landscape. Making space for time with examples of climate adaptation and green infrastructure. Nordic Journal of Architectural Research. Accepted – In print.

2025 Sjöman, H., Gustavsson, R., Deak Sjöman, J., Wiström, B. Designing urban woodlands; a dynamic approach. In: Hitchmough, J. & Dunnett, N. (Eds.) 2025. The Dynamic Landscape. Taylor and Francis, Great Britain. 

2025 Utkina, K. Ashley, R. M., Sun, Z., Adhikari, U., Ekin Kali, S., Deak Sjöman, J., Randrup, T. B., Viklander, M., Blecken, G-T. Valuing structured alternatives for retrofitting blue-green infrastructure at a catchment scale using the Benefit Estimation Tool (B£ST). Blue-Green Systems, 7 (1), 139–155.  https://doi.org/10.2166/bgs.2025.022

2025 Uppala, E., Deak Sjöman, J., Emilsson, T., Hedlund, M. Reviewing designed plant communities’ potential for optimizing the performance of urban nature-based solutions. Nature based solutions. Vol. 7, 100212. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nbsj.2025.100212

2024 Adhikari, U., Broekhuizen, I., Pons, V., Sun, Z., Deak Sjöman, J., Randrup, T. B., Viklander, V., Blecken, G-T. Comparing the hydrological performance of blue green infrastructure design strategies in urban/semi-urban catchments for stormwater management. Water Sci Technol., 90 (9), 2696–2712.  https://doi.org/10.2166/wst.2024.346

2024 Sun, Zhengdong, Deak Sjöman, J., Blecken, T-G., Randrup, T. B. Decision support tools of sustainability assessment for urban stormwater management – A review of their roles in governance and management. Journal of Cleaner Production, 141646.                          https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2024.141646

2024 Deak Sjöman, J., Tuhkanen, E-M., Mänttäri, M., Cimburová, Ž., Stålhammar, S., Barton, D. N., Randrup, T. B. Expectations of i-Tree Eco as a tool for urban tree management in Nordic cities. Frontiers Sustainable Cities Section Urban Greening. Vol. 5.  https://doi.org/10.3389/frsc.2023.1325039

2023 Randrup, T. B., Jansson, M., Deak Sjöman, J., Van Meerbeek, K., Fleisch, M-R., Shanafelt, D. W., Bernasconi, A., Coleman Brantschen, E. Green Cities and Urban Forests for BioCities: Strategic and Adaptive Management. Transforming Biocities. Designing Urban Spaces Inspired by Nature. Springer.

2023 Lind, E., Prade, T., Deak Sjöman, J., Levinsson, A., Sjöman, H. How green is a tree? The significance of species selection in reducing the carbon footprint of urban trees in Swedish cities. Frontiers in Sustainable Cities. https://doi.org/10.3389/frsc.2023.1182408 

2022 Deak Sjöman, J., Mercado, G., Kristoffersson, A., Randrup, T. B. Sustainable Smart Park Management – a smarter approach to urban green space management? Journal of Arboriculture and Urban Forestry, 48(2), 63-70.                         https://doi.org/10.48044/jauf.2022.006

2021 Deak Sjöman, J., Hirons, A., Bassuk, N. L, Sjöman, H. Plant and Wood Area Index of Solitary Trees for Urban Contexts in Nordic Cities. Journal of Arboriculture and Urban Forestry, 47(6), 252-266. https://doi.org/10.48044/jauf.2021.022

2020 Deak Sjöman, J. & Johansson, E. Nature Based Solutions to Urban Microclimate Regulations. Pp. 339-362. In: Sang, N (Ed.) 2020. Modelling Nature-based Solutions. Integrating Computational and Participatory Scenario Modelling for Environmental Management and Planning. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, Great Britain.

Since 2018, I have been the course coordinator for the courses Landscape Management (BA) and Maintenance of Green Spaces and Natural Areas (BA) for students in the second year of the landscape architecture and landscape engineering programme. I am engaged as a supervisor to students conducting BA and Master thesis on an annual basis, and participate as an examiner in the landscape architecture and landscape engineering programmes and in lectures and critiques at different educational courses at SLU and at Lund University - Faculty of Engineering (LTH).