This course is accredited by the Institute of Chartered Foresters and gives partial fulfilment of Professional Membership Entry.

The course is a two-year world-class integrated programme aimed at qualifying graduates to deal with the huge challenges in contemporary tropical forestry. The teaching staff are very active in research and the students will profit from our many connections throughout the world.

The course is offered by a consortium of five European universities:

• Faculty of Life Sciences, Copenhagen University, Denmark
• Bangor University, School of Environment,Natural Resources and Geography, Bangor, Wales, UK
• Dresden University of Technology, Institute of International Forestry and Forest Products, Tharandt, Germany
• AgroParisTech (the Paris Institute of Technology for Life, Food and Environmental Sciences) , Montpellier, France
• University of Padova, College of Agriculture, Padova, Italy.

The course consists of a first study year at one of three institutions (Bangor, Copenhagen, Dresden) and a specialising second study year with different topics offered by each of the five institutions. Students are required to spend the second year at a different university to the first year. The aim of the first study year is to provide a thorough and broad introduction to sustainable tropical forestry. The learning outcomes are similar for the three first year institutions and allow students to choose freely among all five specialisation options in the second year. The first year ends with the Joint Summer Module including fieldwork in a tropical country.

Specialisation options in the second year are:

• Agroforestry systems (Bangor)
• Socio-economics of tropical forestry (Copenhagen)
• Tropical forest management (Dresden)
• Environmental management and policies for tropical forests (Montpellier)
• Ethics in forestry and responsible trade in tropical forest products and services (Padova).

To obtain the SUTROFOR double degree and the Diploma Supplement, students will acquire 120 ECTS credits by studying at two Consortium institutions, acquiring at least 60 ECTS credits at each. All SUTROFOR modular activities can be completed in English, except the second year at Montpellier which is only available in French.

The following degrees are awarded: MSc in Forest and Livelihoods in Copenhagen, MSc in Sustainable Tropical Forestry in Bangor, MSc in Tropical Forestry in Dresden, MSc in Agricultural Sciences, specialisation Environmental Management of Ecosystems and Tropical Forests in Montpellier, and MSc in Forestry and Environmental Sciences in Padova.

Click here for detailed information on the SUTROFOR Masters.

Why choose Bangor University for this course?

• Top five for Agriculture and Forestry (Complete University Guide League Table 2021).
• Ranked 7th in the UK for research quality (Agriculture and Forestry - The Complete University Guide 2021).

What will you study on this course?

Bangor Compulsory Modules:

Forest Resource Assessment: This module provides an introduction to world forest resources and policy.

Silviculture: This module develops an understanding of silviculture and forest management and the interaction of management systems with the physical environment. A common component explore the silvicultural systems and interventions used to realise desired future forest conditions

Research Planning and Communication: This module aims to support the dissertation planning process and encourage critical thinking about the research process.

Climate Change and Tropical Forestry - Monitoring and Policies: This module focuses on popular discourses on the relationships between climate change, forests and livelihoods.

Preparing Field Work in the Tropics: This module develops in-depth factual location specific knowledge relevant to tropical forestry issues.

Sustainable Tropical Forestry Summer School: This module applies data collection and evaluation methods in the field.

Agroforestry Systems and Practice: This module introduces the concepts behind this land use system and ways in which it is practiced around the world. Topics covered are the principles of ecological and biophysical interactions, and the social, economic and ecosystem benefits.

Natural Resource Management: The purpose of this module is to give students a theoretical understanding of the systems approach to managing natural resources to provide various ecosystem services, as well as a practical grounding in the ways in which natural resource managers can draw on a variety of knowledge sources to inform themselves and others of the impacts of land management interventions.

Optional Modules:

This is dependent on where the second year of study is selected. Full module details for the partner institutions are available on the following links: Copenhagen University, Denmark; AgroParisTech-ENGREF, France; Dresden University of Technology, Germany; University of Padova, Italy.

There are excellent employment opportunities in the broad area of tropical forestry including national government, international organisations and consultancies. Many recent SUTROFOR graduates have gone on to do PhD research.

Our courses provide an understanding of this biodiversity, the ways in which it is influenced by people, and the role that forests can play in reducing the impacts of human activities, including climate change.