UPM 6001 |
UPEACE Foundation Course
UPM 6001-UPEACE Foundation Course3CreditsThe UPEACE Foundation Course provides a critical and concise introduction to the broad field of “Peace Studies” for students in all UPEACE programmes. It initially addresses key conceptual and theoretical underpinnings of the origins and development of peace studies as an interdisciplinary area within the fields of international relations and political economy, as well as a basic understanding of conflict analysis. Based on a critical analysis of policies, strategies, policies, institutions, organizations, and movements, the course then examines a range of core issues, dimensions, perspectives, and paradigms for understanding the root causes of conflicts and violence and constructive strategies to address them and build peace in contemporary global, international, regional, national and local contexts, including conflict management, conflict resolution, and conflict transformation; alternative discourse analysis; militarization and disarmament; human rights violations and promotion; gender inequalities, gender-based violence and gender mainstreaming; structural violence, human security, development and globalization; environmental sustainability; corporate social responsibility; cultural and religious identities; media’s role in conflict and peacebuilding; strategies of nonviolence; and peace education. This Foundations course will be essential in catalyzing the awareness, understanding, and motivation of UPEACE students from diverse academic programmes to relate, ground, or intersect their specific areas of academic and practitioner interest with core theoretical, conceptual, and analytical ideas in peace studies.
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Mandatory |
Resident and Visiting Professors()
Resident and Visiting Professors
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3 |
3 weeks |
29-Aug-2022 16-Sep-2022 |
8:45 a.m.-11:45 a.m. |
Council Room |
DED-6007 |
Environment, Conflicts, and Sustainability
DED-6007-Environment, Conflicts, and Sustainability3CreditsThis course will take a close look at the linkages between environment, conflict and development. We will discuss the different root causes of environmental and social or development crises as they come forward in the literature, focusing on a series of highly contested concepts and narratives around overpopulation, economic growth, and free market capitalism and globalization. Part of this discussion will be an analysis of the responses to these crises and what can, should and is being done to stop them.
We will take a closer look at the different linkages between environment and armed conflicts. We will discuss the literature on environmental security, going from older frameworks of scarcity induced conflicts to natural resource abundance, move the discussion to more complex issues of ecological limits, limits to growth, and ecological security, integrating globalization, and historical, political, ecological and economic issues that influence development, environment, and peace and conflicts. We will end with
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Mandatory |
Jan Breitling(Germany)
Jan Breitling is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Environment and Development at University for Peace. He holds a BSc. in Tropical Forestry, from the Technological Institute of Costa Rica, and a MSc. in Environmental Sciences from WUR Wageningen University and Research Center, The Netherlands. His research interests include root causes of deforestation and Global Environmental Change, and Environmental Governance, specifically market based approaches addressing biodiversity conservation and Climate Change.
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3 |
3 weeks |
21-Sep-2022 11-Oct-2022 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Council Room |
DED 6022 |
Sustainable Agriculture
DED 6022-Sustainable Agriculture3CreditsIn this course we will become familiar with contemporary issues in sustainable agriculture and critically analyze key debates in the field. To provide context to our discussions, we situate the emergence of sustainable agricultural practices within their historic contexts (e.g., green revolution) and we will examine key economic agreements that shape current agricultural markets and trade. We critically examine our global modes of production, industrial, agroecological, and sustainable intensification and we link our analysis to the most recent programs and policies regarding agriculture promoted by the FAO of the United Nations (e.g., scaling-up of agroecology). In addition, we take on some of the most pressing agriculture issues including: climate change, livestock, water security, agricultural certifications, biotechnology (including GMOs), markets, local food, and gender. We mainstream a social justice angle in our class to ensure that we understand how programs and policies affect countries and people differently, by gender, age, and ethnicity.
