COURSE DESCRIPTION

It is designed to engage students in an examination of the major contemporary challenges to peace, sources of conflict and violence, and several key nonviolent mechanisms for conflict transformation and prevention. The course provides a common foundation for UPEACE students from all of the different M.A. programs (as its name suggests). During the course, an understanding of the complex and interconnected challenges to peace will be developed, as will an understanding of the need for multi-faceted approaches to meeting these challenges. Students will also engage critically with theories of conflict, and will develop their understanding of the theoretical resources available in the area of conflict studies. During the course of their studies at UPEACE students will engage in increasingly specialized inquiry into various dimensions and issues in their specific MA areas. The foundation course provides an opportunity to explore connections, sympathies, and synergies between the challenges and approaches identified in all of these areas from a “wide-angle” perspective that will encourage students to continue making such interdisciplinary connections and analyses throughout their tenure at UPEACE and after. An important aspect of the course will also be the introduction to skills integral to the field of peace and conflict studies and to the UPEACE pedagogy at large. These include non-violent communication, appreciative enquiry and dialogue.

The course is of an instrumental type and is oriented to enable students to prepare a strategic plan, prepare, implement, monitor and evaluate international development oriented projects. The emphasis will be put on strategic planning for institutions, communities, NGO`s and their natural resources management oriented towards sustainable development in rural areas.

In Strategic Planning the course will deal with:

- The concept of a strategy
- Blueprint vs. adaptive planning
- The tools for a strategy analysis and definition
- Assessment of resources, visions, objectives, internal and external environment of institutions, programs and projects
- Scenarios, trends and forecasting techniques with respect to strategic planning
- Fundraising strategies
- Cases and exercises in strategic planning and scenario building

In Project Cycle Management the course will deal with:

- The concept of Project Cycle Management(PCM)
- Models of different bilateral- and multilateral agencies such as: IFAD, WB, GEF, IADB, EU, GTZ and others
- Project design: identfication criteria, planning, implementation, monitoring, evaluation
- Identification and selection critera of a project
- Project planning: - Outcome Mapping - Logical Framework Approach
- Project Management: implementation, monitoring, phasing out of the project, sustainability issues
- Results, effects and impact assessment
- Systematisation of lessons learned for different stakeholders
- Why projects fail?
- Practical examples from different countries
- Project Proposal Elaboration

This course will provide a brief introduction to the particularities of coastal and oceanic resources and ecologies. Second, we will investigate the unique attributes of the human economic, social, and cultural systems (i.e. fishing, fisherman and fishing cultures) that are most directly dependent upon them. Among the many topics within this section, the course will specifically focus on understanding artisanal fisheries, large-scale/industrial fishing, and aquaculture, as well as the differences and conflicts that exist between these methods of resource extraction. Third, a broad overview of the development of the current resource crises and conflicts will be presented and examined via case studies from throughout the globe. Fourth, the evolution of and trends in coastal and marine management over the last century will also be a central aspect of this course.
 

Thus, we will explore the evolution from traditional top-down models to the implementation of stakeholder inclusion participation, and comanagment. We will also thoroughly review the role of marine parks, protected areas, and no-take reserves in the management and conservation of coastal resources. Finally, through practical exercises, guest lectures, and field visits, students will be able to explore the complex nexus of relations between humans and coastal/marine resources as it applies to Latin America and the case of Costa Rica.
 

In sum, students in this course will gain insight into and knowledge of how we have moved from the naïve perspectives of Mare Liberum and the inexhaustibility of oceanic resources, which were predominant in the 19th century, to the increasingly complex layers of marine tenure systems, marine protected areas, and precautionary approaches that characterize contemporary 21st century marine and coastal resource management regimes.

