European MSc GloFor - Global Forestry

Co-funded by the European Union
Global Forestry (GloFor) is a two-year English-language Erasmus Mundus MSc programme that prepares graduates to address the major contemporary challenges and opportunities of forestry in low- and middle-income countries.

For a more detailed presentation of GloFor, please visit globalforestry.eu.


Global Forestry field landscape
Background and objectives
Deforestation and forest degradation account for 10 to 15% of global greenhouse gas emissions, contribute substantially to biodiversity loss worldwide, and threaten the livelihoods of millions of people who depend heavily on forests and uncultivated environments for their subsistence.
These processes occur mainly in low- and middle-income countries of the Global South. However, the drivers of deforestation and forest degradation are complex and are linked to climate change, poverty and profit-driven agricultural expansion, unsustainable logging, inequitable forest and land tenure rights, and the lack of effective mechanisms to conserve nature without undermining rural livelihoods.
At the same time, forest resources hold considerable potential. A global transition towards an equitable and green economy will only be possible if forests in low- and middle-income countries are managed through sustainable forms of use and protection.
Skills and professional profile

Developing professional skills

Through an outstanding research-based programme, graduates acquire the skills required to work on global forestry issues:
  • a strong theoretical foundation
  • practical and international experience
  • openness to other cultures.
These skills are essential for careers as researchers or practitioners in international forestry, for example in development agencies, consultancy firms, NGOs, international organisations, ministries or government agencies. Successful students may also apply to high-level international PhD programmes.

Studying in an international, cutting-edge programme

The programme's innovative features include:
  • joint teaching for all students during the first semester through teacher mobility
  • a combination of theory and fieldwork, including in low- and middle-income countries
  • the use of technology in teaching, including fully online and blended learning across a wide range of modules, as well as the involvement of associated partners as internship hosts during thesis work
  • support for achieving all specified learning outcomes through a broad range of teaching and assessment methods designed to accommodate different working and learning styles
  • the mobilisation of teaching resources from across the consortium through jointly delivered courses.
Course organisation
In the first year, students receive an in-depth introduction to the local and global role of forestry in countries of the Global South. All students spend their first semester in Copenhagen, where teachers from all GloFor academic partners contribute to teaching activities. In February of the first year, all students and one teacher from each GloFor university take part in a joint field course in a country of the Global South. Students then continue their second semester in Dresden or Padua.
In the second year, students follow a specialisation at one of the five GloFor academic partner institutions:
Partners
The programme is delivered by a consortium of five European academic institutions with extensive experience in global forestry:
The GloFor consortium also includes associated partners, including the following universities in the Global South:
The GloFor academic institutions all have substantial experience in research-based global forestry education. GloFor therefore provides a unique gateway to high-level, up-to-date teaching in the field.

globalforestry.eu

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