Established in 2018, the course attends an equal number of Brazilian and Norwegian students, and is taught by Brazilian and Norwegian scientists with complimentary competence to facilitate teaching a broad range of themes. It has two main components: a field course in the Caxiuanã National Park - Amazon, and another at the Natural History Museum in Oslo. The course also includes visits to Norsk Hydro’s facilities in Brazil and Norway, visit to local villages in remote forested areas and boat trips across Amazonian rivers. The main objective of the project is educate future experts on Amazon biodiversity, ecology and forest restoration, and give them knowledge and a critical sense that are relevant for future careers in academia, government, NGOs and private companies. Students and professors that integrate the course are from UiO, UFPA, NMBU, MPEG and UFRA.

OBJECTIVES

 

The overall goal of the field course is strengthen the collaboration between Brazilian and Norwegian higher education institutions through establishing a joint, permanent Brazilian-Norwegian master course in tropical ecology and biodiversity, and to integrate it into the course portfolio at the participating institutions. The course will have two main components: A field course at the Ferreira Penna Scientific Station in the Caxiuanã National Park - Brazilian Amazon, and a lab course in Oslo. The project includes two-way student mobility of 16 master students between Brazil and Norway.

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SPECIFICS:

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1. To educate future experts on Amazon biodiversity, rainforest ecology and restoration, and to give them knowledge and experiences that are relevant for future careers in academia, government, NGOs and in private sector companies.

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2. To consolidate and further develop existing institutional cooperation in education and research between 

UiO, UFPA, NMBU, MPEG and UFRA.

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3. To increase the international mobility of students and staff between UiO, UFPA, NMBU, MPEG and UFRA.

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4. To enable the involved students to design and execute research projects and to write scientific reports.

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5. To train students in international collaboration, including how to put the Nagoya protocol's regulations on access and benefit sharing into praxis.

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6. To facilitate the development of collaborative MSc projects.

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7. To strengthen the existing partnerships between the academic institutions and Norsk Hydro.

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8. To develop joint applications in order to secure the long-term financial sustainability of the course, and to expand the connected research activities.

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9. Support actions to maintain the Ferreira Penna Scientific Station and services to enable the completion of the course