This course explores the history of efforts to address poverty and environmental degradation on a global scale. Although in the past these issues were often treated separately—indeed, in many cases they were seen as diametrically opposed—today it is increasingly argued that the two dynamics are intricately intertwined in myriad ways and thus must be addressed simultaneously. We will begin by examining the history of international development and conservation interventions, respectively, analyzing the ideology or “discourse” informing their practice, and discussing their contemporary convergence under the rubric of "sustainable development". Then we will explore various practical and conceptual issues involved in pursuing economic and ecological sustainability.  We will finish by reviewing contemporary directions and controversies in the field and brainstorming new possibilities for the future.

Reflecting both the newfound recognition within policy circles of the importance of the complex human dynamics involved in addressing poverty and environmental degradation and the relative neglect of such considerations in the past, this class will emphasize the social scientific study of conservation/development practice, exploring the political, economic, social, cultural, and logistical issues involved in implementing successful measures. Rather than focusing on specific themes or topics within conservation/development (i.e., forestry, ecotourism, bioregional conservation, etc.), we will emphasize the core conceptual issues that cross-cut and underlie all specific foci. We will try to push our understanding of these issues as deep as possible, probing their philosophical roots and cultural consequences.  In this effort, we will also reflect critically of our own beliefs, values, and assumptions in order to develop sensitivity to the types of cultural differences likely to influence interventions’ success in diverse parts of the world.

The central goal of this course is to provide the students a basic variety of research tools, methods and approaches used in the social sciences. The final goal of this course is to enable students to formulate research problems, select a research approach, develop and implement a thorough research design, and review and criticize investigations executed by peers and colleagues in the wider research community. This course provides students with a foundational knowledge of qualitative and quantitative methods, when they are used, how they are used, and the benefits and drawbacks of each method. It will develop students’ theoretical knowledge and applied skills in conducting qualitative and participatory research with ample field examples from the social and natural sciences, addressing issues, challenges and emerging trends in a globalized world.

This course explores conflict, insecurity and collaboration in relation to scarcity, poor quality, and variability of freshwater resources. Students will examine disputes and conflict over access to fresh water resources and rivers, including dam construction.
 

A special focus will be on how conflict over transboundary freshwater resources has fostered peace building through cooperative co-management. Throughout the course, mechanisms and instruments will be introduced to assist the resolution and prevention of water-related conflict and insecurity including: international law; institutional arrangements; governance and policy reform; and involvement of civil society organizations.

The main objective of this course is to present and clarify the scientific concepts and theories pertaining to climate change, in order to make them accessible to practitioners without a scientific background. The physical and chemical properties of the environment and atmosphere primarily determine our climate and weather. In recent years, due to impending climate changes, our understanding of the atmosphere and its environment have greatly increased, both in quantity and complexity.  Therefore it is of great importance to make these findings accessible to professionals from different fields who specialize in climate change issues. This course will introduce concepts and processes from different fields such as chemistry, physics, meteorology and biology; all of which are explored and analyzed in the successive IPCC assessment reports.  Radiance, carbon cycling, gas absorbance, temperature transference and mathematical models, are only a few of the terms that are commonplace in the literature related to climate change.  A key objective of this course is to understand what these concepts mean and to assess their role in predicting future climatic patterns.

This course explores the challenges and prospects of implementing environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable tourism enterprises. Over the past thirty-plus years, tourism – now arguably the world’s largest industry – has been promoted around the globe as a strategy for economic growth and development, particularly in impoverished Southern societies where conventional development measures have not always delivered intended benefits. Yet is increasingly apparent that tourism is not necessarily the “smokeless” industry it was initially considered, and that conventional mass tourism, at least, may cause negative social, economic, and environmental impacts that many critics feel outweigh any positive benefits the industry brings. 
 

As a result, proponents have begun to search for tools and strategies to make the tourism industry more “sustainable” in terms of all of the dimensions listed above. We will explore the potential and pitfalls of such measures, investigating the relationship between tourism, development, conservation, and socio-cultural change.  We will also address issues of supply and demand in the delivery of tourism services, including dynamics of marketing, labor relations, and the demographics/desires of potential consumers. In addition, we will discuss tools and methods for assessing and certifying sustainability. Finally, we will critically analyze our own beliefs, values, and assumptions surrounding various tourism issues in order to become more conscientious and sensitive planners and travelers.

