751-5201-00L Tropical Cropping Systems, Soils and Livelihoods (with Excursion)
| Semester | Autumn Semester 2017 |
| Lecturers | J. Six, A. Hofmann, B. Wilde |
| Periodicity | yearly recurring course |
| Language of instruction | English |
Courses
| Number | Title | Hours | Lecturers | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 751-5201-00 G | Tropical Cropping Systems, Soils and Livelihoods (with Excursion) Permission from lecturers required for all students.
The field excursion to Ethiopia will take place from November 4 - 19, 2017. Remarks: Student who enroll for this course are strongly recommended to verify with lecturers from other courses whether their absence of two weeks may affect their performance in the respective courses. | 5 hrs |
| J. Six, A. Hofmann, B. Wilde |
Catalogue data
| Abstract | This course guides students in analyzing and comprehending tropical agroecosystems. Students gain practical knowledge of field methods, diagnostic tools and survey methods for tropical soils and agroecosystems. An integral part of the course is the two-week field project in southern Ethiopia, which is co-organized with Arba Minch University (Ethiopia) and KU Leuven (Belgium). |
| Learning objective | Lectures and exercises: (1) Introduction to international soil classification with focus on tropical soils (2) Soil suitability (chemical, physical and biological fertility) for tropical crops (3) Soil conservation practices and stakeholder involvement (4) Approaches to analyzing tropical agroecosystems Field project: (5) Overview of the major land use systems in the South Ethiopian Rift Valley (6) Analysis of agricultural production systems in the Gamo-Gofa region in southern Ethiopia (7) Hands-on training on the use of field methods, diagnostic tools and survey methods (8) Collaboration in international student teams (MSc students from Switzerland, Belgium and Ethiopia) |
| Prerequisites / Notice | The number of participants is limited to 12 students due to capacity limitations for the field project in Ethiopia. Selection of participants will be based on (1) the student's motivation statement, (2) successful participation in the BSc lectures "Sustainable Agroecosystems I + II" and (3) related topic for BSc thesis/ tentative topic for MSc thesis. The motivation statement is due in the first week of the semester. |
Performance assessment
| Performance assessment information (valid until the course unit is held again) | |
Performance assessment as a semester course | |
| ECTS credits | 5 credits |
| Examiners | J. Six, A. Hofmann, B. Wilde |
| Type | graded semester performance |
| Language of examination | English |
| Repetition | Repetition only possible after re-enrolling for the course unit. |
Learning materials
| No public learning materials available. | |
| Only public learning materials are listed. |
Groups
| No information on groups available. |
Restrictions
| General | Permission from lecturers required for all students |
