Course summary

The information provided on this page was correct at the time of publication (November 2022). For complete and up-to-date information about this course, please visit the relevant University of Oxford course page via www.graduate.ox.ac.uk/ucas. The MSc in Biodiversity, Conservation and Management aims to provide a critical and conceptually sophisticated understanding of biodiversity science and the socio-economic, political, cultural and institutional contexts within which management and policy decisions are made. The course content is rooted in our established strengths in conservation biogeography, governance and planning, in global change and in research design. The course design also responds to the rise of market-based conservation including engagements with enterprise and the transformative potential of new technologies. The specific course objectives are to develop your abilities to:

• critically engage with concepts and theory in biodiversity science and management from interdisciplinary perspectives;

• describe by whom and by what space and territory is designated and governed for conservation over time;

• critically assess the modes through which conservation builds and extends power and describe in detail the factors that explain the emergence and performance of different types of governance

• appreciate the role of ethics, values and societal norms in producing culturally attuned and effective conservation interventions;

• evaluate the implications of emergent technologies for the future of biodiversity science and management; and

• link hypothesis, theory, methods, data and field work to identify and develop advanced research questions and design.