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Mandatory |
Olivia Sylvester(Canada)
Olivia Sylvester, Ph.D., is the Head of the Environment, Development and Peace Department, and assistant professor at the University for Peace. She is also an adjunct professor for Long Island University and teaches in their Global Studies programme. In the last decade, Olivia’s research program has focused on food security, sustainable agriculture, climate change, environmental justice, and gender. Specifically, she works with Indigenous people, women, small-scale farmers, and youth on these topics. Her research is driven by social and environmental justice and she uses relevant methodologies (e.g., Indigenous, feminist) to achieve these goals. Olivia is also member of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the International Society of Ethnobiology, and the Intellectual Property Issues in Cultural Heritage Project. Being active within these networks allows her to work at the interface of policy and practice.
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3 |
3 weeks |
21-Sep-2022 11-Oct-2022 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Council Room |
UPM 6003 |
The United Nations System and...
UPM 6003-The United Nations System and UPMUNC (Part I)2CreditsEver since its establishment in 1945, the United Nations has performed a pivotal function in a great variety of affairs, large or small, international and national. As such, the UN has played an incisive role in the lives of people around the world. Much of what the UN does is taken for granted and even goes unnoticed by the larger public, to the point that there has been expressed that ‘if the UN did not exist it would have to be invented’.
At the same time, millions around the world look to the UN expecting it to address many of the enormous challenges faced by humankind. These complex dynamics are complemented by the fact that the UN is both reliant on what the member states want, while at the same time, being much more than the sum of its members. This course provides a comprehensive and rigorous introduction into the UN system, including its origins and history, its organizational framework and the functioning of various organs, agencies, bodies and programmes.
Students will critically examine the most important areas of the UN mission including the key Charter principles, the pillars of international peace and security, economic and social progress, development and human rights as well as a growing list of priorities and initiatives (e.g., gender equality and mainstreaming; eliminating gender-based violence; environmental protection; climate change; post-2015 development agenda; Global Education First Initiative; action to counter terrorism; R2P, etc.).
In addition, the course offers a close scrutiny at some of the challenges the UN faces and discusses also various proposals for its reform. Students will be encouraged to reflect on how UN priorities and initiatives can be constructively addressed in their respective fields and programmes of peace studies.
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Mandatory |
Mihir Kanade(India)
Dr. Mihir Kanade (India) is the Academic Coordinator of the University for Peace, the Head of its Department of International Law, and the Director of the UPEACE Human Rights Centre. He holds an LL.B. from Nagpur University (India) and a Master degree and Doctorate from UPEACE. He is also an adjunct faculty at Universidad Alfonso X El Sabio (Spain), Cheikh Anta Diop University (Senegal), and Long Island University (United States). His principal area of academic research and study is International Law, Human Rights and Globalization, covering several themes within that interface including trade and investment, sustainable development, forced migration, indigenous peoples’ rights, public health, amongst others. He has extensive experience in training staff of inter-governmental, governmental and non-governmental organizations, as well as professionals, in the field of human rights. He acts as an advisor to several human rights organizations and corporations on issues related to international law and human rights. He serves on the International Advisory Board of the International Bar Association on the topic of Business and Human Rights. He also leads a project of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on promoting the Right to Development. Prior to his pursuit in academia, Mihir practiced for several years as a lawyer at the Bombay High Court and at the Supreme Court of India.
Guest Speakers()
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2 |
2 weeks |
17-Oct-2022 28-Oct-2022 |
8:45am.-11:45am. |
Council Room |
DED 6034 |
Forest, Forestry and Poverty
DED 6034 -Forest, Forestry and Poverty3CreditsDeforestation is considered one of the main global environmental challenges of our times, because of its significant impact on biodiversity and its important contribution to Climate Change and Global Warming, as well as on the livelihoods of millions of people. This course analyzes the way deforestation and forest degradation have been and are being explained by both mainstream and alternative narratives. It critically engages with the way deforestation is defined and measured and discusses the various attempts in stopping or reducing it. We will look at a range of conservation approaches that go from traditional protected areas over community-based strategies, and the increasingly common market-based approaches and finally forest restoration. Illegal logging and timber trade will be looked at as a specific topic of particular importance since it is linked to development, poverty, and violent conflict. Additionally, this course looks at the links between poverty and deforestation, some of the possible strategies to reduce poverty through forest-based activities, and analyzes and discusses the importance of forests for humans and the challenges faced by those who try to manage them sustainably.
