A roundtable — a bridge, connecting future African specialists with the educational horizons of SPbGLTU
A roundtable for students of the preparatory department from Africa was held at the St. Petersburg State University of Forestry Engineering named after S.M. Kirov (SPbGLTU). The participants learned about the master's program "Forest Policy and Economics" (FORPEC), which is taught in English.
Leading research scientists and faculty members presented their departments, emphasizing key scientific directions and current research topics for those who wish to continue their studies at the university at the bachelor's, master's, or doctoral (PhD) level.
Svetlana Tereshchenko, Director of the International Center for Business and Education, warmly welcomed those gathered and particularly emphasized how important the information is about the opportunities that studying at SPbGLTU opens up.
The central part of the meeting consisted of presentations by the departments on the opportunities for studying at SPbGLTU and its scientific directions:
Prof. A.S. Alekseev, Head of the Department of Forest Inventory, Forest Management and Geoinformation Systems, gave a presentation on his department. Unique research and developments, in particular the use of unmanned aerial vehicles in forest monitoring, aroused great interest among the audience.
E.N. Kuznetsov, who heads the Department of Forestry, shared information on the implementation of advanced technologies in the field of forest and forest park management.
Prof. A.V. Gryazkin (Department of Forestry) highlighted the potential of using non-timber forest resources.
D.A. Danilov, Head of the Department of Soil Science, outlined the key areas of educational and scientific activity of the department.
Prof. A.V. Zhigunov (Head of the Department of Forest Crops) acquainted participants with modern methods of selection, increasing forest productivity and reforestation.
N.A. Mamaev presented an overview of the activities of the Department of Forest Protection, Wood Science and Game Management. He also spoke about the unique collections of the university's museum complex.
Prof. O.I. Antonov presented the Department of General Ecology, Plant Anatomy and Physiology.
The richness of SPbGLTU's educational programs was emphasized during the meeting. Participants had the opportunity to discuss practical aspects of various fields of study in person. Students are offered a unique opportunity to choose between a flexible modular learning system and fundamental classical academic courses.
Particular interest was aroused by topics directly related to contemporary challenges: sustainable forest management using information and GIS technologies, the development of ecological tourism, the efficient use of forest resources (including beekeeping), as well as monitoring forest ecosystems using unmanned aerial vehicles and other relevant directions.
The students demonstrated a high level of interest in studying at the university. We wish the students success in finding their path to a bright future here.