The Elite Network of Bavaria master’s programme “Global Change Ecology” (GCE) started in 2006 at the University of Bayreuth. Since then, several GCE students have already completed their degree. In 2020, we started the GCE Alumni series to check in with our past students and foster connection within the programme. Here we get updates (and […]
As part of a Master’s course at the University Centre of Svalbard, I spent five weeks on Svalbard, a Norwegian archipelago in the High Arctic. The University Centre in Svalbard (UNIS) is the world’s northernmost higher education institution, located in Longyearbyen at 78º North, only about 1300 km from the North Pole. UNIS offers research-based […]
This article will give you insights into the outcomes of the COP26 including personal experiences from us students. Ahead of COP26, expectations were high. These hopes were born out of urgency — the window to avert the worsening effects of climate change is rapidly closing. We know what is happening and we know why. The question […]
The United Nations Climate Change conference has been held every year since 1995. At the Conference of the Parties (COP), organized by the UNFCCC, parties come together to discuss solutions for combating climate change. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, COP26 was delayed one year. The pandemic and all that has come along with it makes […]
On Sunday, the 31st of October, governments, industries, NGOs, and other stakeholders, come together in Glasgow for the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP). Expectations for this year’s COP are high, some voices even say too high, preparing for a failure because they believe that the countries will not be able to deliver. Why are expectations so high? Since Paris, Glasgow is the […]
This August, an interdisciplinary science meeting on biodiversity research took place on the Isle of Vilm. It was not just the meeting but also the isle itself that helped the participants to understand biodiversity better. On Monday, the 2nd of August, 2021, my alarm clock rang early in the morning. It took me around 9 […]
At the end of a week full of informative and fun events for the new GCE cohort, all GCE students were invited to go on an excursion with Prof. Carl Beierkuhnlein. We visited various places in and around the Fichtelgebirge, and learned a lot about the area’s geology, flora and history. When the excursion started […]
Wicked problems are issues with many interdependent factors, which make them seem impossible to be solved. Since the factors are often incomplete, in flux, and/or difficult to define, a deep understanding of the stakeholders involved, and innovative solution-oriented approaches are required to solve wicked problems. For instance, climate change is a wicked problem. And that’s […]
In the words of American anthropologist Loren Eiseley, “If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water.” Without water, there would not be life on this planet – that means no trees, nor fruits, no vast oceans, nor stunning waterfalls, no us… Simply put, there wouldn’t be Earth. Water is a […]
Every year between July and August, the GCE programme hosts current students, alumni, professors of the program, and friends as they all come together to celebrate, network, and learn more about each other’s cultures at the Summer Fête. Given the cancellation in 2020, this year’s event was particularly anticipated – and it certainly delivered a […]