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Mandatory |
Jan Breitling(Germany)
Jan Breitling is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Environment and Development at University for Peace. He holds a BSc. in Tropical Forestry, from the Technological Institute of Costa Rica, and a MSc. in Environmental Sciences from WUR Wageningen University and Research Center, The Netherlands. His research interests include root causes of deforestation and Global Environmental Change, and Environmental Governance, specifically market based approaches addressing biodiversity conservation and Climate Change.
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3 |
3 weeks |
31-Oct-2022 18-Nov-2022 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Classroom #3 |
DED 6038 |
Water Security and Peace
DED 6038 -Water Security and Peace3CreditsThis course explores local water security and the “ripple” effects on societies. The course will build on a coupled systems framework to understand the physical and social elements of local water security. Students will use their foundations in peace studies to reflect on how water insecurity may threaten or reinforce positive peace, particularly at the local level.
The course will consist of an introduction to the hydrological cycle and variations in water resources over space and time, followed by a coupled systems framing of local water security, an understanding of the different ways in which we use and value water, consequences of water insecurity, the role of intersectionality in water (in)security, and how we can undertake research to better understand water (in)security.
The course will be virtual and interactive, consisting of presentations by the lecturer and students, readings, discussions, assignments, and group work.
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Recommended |
Corinne Schuster-Wallace(Canada)
Corinne Schuster-WallaceCanada
1. Dr. Corinne Schuster-Wallace has broad experience at the water-health nexus including linkages with gender, climate change, and sustainable development. She is a water-health researcher within Global Water Futures program, member of the Global Institute for Water Security and Centre for Hydrology, and faculty member in the Department of Geography and Planning at the University of Saskatchewan. She currently holds adjunct faculty status at McMaster University, Queen’s University, and the University of Waterloo in Canada. Previous positions include Senior Research Fellow (water-health) in the Water and Human Development Programme at the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH), Research Associate in the School of Engineering at the University of Guelph (Canada), and a water-environment specialist for the Public Health Agency of Canada. In addition to publications across many different media, Corinne consulted to the Provincial Commission of Inquiry (Part II) into the Walkerton, Ontario (Canada) drinking water tragedy of 2000
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3 |
3 weeks |
31-Oct-2022 18-Nov-2022 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Earth Charter Auditorium |
DED 6054 |
Coastal Resource Management
DED 6054-Coastal Resource Management3CreditsNearly 50% of the world’s population currently lives within 100 km of the coast, and nearly all humanity is dependent on the world’s coasts and oceans for a variety of cultural, economic and environmental reasons.
Despite, or perhaps because, of their value to social and ecological processes, marine resources face increasing pressures and conflicts over their utilization. Among the most pressing issues facing the world’s oceans, five major categories can be distinguished: i) human population growth, particularly in coastal areas. This is an overarching category as population growth affects all of the remaining categories; ii) pollution (e.g., noise, sewage-water discharge, eutrophication); iii) resource over-use (e.g., overfishing); iv) habitat destruction and degradation (e.g., dying coral reefs, disappearing mangrove forests) and v) invasive species (e.g., lion fish in the Caribbean). Additionally, all of these major threats are affected by emerging crosscutting issues such as climate change.
In response to the evident crises in coastal and oceanic resources, over the last several decades there has been an emergence of management tools intended to help stakeholders, from the local to the national and international levels, manage these resources more equitably, effectively, and sustainably. In the most general sense, this course is intended to enable students to familiarize themselves with the language, history and main management tools related to coastal resource management and to the nature of the problems being faced. The course is not focused on the biology or population dynamics of coastal resources, but rather intends to analyze the practice and science of coastal-resource management from the perspective of policy design and implementation.
