Call for a Masters course “Managing the Science-Policy Interface on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services for sustainable development in West Africa – SPIBES'

The Master of Science in “Managing the Science-Policy Interface on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services for Sustainable Development in West Africa - SPIBES” is a 2-year interdisciplinary course designed to provide students with broad, high-quality information and skills needed to facilitate the operation of science-policy interfaces such as the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), as a means for achieving sustainable development goals in West Africa.

Concerned URL	http://wabes.org/en/masters-programme/call-for-applications/
Release date	03/08/2017
Contributor	mlsusini
Geographical coverage	West Africa,
Keywords	biodiversity, ecosystem services,

The MSc SPIBES is part of the project “West African Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (WABES)” which aims to build capacity to strengthen the West African contribution to the IPBES. It is supported by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB) through the International Climate Initiative (IKI).

The program specifically will:

provide the students with a general understanding of BES and their relevance from disciplinary and interdisciplinary perspectives;
facilitate inter- and transdisciplinary thinking to create and enable a new generation of scientists to tackle global environmental challenges;
generate knowledge on the functioning and set-up of (international) policy processes and decision making and;
provide tools to translate research findings into policy relevant outcomes to support decision making.

The course is designed for students that are passionate about the sustainable management of biodiversity and ecosystem services (BES) to maintain suitable livelihoods for future generations. We like to address people who are keen about acting as science-policy managers and sustainability agents, translating scientific knowledge into meaningful and applicable concepts and tools, as well as channelling back policy requirements to the scientific community.

The Master degree will be offered by University Félix Houphouët Boigny (UFHB) in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. It is placed under the umbrella of the graduate programme on Climate, Natural Resources and Innovation (FD-CRNI) in the Africa Center of Excellence on Climate Change Biodiversity and Sustainable Agriculture (CEA-CCBAD); and the Doctoral Studies Programme on Sociology (FDS) of the Department of Sociology of UFHB.

Deadline for application is 31 August 2017.

See website for eligibility criteria and application form (in English and French).

Please note that this information has expired.