Info Session for Balkans Study Abroad Program

Nov 29, 2018 | Ohio University
Athens, Ohio
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Come learn about this one of a kind opportunity to explore one of Europe’s last biodiversity hotspots while studying transboundary conservation, ecotourism, and peacebuilding! Come chat with Voinovich School Professor Geoff Dabelko and Emily Englehardt, Global Program Coordinator in the Office of Global Opportunities.  Todd Walters, founder of International Peace Park Expeditions and co-leader of the program will Skype in!  No rsvp required but let us know if you think you may attend.

**INFO SESSION**

Environmental Peacebuilding and Sustainability

Balkans study abroad program

When: Thursday, Nov. 29^th at 6:30pm

Where: Ohio University, Baker 239

About the program:

The Balkans Environmental Peacebuilding and Sustainability study abroad program is a 7 credit field course (in Washington DC and the Balkans) affiliated with Ohio University’s Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs and its Environmental Studies Program. It provides students with a unique, experiential learning opportunity in one of the last biodiversity hotspots in Europe, a place where communities are addressing the legacy of the conflict and civil war with transboundary conservation, entrepreneurship, ecotourism, and environmental peacebuilding. The program runs during summer semester from May 19th – June 10^th. More details at https://www.ohio.edu/global/goglobal/programs/balkans.cfm Fulfill two courses for the Environmental Studies Certificate including the capstone requirement.

The program starts with three days of briefings in Washington DC where students will gain a foundational understanding of how environmental security thinking evolved to include environmental peacebuilding. Students will meet with leading experts at the National Park Service, US Agency for International Development, Conservation International, the Woodrow Wilson Center, Environmental Law Institute, and others.

Students will load up their backpacks and travel as a group to the Balkans to see firsthand how the environment is harnessed as a tool to stimulate cross border cooperation. In regional cities and communities high-up in the Accursed Mountains, students study how entrepreneurship and ecotourism are providing an alternative model for sustainable development and real world livelihood creation. The field-based experiences are accompanied by faculty and guest lectures, policy experts, community leaders, park officials, and NGO experts in Kosovo, Albania, and Montenegro. 

Now in its sixth year, the study abroad program will be led by Professor Geoff Dabelko who has been active in environment and security research and policy for nearly three decades including 20+ years at the Wilson Center’s Environmental Change and Security Program. He joins Todd Walters, founder and executive director of International Peace Park Expeditions, who has led student experiential learning study abroad programs in the Balkans, Central America, and North America with a focus on transboundary conservation and peacebuilding. 

This program is open to students at U.S.-based universities. If students are not traveling on a U.S. passport, contact the program directors to evaluate visa requirements.