Specifically, this course will provide a brief introduction to key physical and biological characteristics of the oceans, as well as discussion concerning their relation to human history. Second, we will investigate the unique human economic, social, and cultural attributes (e.g., fishing, fishers 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 vs. small-scale fisheries, large-scale/industrial fishing as well as the differences and conflicts that exist between these sectors. 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 and trends in coastal and marine management over the last century will also be a central aspect of this course. We will explore and discuss the evolution from traditional top-down models to the implementation of stakeholder inclusion, participation, and co-management. We will also review the role of marine 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 proclaimed inexhaustibility of marine resources, 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.
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Mandatory |
Sofía Cortes Mesen (Costa Rica)
Sofía Cortes Mesen Costa Rica
Sofía Cortés Mesén is a lawyer graduated from the University of Costa Rica with an emphasis on environmental law. From the early beginning of her career, she has focused on management of marine resources as well as ocean policy, while also diving in human rights through a Professional Visit to the Interamerican Court of Human Rights. She has worked as a consultant on marine issues with several NGOs like the Interamerican Association for Environmental Defense (AIDA), MarViva Foundation and Conservation International. Nonetheless, in the past year she has served as an adviser to the Viceminister for Water and the Ocean at the Ministry of Environment and Energy. She has a master’s degree in Environment, Development and Peace with specialization in Climate Change Policy from the University for Peace, and she has recently finished her second master’s degree in Integrated Management of Tropical Coastal Areas from the University of Costa Rica. Currently, she is working on her final dissertation named “Legal and integrated management perspectives to develop a conservation proposal for Costa Rica’s deep sea”.
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3 |
3 weeks |
23-Nov-2022 14-Dec-2022 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Classroom #6 |
DED 6084 |
Social Research Methods
DED 6084-Social Research Methods3CreditsIn this course we will critically examine research methodology. Our course is designed to take student sequentially through the process of thinking about and designing research. Together, we will explore the basic structure of research and examine the philosophical origins of different research approaches. I will guide students as they learn to link different information-gathering methods to different research approaches. My emphasis will be on qualitative research methodology but we will introduce quantitative data gathering and sampling. To ensure that students gain hands on experience with the process of developing methodologies and implementing different information gathering procedures, I will complement lectures with workshops where students will learn by doing. Furthermore, I believe that learning about methods requires analyzing how these methods have worked (or not) in real world case studies; thus, in class discussions of current case studies will complement workshops and lectures.
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Mandatory |
Olivia Sylvester(Canada)
Olivia Sylvester, Ph.D., is the Head of the Environment, Development and Peace Department, and assistant professor at the University for Peace. She is also an adjunct professor for Long Island University and teaches in their Global Studies programme. In the last decade, Olivia’s research program has focused on food security, sustainable agriculture, climate change, environmental justice, and gender. Specifically, she works with Indigenous people, women, small-scale farmers, and youth on these topics. Her research is driven by social and environmental justice and she uses relevant methodologies (e.g., Indigenous, feminist) to achieve these goals. Olivia is also member of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the International Society of Ethnobiology, and the Intellectual Property Issues in Cultural Heritage Project. Being active within these networks allows her to work at the interface of policy and practice.
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3 |
3 weeks |
09-Jan-2023 27-Jan-2023 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Council Room |
DED 6050 |
Climate Change Governance
DED 6050-Climate Change Governance3CreditsScientists worldwide agree that human-induced climate change is occurring and have documented the environmental scenarios that humanity is moving towards. Widespread awareness about such impacts and ensuing policy actions to address it, are a relatively recent phenomenon. The creation of climate policy mechanisms and international legal instruments has been the result of a series of complex, long-lasting negotiation processes that include multiple stakeholders acting across multiple scales and potentially influence global socio-economic, cultural and ethical conducts. Thus, climate governance must be analyzed over various spatial, temporal and system scales.