In addition participants can choose an elective course (3 credits) offered by the UPEACE Institute or other UPEACE programmes.

For UPEACE students, the Institute offers the elective courses that have to take as part of their corresponding plan of studies at UPEACE. During these courses, UPEACE students can share learning experiences with students of all UPEACE MA programmes and non-UPEACE students as well.

Forests play an important role in many aspects of life. Mitigation of global climate change, conservation of soil and water resources, enhancement of agricultural systems, conservation of biological diversity, improvement of urban and rural living conditions, protection of natural and cultural heritage, provision of timber and other non-timber forest products, and the generation of employment are some of the important uses of forests.

This course looks at the links between forests, forestry, and poverty with a special focus on tropical forests. Specifically, it looks at the links between poverty and deforestation, some of the possible strategies to reduce poverty through forest-based activities, and analyzes and discusses economic and policy instruments for the conservation of forests while assuring economic and social sustainability. It also analyzes the importance of forests for humans in rural populations of countries and regions in the “developing world”, different values of forests, the threats they are facing, and the challenges faced by those who try to manage them sustainably.
 
Some of the strategies and tools to possibly reduce poverty through forests and forestry are: Payment for Environmental Services, Community Based Forestry, certification, and secure property rights. The course also presents the conflicting viewpoints and ideas related to Sustainable Management and Preservation of forests, and will explore the direct and underlying causes of deforestation and the often-unintended effects of other non-forest policies and incentives (development, tourism, agriculture, etc) on forests and the forestry sector.

The course addresses the basic ecological factors that need to be taken into account for the production of goods and services and to ensure that the land systems are in harmony with ecological foundations based on climate, soils, and other features that are difficult, costly, and often impossible to change. The key objective is to understand what it takes to move towards sustainable land use patterns that are environmentally desirable, biologically sound, socially and culturally acceptable, and economically viable and equitable.
 

The concepts of climate (and climate change), soil management, life zones, ecological interactions, sustainable development and conservation, will be paramount to understanding successful land use practices, and their limitations, in relation to agricultural production, agroforestry systems, urban use, and the conservation of natural ecosystems, biodiversity, water, and other resources. An overview of recent scientific literature will be presented.

The course is oriented to enable students to understand the organizations and institutions and their agendas in Costa Rica, related to the Environment and Natural Resources. Special emphasis is given on the role, strategies, policies and actions of these institutions.
The Seminar consists of visiting the institutions, and discussing their objectives and roles in the sphere of the environmental management and sustainable development and corresponding policies. The students will also have the opportunity to discuss internship possibilities with some of the organizations.

The course aims at understanding the impact of climate change on the global environment and on human activity.  Climate change increases risks to human livelihoods and as such may endanger the security of individuals and groups. This in turn could increase the propensity for conflict within and between states.

Components of the course will include a critical examination of the drivers of climate change, largely induced by human activity, and a review of international efforts to limit the magnitude of climate changes, including those concluded in Kyoto and Copenhagen. Consequences of climate change for human health, for economic activity, for resource use and resource availability will also be examined, as will be the options for adapting to climate change.

The examination of climate changes will be viewed within the broader context of the current demographic, economic and political global reality.   Introductory comments and discussions led by the instructor will be followed by seminars with broad student input.

This class is an opportunity to explore in-depth how different land-uses and conservation approaches intermingle in one particular region: the South of Costa Rica. The purpose of the field trip is to obtain critical direct experience and knowledge of important natural resources management issues in a developing country, given the real political, economic and resources context of the same.
This course enables students to assess the contextual factors that affect natural resource management. Over the course of the trip, we will visit and be exposed to projects and issues with various resources, different actors involved in the management and different institutional settings. As such it will be a chance for you to integrate ideas form many of the classes you have taken over the course of your program, as well as a chance to learn from some of your peers about the topics to which you were not exposed during your program.

