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The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management
(NREM) at the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa (UHM) offers graduate
programs leading to the MS and the PhD. Taught by natural
and social scientists, the integrative and multi-disciplinary
programs employ a systems approach to the understanding and
management of tropical terrestrial ecosystems, taking into
consideration the various components and scales (both spatial
and temporal) that determine ecosystem function and the subsequent
effects on the social and economic welfare of residents in
different communities and environmental settings.
To underscore the integrative and multi-disciplinary nature
of the graduate training, the department collaborates with
other academic departments at UHM, and participates actively
in the campus-wide multi-disciplinary graduate
certificate in resource management. Cooperating and affiliate
graduate faculty with various expertise complement the department's
core graduate faculty. In addition, the department maintains
close ties with selected national and international institutions
in Hawai'i and beyond, fostering programs that acquaint students
with the diverse ways in which people in other cultures interact
with their environments and manage their natural and renewable
resources. Natural resource management issues are attracting
considerable national and global attention, as well as growing
donor interest, especially in the Asia/Pacific and tropical
and subtropical regions.
Curricula and courses emphasize the application of physical,
biological and social sciences to the sustainable management
and conservation of natural, environmental and economic resources.
All students in NREM are expected to acquire a common base
of knowledge embodied in a core set of courses. They will
gain a scientific understanding of the processes underlying
the performance and function of terrestrial ecosystems, and
the extent to which human behaviors and policies impact and
are in turn impacted by such processes. Through training in
the application of quantitative models, students learn how
to optimize the use and management of natural resources.
With guidance from their academic advisor and thesis/dissertation
committee, students choose appropriate elective course work
and research or other activities to develop an area of specialization.
Examples of specialization areas include but are not limited
to land resource inventory and interpretation; tropical forestry
and agro-forestry; land, soil and water conservation; ecological
and environmental economics; community economic development;
and land and water use policy.
Graduates will be ready to perform tasks specific to their
specialization and to undertake original and meaningful reseach
appropriate to their field. Furthermore, they will be equipped
with the necessary skills in quantitative reasoning and critical
thinking, which will enable them to tackle contemporary environmental
issues surrounding the use of resources and the competing
needs of diverse clientele and communities, and to assist
in sound decision making and policy formation. Graduates pursue
professional careers in resource and environmental management
and policy, academic teaching and research, or applied research
outreach in educational and resource institutions, federal
and state technical assistance and policy agencies, agricultural
and forestry industries, consulting firms, and private nonprofit
organizations.
The MS and PhD programs in NREM participate in the Western
Regional Graduate Program administered by the Western Interstate
Commission for Higher Education (WICHE). The program enables
legal residents of WICHE member states to enroll in selected
out-of-state professional or graduate programs at reduced
tuition rates. For more information, see Financial
Matters < WICHE Program.
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