Zentrum für internationale Entwicklungs- und Umweltforschung (ZEU)
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Human Development
- Human Development
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Societies develop in the context of their economic, environmental, political and legal framework. On the regional scale, food security and education are strong determinants of this development. Nationally, the macro-economic setting and the stability of the political system are factors for transformation. Members of the ZEU apply a variety of methods in this Focus to investigate these topics, e.g. in Central Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.
- (C): N. Claasen
- (C): M. Höher
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Environmental Resources
- Environmental Resources
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This focus designs and applies multidisciplinary research methods to investigate the intrinsic interaction of natural, economic and social aspects of resources utilization. We particularly study biodiversity, soils, and water with regard to land use and climate change impacts and effects. Currently, we especially perform research projects in the Caucasus, the Mediterranean region and in East Africa.
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Interdisciplinary Approach
- Who, today, would contest the correlation between poverty and environmental degradation? Sus-tainable solution strategies demand a fairer access to resources for all, a goal that requires a deep understanding of the natural resources themselves as well as their social and institutional govern-ance. The Center’s focus on agricultural, environmental and developmental research is based on the insight that ecological and economic challenges of natural resource use are co-dependent and should thus be investigated in an interdisciplinary way. Hence, disciplinary diversity plays a crucial role at the ZEU. This is true for the institutional structure of ZEU, its research approach as well as its training programme. These practices are not regarded as an abstract theory or method, but are practiced on a daily basis by the staff of the Center
- (C): colourbox