This experiential and highly interactive class will focus on foundational conflict resolution and communication skills focusing on intervention processes set in a variety of contexts.  

In this course, we are all learners and teachers. Based on a participatory and elicitive Adult Education methodology, we are going to share our personal and collective experiences, successes and challenges to mentor each other.   The course will rely on the use of practical exercises, role plays, de-briefings and simulations to build skills and illustrate the numerous factors influencing the approach, design, process and facilitation of mediation, negotiation and restorative justice processes. Additionally, we will incorporate interactive Skype conversations from global practitioners around the world who use these skills and approaches in a variety of conflict settings.

This course offers a general overview of the topic of international environmental law. It provides students with a general introduction that overviews the international law field with a particular focus on the environmental law. In five sessions it will provide students with a grasp of the vocabulary of international law, with a sense of the context in which international environmental law originates and operates, with an understanding of the legal and political institutions that play a role in international law. The course will cover the following topics: Sources of International Environmental Law, Implementation, Global Climate Change, Water Law and case discussion.

The term “sustainable development” was coined nearly thirty years ago, and imagined as a way of redirecting development by incorporating social justice, equity, and environmental concerns into conceptions of development that had focused primarily on economic growth. This led to a proliferation in indicators of sustainability, but many would argue that little overall change has taken place. Furthermore, there is much debate about how one can “measure” anything as complex as sustainability, and the politics of who is doing the evaluating. This class will explore the merits and shortcomings of the idea of sustainability, explore the politics and simplification inherent in measuring, give an overview of mainstream and alternative sets of indicators and other assessment tools.

This course analyzes the nature and evolution of systems of governance to address climate change at the international, national, and local levels, charting the changing history of climate policy from the issue's initial introduction into political discussion to its recent ascension to become the new "master concept" of environmental governance generally.  The roles of various stakeholders in the negotiation, including transnational institutions, nation states, nongovernmental organizations, private businesses, and municipal governments, will be examined, as will the efficacy of different mechanisms (state-led, market-based, hybrid, etc.) for enacting climate policy.  The potential impact of climate policy on particular environmental issues (e.g., hydroelectric and nuclear power) and social groups (e.g., women, minorities, indigenous peoples) will be discussed as well.  Case studies will examine specific instances of climate policy and negotiation, including recent UNFCCC conferences, Costa Rica's own payment for environmental services (PES) and "Peace with Nature" climate neutrality initiative, and the emerging debate over proposed REDD (Reduced Emissions through Deforestation and Degradation) mechanisms.

Dr. Abdalla is Professor and Vice Rector at the United Nations-mandated University for Peace (UPEACE).  Before arriving at UPEACE, he was a Senior Fellow with the Peace Operations Policy Program, School of Public Policy, at George Mason University, in Virginian, USA.   He was also a Professor of Conflict Analysis and Resolution at the Graduate School of Islamic and Social Sciences in Leesburg, Virginia.
 
Both his academic and professional careers are multi-disciplinary.  He obtained a law degree in Egypt in 1977 where He practiced law as a prosecuting attorney from 1978 to 1987.  He then emigrated to the U.S. where He obtained a Master's degree in Sociology and a Ph.D. in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from George Mason University.
 
He has been teaching graduate classes in conflict analysis and resolution, and has conducted training, research and evaluation of conflict resolution and peacebuilding programs in several countries in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Europe and the Americas.  He also authored, and co-authored, several research and evaluation teaching manuals including: Doing What You Want With Your Data, A Step-by-Step Guide to Planning and Implementing Evaluation Strategies, and Qualitative Evaluation: The What and Why.

He has been an active figure in promoting effective cross-cultural messages within the Islamic and Arabic-speaking communities in America through workshops, T.V. and radio presentations.  He has also been actively involved in inter-faith dialogues in the United States.  He pioneered the development of the first conflict resolution training manual for the Muslim communities in the United States titled (“…Say Peace”).  He also founded Project LIGHT (Learning Islamic Guidance for Human Tolerance), a community peer-based anti-discrimination project funded by the National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ).
 