This course examines climate change governance by looking at the interaction between these multiple elements, beginning with a historical overview of the scientific evidence, the mechanisms for that knowledge to permeate into decision making, the multilateral, regional, national and sub-national governance spheres and the most current state of affairs.
Special attention will be drawn to:
- effective science-policy interfacing mechanisms,
- the structure of multi-level organizations to enable cooperation and dialogue,
- the existence of appropriate legal instruments,
- special governance considerations in especially vulnerable ecosystems (like poles and the ocean).
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Recommended |
Jan Breitling(Germany)
Jan Breitling is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Environment and Development at University for Peace. He holds a BSc. in Tropical Forestry, from the Technological Institute of Costa Rica, and a MSc. in Environmental Sciences from WUR Wageningen University and Research Center, The Netherlands. His research interests include root causes of deforestation and Global Environmental Change, and Environmental Governance, specifically market based approaches addressing biodiversity conservation and Climate Change.
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3 |
3 weeks |
30-Jan-2023 17-Feb-2023 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Earth Charter Auditorium |
DED-6024 |
Food Security
DED-6024-Food Security 3CreditsThe number of undernourished people in the world is on the rise despite the fact that we currently produce enough food to feed our global population. In this course we examine how this paradox relates to inequality, conflict, and climate change. We analyze historical events that have shaped our current food security at different scales as well as frameworks and indicators to understand food security. We evaluate food crises, food riots, and how these crises link to the financialization of our food system. We also examine how different countries and actors have adopted food sovereignty to address economic and social inequalities in our food system. Other key themes in this course include: sustainable agriculture and aquaculture, food waste, nutritional transitions, urban food security, and sustainable diets, Students have the unique opportunity to learn course themes in practice during local field visits, invited lectures, and through gardening on the UPEACE organic farm.
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Recommended |
Olivia Sylvester(Canada)
Olivia Sylvester, Ph.D., is the Head of the Environment, Development and Peace Department, and assistant professor at the University for Peace. She is also an adjunct professor for Long Island University and teaches in their Global Studies programme. In the last decade, Olivia’s research program has focused on food security, sustainable agriculture, climate change, environmental justice, and gender. Specifically, she works with Indigenous people, women, small-scale farmers, and youth on these topics. Her research is driven by social and environmental justice and she uses relevant methodologies (e.g., Indigenous, feminist) to achieve these goals. Olivia is also member of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the International Society of Ethnobiology, and the Intellectual Property Issues in Cultural Heritage Project. Being active within these networks allows her to work at the interface of policy and practice.
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3 |
3 weeks |
30-Jan-2023 17-Feb-2023 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Classroom #3 |
DED 6043 |
Urban Sustainability
DED 6043 -Urban Sustainability3CreditsBy 2050, it is estimated that two-thirds of the world’s population will live in an urban environment. In many countries in the developing world, this is already a reality, with 80-90% of their populations living in cities, with increasing and rapid rates of urbanization. Increased urban population growth, paired with other socio-economic realities that are characteristic to cities, poses enormous challenges to ensure quality of life and wellbeing for everyone, leaving no one behind.
Urban sustainability goes beyond how "green" a city is. This course will be based on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) #11 Sustainable Cities and Communities and the New Urban Agenda, and will provide an understanding on how sustainability in cities is a multi-variable concept, interconnected with other SDGs and issues such as urban planning, transport planning and design, inequality, climate action, health, gender, economic development, among others. You will learn from case studies, articles, reports and the experience of experts in the field, in addition to gaining tools and developing skills that will help you propose strategies, projects and policies to improve your community, town or city in order to make it more sustainable.
