Environmental Conservation, Restoration and Sustainability

The Master's Degree Course in Environmental Conservation, Restoration and Sustainability is divided into two curricula: the Marine curriculum, mainly taught in English, and the Terrestrial curriculum, mainly taught in Italian. Both curricula address issues related to the conservation of natural systems on different spatial and temporal scales. 
The programme aims to train naturalists who are experts in conservation, restoration and environmental sustainability, Master's graduates with multidisciplinary skills, able to carry out and coordinate research activities, who are involved in the protection of natural systems and the recovery of degraded ones, designing conservation measures that respect the principles of sustainability. The course is set in a region that is particularly rich in terms of marine and terrestrial biodiversity, habitat conservation and the availability of natural resources, but it is also a context where human activities have led to the exploitation of resources (biotic and abiotic) and environmental degradation that must be mitigated, compensated for and recovered through restoration actions.

The local area is also involved in major energy sustainability projects (both at sea and on land) that require environmental impact assessments. The local area is heavily affected by the effects of climate change, such as heat waves and desertification.
The course in Environmental Conservation, Restoration and Sustainability is the only one in the LM-75 class offered in Sardinia. 
Teaching activities include lectures, seminars, tutorials, laboratories and fieldwork. The latter two are among the main features of the course. Lectures and practical exercises mainly take place at the teaching centre in Via Vienna, where classrooms and a computer lab are available, while teaching and research laboratories are located in various university buildings depending on the department to which the lecturer belongs. All classrooms are equipped for modern multimedia teaching, with computers, video projectors and IT systems that enable distance learning or blended learning. 
The training programme is structured to develop specific skills in various fields related to conservation, resource exploitation and restoration of the terrestrial and marine environment. Most of the lessons take place during the first year, leaving space in the second year for internships and thesis placements. Internships and thesis placements can be carried out not only in the various departments of the University of Sassari, but also in public and private institutions, in particular National and Regional Parks and Marine Protected Areas. International experiences, promoted with a view to providing a more comprehensive education for graduates in Environmental Conservation, Restoration and Sustainability, can be carried out at foreign institutions thanks to the Erasmus and Ulisse programmes, with which specific learning agreements are signed.

The career opportunities for experts in environmental conservation with a master's degree in Environmental Conservation, Restoration and Sustainability can be found in various fields:
- public government bodies responsible for land management (ministries, ARPA, ISPRA, regional and municipal departments, local technical services);
- non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and foundations for the conservation and restoration of biodiversity;
- natural heritage conservation and management bodies (parks, protected areas, nature reserves);
- private professional firms, companies and consortia engaged in activities related to the analysis and assessment of natural resources, restoration and rehabilitation works, environmental impact assessment, monitoring of natural and environmental resources, eco-balancing and environmental certification;
- university departments or other public and private research institutions (natural science museums, bodies of the National Research Council, botanical gardens, aquariums, etc.);
- public and private structures involved in teaching and disseminating scientific culture (schools, museums, non-profit organisations, etc.).
Graduates with a Master's degree in Environmental Conservation, Restoration and Sustainability are eligible to take the state exam for professional associations of Landscape Architects, Biologists, Geologists and Agronomists in order to practise as freelancers.