She is an anthropologist from the University of Costa Rica and she obtained her Masters in Development Studies, with specialization in Local and Regional Development from the Institute of Social Studies in The Hague (ISS). She has widen knowledge and professional experience in the field of local and regional development, natural resource management, gender, agriculture, and in the formulation, implementation and evaluation of projects. Her professional experience includes also the analysis of policies of development and in programs finance by the international cooperation or governments. She has become specialized in processes of action-research with participatory methodologies with diverse social groups and organizations in the contexts of the Central American region. She worked as a Teaching and Research Assistant at the University of Costas Rica for different intervals between February 2001 and December 2003. She also was a teacher at the University of Costa Rica where she taught a course on Community Development in the second semester of 2008.

Brian Dowd-Uribe is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Environment, Peace and Security. Brian is also a co-founder of the New Roots Institute for the Study of Food Systems, an educational nonprofit based in Santa Cruz, California dedicated to interdisciplinary research and education on food systems. Before joining UPEACE, Brian was a Postdoctoral Research Scientist at the Center for Research on Environmental Decisions at Columbia University’s Earth Institute. His current research explores the social and economic dimensions of food, agriculture and water policy, primarily in sub-Saharan Africa. One major research project assesses how the liberalization of agricultural commodity chains and the introduction of transgenic crops (GMOs) affect poor producers in Burkina Faso. Other current research explores (a) the politics of integrated water resource management (IWRM) implementation in Burkina Faso, and (b) the environmental and social impacts of community gardens in New York City. Brian received his interdisciplinary PhD in Environmental Studies from the University of California at Santa Cruz. Prior to his graduate work, he served as an Environmental Protection Peace Corps Volunteer in Togo, West Africa. Brian originally became interested in Costa Rica as an undergraduate study abroad student at the Universidad de Costa Rica, and at the University of California’s Tropical Biology and Conservation Program in Monteverde.

Professor at the Universidad de Costa Rica and for the last ten years has studied the effects of forest fragmentation on the reproductive biology, regeneration capabilities and population genetics of tropical trees in Costa Rica. Eric has also collaborated with Mexican researchers to study effects of climatic conditions on phenological patterns of tree species. Recent work conducted in the Osa Peni­nsula determined the effects of selective logging on abundance and regeneration of commercially important timber species. Dr. Fuchs is currently monitoring regeneration patterns in permanent plots of an endangered tropical tree species, work which he began as part of his PhD thesis. He is also part of different research projects in the Osa Peninsula, studying the effects of forest fragmentation on biodiversity. Eric obtained his BS and MSc. degrees at Universidad de Costa Rica in Biology and Genetics, respectively. His Ph.D. dissertation focused on the ecological genetics of the endangered tropical tree Guaiacum sanctum. Dr. Fuchs has taught various courses for the Organization of Tropical Studies (OTS) and has been involved as a consultant for WWF in topics relating to global warming.

Assistant Professor in the Department of Environment, Peace and Security, University for Peace. MSc. Environmental Sciences, Wageningen University and Research Center, The Netherlands. BSc. Tropical Forestry, Technological Institute of Costa Rica, Cartago, Costa Rica. He teaches Forestry, Agriculture, the San Jose Environmental Seminar and the Natural Resource Management Field Trip. Prior to this, he worked as a Student Research Assistant in Wageningen University and Research Center, WUR, at the Sociology Department, inside the Environmental Policy Group. Research interests: Payments for Environmental Services, Forest Conservation, Sustainable Rural Development, Community Forest Concessions.

