PhD in Environmental and regional studies

This doctoral programme brings together the natural sciences, social sciences and humanities. Drawing on biology, geography, economics and sociology as well as geology, palaeobiology and karstology, it is organised around sustainable development, interdisciplinarity and the practical use of knowledge. The programme responds to rapid, unpredictable change in the living environment caused by human activity, including urbanisation, climate change, biodiversity loss and a growing number of natural disasters. Working across single disciplines is presented as a necessary step in addressing these pressures. Its aim is to train specialists who can foresee environmental change, help prevent it where possible, or design programmes that help societies adapt. To do so, they combine knowledge from architecture, urbanism, economics, sociology, geography and the biological and earth sciences, along with environmental and nature conservation, supported by a broad selection of elective courses.