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Recommended |
Andrea San Gil(Costa Rica )
Andrea San Gil is an Environmental Engineer, with a Masters in Sustainability, Planning and Environmental Policy. She is passionate about reducing social vulnerability and increasing quality of life through city design and sustainable solutions. She founded the Center for Urban Sustainability in Costa Rica (CPSU) in 2014 and directed it until 2018. She has worked as a policy advisor to different ministries, local governments and the First Lady of Costa Rica in projects related to sustainable development, transport and planning. Andrea loves making music, yoga, cycling, and considers cities to be the best places to transform paradigms, innovate and generate positive impact for both people and ecosystems.
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3 |
3 weeks |
20-Feb-2023 10-Mar-2023 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Classroom #5 |
DED 6047 |
Conservation through Reconciliation
DED 6047-Conservation through Reconciliation3CreditsIn this course, Eli Enns will take students through an exploration in geopolitics, international dispute resolution and nature conservation from the vantage point of an Indigenous Nation Builder in Canada - The world's only multi-national Indigenous-European state. What does the word "Canada" mean? Embracing the Nuu'chah'nulth worldview of Hishuk'ish Tsawaak, students will experience an intimate view into an advanced Indigenous societies perspective. We will also explore some of the successful examples arising in Canada over the past several decades of Indigenous-led conservation of nature through reconciliation, including Tribal Parks and The Pathway to Canada Target 1.
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Recommended |
Eli Enns(Canada)
Eli is the great grandson of Na'waas'um (historian and public speaker for Wickanninish) from Tla-o-qui-aht Indigenous Nation on his father's side. On his mother's side, Eli is a 2nd generation immigrant from the Netherlands, grandson of Peter Enns (Dutch Mennonite). Eli is a happy father and a grateful grandfather as well as an internationally recognized expert in bio-cultural heritage conservation and Indigenous economic development. He is a nation builder and Canadian political scientist focused on Constitutional law, geopolitics and ecological governance. Eli is a member of the board of directors for the Canadian Committee for IUCN.
Co-founder of the Ha’uukmin Tribal Park in the Clayoquot Sound UNESCO Biosphere Reserve on Vancouver Island, Eli was Co-Chair for The Indigenous Circle of Experts for The Pathway to Canada Target 1 (Aichi Target 11), is the lead for the University of Toronto's Reconciliation Through Engineering Initiative and serves as the Regional Coordinator North America for the Indigenous Peoples and Community Conserved Territories and Areas (ICCA) Consortium.
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3 |
3 weeks |
20-Feb-2023 10-Mar-2023 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Earth Charter Auditorium |
DED 6080 |
Quantitative Data Management
DED 6080 -Quantitative Data Management 1CreditsQuantitative Data Management course will provide an initial approach to data collection, organization, use of statistics and field methods that are used in environmental and ecology fields. Students will learn during this course how to approach, gather and analyze observations using available datasets and from observations recorded in the field. In this course, students will use commonly use software to organize data and create graphs, such as Excel, but also use current Statistical software (R statistics software) to provide evidence of patterns in the data. Students will also have the opportunity to gather their own data in the field to later analyze it statistically. Students will learn about different types of data and how different statistical tests handle them. Common statistics used by environmental scientists and field ecologists will be explored. Students will also learn appropriate ways to present data in graphs and tables.
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Mandatory |
Natalie Viviana Sánchez Ulate(Costa Rica)
Natalie Viviana Sánchez UlateCosta Rica
Natalie is a Costa Rican biologist graduated from the University of Costa Rica where she began her interest in the ecology and behavior of birds. Natalie obtained a Master's degree in Conservation and Wildlife Management from the National University of Costa Rica and a Ph.D. in Ecology from the University of Alberta, Canada. In both graduate programs she conducted research specifically on behavioral and habitat selection responses of birds to human disturbances. Since 2012 she has worked in different education programs in Costa Rican and Canada teaching course for Costa Rican, US, and Canadian students, including tropical ecology and statistics. Natalie is currently working as a Postdoc at the University of Windsor, Canada, studying resident and migratory birds in Costa Rica in collaboration with GDFCF.