Juan Carlos Sainz-Borgo is Associate Professor and Head of the Department of International Law and Human Rights at UPEACE. He is also Associate Professor of International Law at the Universidad Central de Venezuela in Caracas since 1998. Professor of Humanitarian International Law at the Universidad Sergio Arboleda in Bogota since 2009; he was Fulbright Visiting Professor at the Washington College of Law at the American University in 2008-2009. He served as Jurist to the Regional Delegation of Venezuela and the Caribbean of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Juan Carlos Sainz-Borgo has a Law Degree, Master in International Law and Doctorate (Cum Laude) from the Universidad Central de Venezuela in Caracas and a Master Degree from Oxford University, UK. He has published four books on international law and international relations and a numerous articles in different publications in the field.

Juergen Carls (Ph.D.) is associated with the Department of Environment, Peace and Security since 2002. He is giving classes on sustainable development, strategic planning, project management and fundraising for international cooperation projects. Before he was teaching sustainable development at the Humboldt University of Berlin.

He studied "International Rural Development" and completed his doctoral dissertation at the Technical University of Berlin. His long term experiences as manager and government advisor of international research and cooperation projects financed by the WB, IADB, EU, FAO, GTZ in Asia, Africa and Latin America has been documented in 70 publications.

M.Sc. in International Economics Studies from the Maastricht University, The Netherlands, and a Master’s degree in Development Studies with a specialization in Economics of Development from the Institute of Social Studies (ISS), The Hague. From 2012 he is a Ph.D. candidate at the ISS.

He has experience in the study of trade and its social and economic impact in developing countries, specifically in Southern Africa and in Central America. He has also worked on rural development issues in transition countries, notably in the Caucasus and Central Asia. He holds experience in urban development studies, particularly focusing on informal settlement development, and labour market studies, specifically paid domestic work.

Currently, in his position as a researcher at the Institute of Social Research of the University of Costa Rica, he is specializing in the study of welfare regimes, gender, labour markets and the formation and impact of social and economic policies on the one hand, and trade on the other. Also, he is a lecturer at the School of Communication at the University of Costa Rica.

M.Sc. in Marine Biology, Universidad de Costa Rica.  Ph.D. candidate, Marine Affairs Department, University of Rhode Island. Coordinator, Southern Central America Marine Program, Conservation International. Member of the Costa Rican Ocean Commission, in representation of Conservation International and of the Costa Rican Marine resources sub-commission, within the Presidential “Peace with Nature” Initiative. Appointed to Costa Rica’s technical working group for the South Pacific, for the assessment of the viability of establishing a new marine protected area in Costa Rica’s south Pacific. As a member of Costa Rica’s EEZ Commission, active participation in the elaboration of Costa Rica’s National Marine Strategy. Professor, Introduction to Fisheries Management (B-0681), School of Biology, University of Costa Rica.

Mihir Kanade is the Director of the UPEACE Human Rights Centre and is an Academic Consultant to the Department of International Law and Human Rights at UPEACE. Prior to the present position, Mihir practiced for 6 years as a lawyer in the Supreme Court of India and the Bombay High Court, focusing on issues of fundamental human rights violations. He holds a LL.B. from Nagpur University and a Master’s degree in International Law and the Settlement of Disputes from UPEACE. He has served as a legal advisor to many human rights organizations in India and has represented them before different courts and tribunals in criminal, constitutional and labour cases. His principal area of academic research and study is Human Rights and International Trade Linkages, on which he has also worked as a consultant with the United Nations University, Tokyo.

Rick brings over 20 years of international and Canadian experience with specialized knowledge in conflict resolution, community-based peacebuilding, multi-party negotiation, international human rights law and indigenous peoples rights.  

Assistant Professor of Natural Resources and Sustainable Development in the Department of Environment, Peace and Security at UPEACE. He holds a Ph.D. in Sociocultural Anthropology from the University of California at Santa Barbara with an emphasis in Global Studies. Dr. Fletcher has conducted ethnographic research in Chile and Costa Rica concerning the cultural dimensions of ecotourism as a strategy for environmentally-sustainable economic development. In addition, he has worked for many years as a professional ecotourism guide and planner in a variety of locations