IWE-33306 Sustainable Land and Water Management (Spain)

Course

Credits 6.00

Language of instruction:

English

Assumed knowledge on:

IWE-10306, LDD-10306, IWE-21312, IWE-32306, LDD-31306 or IWE-20806

Contents:

This course consists of two parts: One week lectures and workgroups in Wageningen and a three weeks practical in Spain.
Preparation week Wageningen: In the introductory week in Wageningen, attention will be paid to the specific land and water management problems in different watersheds in Valencia, Spain. Lectures and literature will focus on the technical and socio-organizational dimensions of land and water management, and place problems in the framework of the institutional and policy environment. In small groups, students will select a case study and elaborate a proposal for practical and research activities. A range of case studies will be offered in the field of Water management, Land management and Integrated Land and Water management.
Practical in Spain: Next, students will participate in a three weeks practical in Spain. During the first week, excursions and field visits will clarify the specific land and water problems in the area, students get an overview of the different land and water management systems in the area, and exercises will be done related to a number of important field research methods. In small groups, students will continue to work on their research plan. During the following two weeks, the students will focus on their specialization and work on the analysis and design of irrigation systems, soil and water conservation measures or water and land management policies. In the last week, the workgroups will elaborate their research findings in the form of research report and discuss their conclusions with the staff and other workgroups.
Students have to pay a contribution to the travel, boarding and lodging costs.

Learning outcomes:

This course is an integrating element in the MSc study International Land and Water Management, in which the theoretical concepts learned in earlier courses are further elaborated, integrated and applied in practice. After concluding this course, students are able to:
- integrate and use knowledge from different disciplines to analyze a land and water management problem and set up, present and execute a research plan on the issue;
- understand the relations between soil, water, land use and land management within the agro-ecological, socio-economic and political environment;
- understand and describe the physical and socio-economic effects of land and water management interventions within a watershed, at various management levels;
- design land and water measures or design management and organizational concepts and assess the performance of existing land and water infrastructure and management forms;
- present their field research conclusions in a coherent manner.

Activities:

- to attend lectures;
- to prepare a short research plan about land and water management and policies in Spain;
- to participate in excursions;
- to realize several important land and water management field research methods;
- to carry out research concerning the effects of different land and water use systems;
- to present conclusions coherently.

Examination:

Examination will be based on the quality of the practical reporting, participation during the practical and the presentations.

Literature:

- practical manual;
- additional articles and papers.