Zentrum für Entwicklungsforschung Center for Development Research University of Bonn Bonn International Graduate School for Development Research BIGS-DR We want to express special thanks to our numerous donors who have made BIGS-DR possible: German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), State of North Rhine-Westphalia via University of Bonn, German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), German Technical Cooperation (GTZ), Robert Bosch Stiftung, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG), Volkswagen Foundation, Dreyer Foundation, SAP Company, European Union, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Konrad-Adenauer- Stiftung, Fulbright Foundation, Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Katholischer Akademischer Ausländer-Dienst (KAAD), Evangelischer Entwicklungsdienst (EED), United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU- EHS), Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), and governments of several countries. 2 Contents Why study in Germany? 4 The City of Bonn 6 The University of Bonn 7 The Center for Development Research (ZEF) 8 The Bonn International Graduate School for Development Research (BIGS-DR) 11 Educational Concept and Timeframe 12 The PhD Course Program 13 PhD Research Areas 14 Land Use and Degradation 15 Water Security 17 Biodiversity and its Conservation 18 Sustainable Energy 19 Health 20 Disciplinary Research Programs 22 Cooperation and Networks 25 The ZEF Alumni Network 26 ZEF Alumni Careers 27 Admission Requirements 28 Financial Matters and Fellowships 28 Application Procedure 30 3 Why study in Germany? here is practically no academic field that you German universities attach great importance to cannot study in Germany. Its universities offer an basic research. Leading researchers from all around Tenormously wide and diversified range of studies the world conduct top-class research and teach in and qualification opportunities. You can develop your Germany. The equal significance of high-level research personal and professional skills and gain a considerable and teaching is the basis of excellent training offered amount of new and exciting knowledge. at Germany´s universities. The success of world-class technology “Made in Germany” shows how the combination of basic and applied research leads to successful solutions. Germany, the world’s third largest economy, has demon- strated that protect- ing the environment and nature while maintaining high liv- ing standards and in- dustrialization levels is not a contradiction per se. Germany has the world’s strictest environmental laws The Brandenburg Gate in Berlin is the symbol of the city. As it was situated in the no man‘s land just behind the “wall“, and standards. Numerous public and private organiza- it became symbolic of the division of the city and also of the tions work together to conserve the ecological balance division of entire Germany. and preserve the species diversity of flora and fauna. A large number of universities offer environment-focused degree programs. Bundesrepublik Deutschland Federal Republic of Germany Capital Berlin Official language German Government Parliamentary Federal Republic Area 357,050 km² (63rd) Population 82,310,000 GDP (PPP Total) $2.522 trillion (5th) Per capita income $30,579 (17th) Currency Euro (€) Time zone CET (UTC+1) At almost 3,000 metres (10,000 ft), the Zugspitze is Germany‘s highest mountain. 4 Germany is often called das Land der Dichter und Denker (the land of poets and thinkers). It has been the home of some of the most prominent composers, e.g. Ludwig van Beethoven, Johann Sebastian Bach, and Richard Wagner, painters, like Albrecht Dürer, Caspar David Friedrich and Max Ernst, philosophers including Immanuel Kant, Karl Marx and Friedrich Nietzsche, and researchers in various scientific fields like Alexander von Humboldt, Carl Friedrich Gauss, Albert Einstein, Max Planck, Werner Heisenberg, Hermann von Helmholtz, Joseph von Fraunhofer, and Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen. Many German researchers, inventors and Location of Germany (orange) engineers have contributed to making the world a more livable place. Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin, Germany is a democratic country with a republican Gottlieb Daimler, Rudolf Diesel, and Karl Benz helped form of governance. The political system aims at to shape modern automotive and air transportation integrating as many social groups as possible into technology. Today, German engineers and scientists the policymaking process. The Federal Republic of are among the world’s leading scientists, above Germany has a Federal Government (for the country all in nanotechnology, environmental research, as a whole) and is made up of 16 states (Länder) automotive engineering, engineering and technology. with, correspondingly, 16 state governments. Today, In environmental research, for example, Germany Germany is a multicultural society. Of the 82 million is the world’s number one with a 23% share of all inhabitants living in Germany, 9% are foreigners and environmental protection patents registered each 10% are Germans with an immigrant background. year. The Cologne cathedral with its two spires 157 metres in height, has been the city‘s most famous landmark for centuries and the most well-known architectural monument in Germany. It took 632 years until the construction of the largest German cathedral was completed. 5 The City of Bonn he City of Bonn can look back upon a history of more than 2,000 years. Bonn, originally Tfounded by the Romans, is a pretty and lively university town in the West of Germany, located about 20 kilometers south of Cologne on the Rhine River in the Federal State of North Rhine- Westphalia. Bonn was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of the Federal Government until 1999. Since the move of the Federal Government to Berlin, Bonn has developed into a hub of international cooperation, in particular in the area of environment and sustainable development. It is a city of political competence and international importance where many national and international conventions and conferences were and are held, like the World Climate Summits in 1999 and 2001 and the UN Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in 2008. The city currently hosts 12 United Nations institutions and a number of other international organizations, such as the IUCN Environmental Law Center (IUCN ELC), the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). Bonn is the seat of Germany’s largest telecommunication and logistics companies, Deutsche Post/DHL and Mobile Com, as well. The City of Bonn also offers a variety of cultural opportunities, including the Museumsmeile, the birth house of Beethoven, and many historic buildings. The University of Germany’s weather is in fact much better than its reputation, Bonn is situated in a wonderful city where people and Bonn is one of the country’s warmest places. The can live comfortably. In the summer, thousands summers are often humid warm with average temperatures of students enjoy the open-air facilities in and of around 20°C, sometimes rising to 35°C in extremes. The around Bonn, making the Hofgarten, a large park winters are usually mild, rarely with temperatures below in front of the university, a popular place to meet, the freezing point or with snow. study, play ball-games and relax. In general, Bonn Bonn‘s old Town Hall conveys a (multi-)cultural, academic, historical, but also modern and personable atmosphere. 6 The University of Bonn he Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität of Bonn was founded almost 200 years ago and is Facts and figures of the University of Tconsidered to be one of Germany’s and Europe’s Bonn (as of April 2007): most important institutes of higher education. With a Personnel student population of 27,000, the University of Bonn 500 professors is not only one of the largest in Germany, but also an 2,100 other academic staff institution rich in tradition. 1,500 non-academic staff Bonn is a research university that operates internationally. It has partnerships with 55 renowned Students universities worldwide. Foreign postgraduates and 27,000 students academics currently participate in more than 1,500 4,100 foreign students international research projects. Many foreign guest lecturers and scientists come to our university on the Studies Rhine to teach and research. For years, Bonn has been 90 separate degree programs offered among the most sought-after universities in Germany for holders of research fellowships and prizewinners Budget of the eminent Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. Total expenditures: 302.6 million Euro More than 4,100 foreign students from 140 countries are currently enrolled at the university. Research Making up about 15.2% of the student body, the Funds attracted from third parties: 77.6 million University of Bonn has a quota of international euros students well above the average for Germany. Their 8 collaborative research centers presence underlines the international character of the 7 postgraduate collegia university and enriches both academic and social life 8 research groups and clinical research groups in Bonn. University premises 371 buildings spread throughout the city University of Bonn libraries Main university library (2.22 million volumes) approximately 100 decentralized institute libraries University clinics 3,200 non-academic