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1 |
1 weeks |
13-Mar-2023 17-Mar-2023 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Classroom #5 |
DED 6079 |
Fundraising for Sustainable Development
DED 6079-Fundraising for Sustainable Development2CreditsOne of the challenges for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals relates to strengthening public institutions, non-government organizations, development agencies, and other actors to transform solution ideas and proposals into concrete realities that improve the well-being of our society. 2 This course aims at reinforcing the knowledge, skills and attitudes of professionals involved in sustainable development initiatives for delivering efficient and effective solutions with the available resources. In this course, we will introduce concepts and tools on better designing and planning practices that lead to the successful funding of projects at the local or national level.
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Mandatory |
Karen Ivannia Araya Varela(Costa Rica)
Karen Ivannia Araya VarelaCosta Rica
Karen Araya Varela is an Environmental Engineer, with a Master’s Degree in Energy Management from the Costa Rican Institute of Technology. Currently, she collaborates as a Project Manager at the Costa Rican USA Foundation for Cooperation, and has ten years of experience in leading the implementation of pioneering projects on sustainable development and climate change in organizations such as the United Nations Development Programme, Fundecoperacion for Sustainable Development and the Center for Urban Sustainability. Her experience has been shaped by working in an interdisciplinary and multisectoral environment, along with national authorities, academia, private sector, subnational governments and civil society. Karen has managed funds from different international cooperation agencies, such as the Global Environment Facility, Inter-American Development Bank, Adaptation Fund, United Nations Environment Programme and the British Embassy.
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2 |
2 weeks |
20-Mar-2023 31-Mar-2023 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Classroom #6 |
DED 6052 |
Gender, Environment, Development
DED 6052 -Gender, Environment, Development 3CreditsThis course will analyze intersectional feminist perspectives on the relationships between gender, development, and the non-human environment. From identifying the ecological shifts brought on by the colonization of the Americas to understanding the feminist critiques of genetic science testing, this course explores the ways in which historical social structures deeply inform our experiences with the environment around us. In this course we will survey several key environmental topics such as exposure to chemical toxins, climate change, food sovereignty, and forest management from feminist perspectives. We will use theory and case studies from women’s studies, environmental studies and ethnic studies to interrogate processes such as racism, sexism, classism and colonialism as they relate to our understanding of the environment.
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Mandatory |
Carolina Prado (U.S.A)
Dr. Carolina Prado has worked at the intersection of community based research, environmental justice, and border studies for the last ten years. Her work analyzes the struggles for procedural and recognition justice on environmental health issues in the U.S.-México border region. As a first generation queer Chicana , she believes that her struggles for social and environmental justice should create an impact on both sides of the border. Her current work is using environmental justice mapping indices in the U.S. as a guide to create a spatial analysis of environmental inequality in the border city of Tijuana, México. Her work on border environmental justice has been published in Environmental Politics, Journal of Environmental Policy and Planning, the Journal of Borderland Studies, and the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. is also passionate about food justice and anti-domestic violence work.
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3 |
3 weeks Note (May 1st, Holiday) |
17-Apr-2023 05-May-2023 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Council Room |
UPM-6003 |
The United Nations System and...
UPM-6003-The United Nations System and UPMUNC (Part II)1CreditsThe UPEACE Model United Nations Conference (UPMUNC) is the second part of a composite three credit course that begins with the two-credit introductory course on the United Nations System, taught in the first semester. Through a simulation of UN bodies, committees, procedures, and codes of conduct, this immersive and experiential educational exercise encourages the application of knowledge gained in previous courses, including an understanding of the objectives and functions of the United Nations system, as well as the development of professional skills related to research, public speaking, negotiation, mediation of conflict, and the preparation of official documents.
Historically, the conference has been open to outside participants from colleges and universities both regionally and internationally, presenting additional possibilities for networking, dialogue, and educational exchange among all participants. UPMUNC is further enriched by special events, which typically include a panel of invited speakers, a diplomatic reception, an awards ceremony, and a closing celebration.
