Thanks, @kate-m! I checked out your intro-- very cool, looking forward to more! Followed you :) I have been really loving me some ethnobotany recently, especially writings of Dale Pendell and Martin Prechtel, and look forward to seeing your work!
Brooke, who I mentioned above in my post, is looking internationally for agroecology masters programs next fall, do you happen to know of any for her to check out? So far she's looking at programs in Norway and Santiago, Chile, and she speaks English, Portuguese, and Spanish, and is very open to suggestion
Hello!
Hmmm, well I know more about ethnobotany, conservation and development courses. I've never systematically looked at agroecology. I know they have a fair amount here in Brazil but I don't know their standing on an international scale, and to be honest any Federal universities here seem to be in total disarray with constant strikes. But private institutions seem to be weathering the chaos so might be worth investigating if she speaks portuguese, and Brazil is marvellous, with lot's of opportunities to get practically involved in agroecology. I guess it also depends where she wants to practice in the end as well. So, basically, dunno! There's a permaculture course in Killarney in Ireland if that was something she fancied, but I think it's a diploma rather than a masters. She's so wise to be looking internationally - basically go somewhere that she won't be getting into a gazillion dollars of debt for a one-year programme. Silliness.
I reckon Scandinavian countries have a high quality of tuition whilst also offering free/dirt cheap fees. But then they're quite expensive for living costs. Why am I still talking, I already said I have no idea! lol
That's like typical Irish, if you ask an Irish person for directions they feel compelled to tell you something to try to be helpful even if they have no idea. Which of course ends up being the opposite of helpful.
Regarding ethnobotany reads, I'm sure you've already read some Wade Davis? If not he has some great books.
hahaha, thanks for the rambling response, Paddy. I dig! And Wade Davis, yea! Started reading his book about Haiti recently, totally excellent.
I keep trying to advocate she have an idea of her path, and think about work or other programs beyond a Masters in Agroecology, and other less formal ways of getting the skills she wants, but I think she wants to get some research skills and maybe be able to teach at a university level one day, and thinks that's the only way to do it. She has a Permaculture Design Certificate all ready, and is a garden educator at a school here, but she sees that our friends with permaculture skills are often kind of limited in the scope and impact that they can have working with kids and small projects, and not having opportunity to go much deeper... I think she wants a more rigorous education for herself, and she loves university life.
Anyway, "helpful" or not (I think so!) I appreciate the thoughts and tips and perspective, Kate. Thanks for sharing :)
I think a Masters is great - it's really stimulating and gives you lots of ideas and excitement and contacts and useful skills. It might also change your vision about your own path which is incredibly useful. It may also open up avenues of work and invovlement in projects that might not have been so obviously open otherwise. On the other hand a PhD will suck the life out of you and probably give you some sort of mental health issue, he he. So I think she's making an okay decision with the masters as long as she doesn't get into loads of debt because of it (and maybe even in that case, but she'd have to evaluate that herself afterwards).
Yeah, that's why she's looking internationally. Good to know difference between MS and PhD, personally, I say why not go for a Fulbright! Anyway. PS I put up my first backwoods cooking post
I'm perhaps being a little bit cynically unfair as regards doing a PhD. :) Read your post - like you're writing and your attitude towards decision-making!
Kate-M! Thank you for all the helpful information! It sound s like you are doing some incredible work in Brazil! I used to live in Salvador Bahia! Saudades! Thank you for your helpful information about grad school! I look forward to hearing more about your projects!
Me too, I have to get this damn thing written!