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Mandatory |
Juan José Vasquez Pacheco(Costa Rica)
Juan José Vasquez PachecoCosta Rica
Juan José es mediador certificado por el Colegio de Abogados y Abogadas de Costa Rica. Estudió Derecho y Psicología en la Universidad de Costa Rica, en donde laboró como Asistente Administrativo en Consultorios Jurídicos. Ha trabajado como Asistente del Secretario en la Corte Centroamericana de Justicia, en Managua, Nicaragua y ha prestado servicios como mediador en las Casas de Justicia que tiene el Ministerio de Justicia y Paz de Costa Rica a lo largo del país. Realizó su maestría en Resolución de Conflictos, Paz y Desarrollo en la Universidad para la Paz, en donde actualmente se desarrolla como Asesor Legal y como profesor en temas de resolución de conflictos, paz y mediación.
Juan Jose is a certified mediator by the Costa Rican Bar Association. He studied Law and Psychology at the University of Costa Rica, where he worked as an Administrative Assistant in the Legal Clinic. He has worked as an intern at the Central American Court of Justice, in Managua, Nicaragua and has served as a mediator in the Houses of Justice held by the Ministry of Justice and Peace of Costa Rica throughout the country. He completed his master's degree in Conflict Resolution, Peace and Development at the University for Peace, where he currently works as a Legal Advisor and as a professor on conflict resolution, peace, negotiation and mediation issues. He is deeply interested in peace, conflict and mediation.
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1 |
1 week |
10-May-2023 12-May-2023 |
8:45am.-3:45pm. |
Council Room |
DED 6066 |
Applied Environment and Development
DED 6066-Applied Environment and Development 3CreditsThe course is oriented to enable students to understand the organizations and institutions and their agendas in Costa Rica, related to environment and development. Special emphasis is given on the role, strategies, policies and actions of these organization. The course consists of visiting local, national and international institutions, and discussing their objectives and roles in the sphere of natural resource management and sustainable development, and corresponding policies.
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Recommended |
Jan Breitling(Germany)
Jan Breitling is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Environment and Development at University for Peace. He holds a BSc. in Tropical Forestry, from the Technological Institute of Costa Rica, and a MSc. in Environmental Sciences from WUR Wageningen University and Research Center, The Netherlands. His research interests include root causes of deforestation and Global Environmental Change, and Environmental Governance, specifically market based approaches addressing biodiversity conservation and Climate Change.
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3 |
3 weeks |
15-May-2023 02-Jun-2023 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Classroom #3 |
DED 6029 |
Climate Adaptation and Justice
DED 6029 - Climate Adaptation and Justice3CreditsClimate change adaptation without mainstreaming equity and justice, will only serve to perpetuate existing inequity. In this class, we will take a justice lens to analyze climate change impacts and adaptation efforts. Specifically, we will examine the following themes: 1) adaptation, resilience & climate action, 2) energy transitions, 3) human rights, 4) rights of nature, 5) gender and intersectional justice, 6) climate change and displacement as well as 7) Indigenous peoples and climate change. Students will examine this suite of themes via multiple contemporary case studies.
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Recommended |
Olivia Sylvester(Canada)
Olivia Sylvester, Ph.D., is the Head of the Environment, Development and Peace Department, and assistant professor at the University for Peace. She is also an adjunct professor for Long Island University and teaches in their Global Studies programme. In the last decade, Olivia’s research program has focused on food security, sustainable agriculture, climate change, environmental justice, and gender. Specifically, she works with Indigenous people, women, small-scale farmers, and youth on these topics. Her research is driven by social and environmental justice and she uses relevant methodologies (e.g., Indigenous, feminist) to achieve these goals. Olivia is also member of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the International Society of Ethnobiology, and the Intellectual Property Issues in Cultural Heritage Project. Being active within these networks allows her to work at the interface of policy and practice.
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3 |
3 weeks |
15-May-2023 02-Jun-2023 |
8:45 AM-11:45 AM |
Council Room |