AUCA students sharing their impressions from the spent semester at the greenest university of Germany

February 5, 2019

          My name is Zhanara. I am a Junior student of Environmental Management and Sustainable Development department and here I want to share my study experience of an exchange semester in German Forestry University. I spent an amazing fall semester of 2018 at the University of Eberswalde on Sustainable Development (HNEE). Eberswalde is located forty minutes from Berlin by high-speed train. I had an honor to study there as a result of the cooperation of AUCA and the “Agroforestry” project. I would highly recommend my peers interested in environmental threats to apply to this program due to the academic excellence, campus location and friendly intercultural atmosphere.

HNE Eberswalde is the greenest university in Germany. So, studying natural resources, ecosystem and forestry were full of joy, comprehending master- classes and excursions around. Eberswalde (HNEE) has a long history and many prominent alumni. It was founded back in 1830 as the Forest Academy by outstanding scientists and researchers. The university specializes in spheres as

* Forestry and Environmental studies,

* Landscape Management and Nature Conservation,

* Wood Engineering,

* Sustainable Business. 

The university has two campuses, one is right in the city center and the other one is in the thick forest. I studied in the forest town only with Master’s students.  I took courses such as

- Introduction to Resource Uses and Economic Concepts,

- Human Wellbeing, Ecosystem Functions,

- Services and Valuation Approaches,

- Forest Management Systems for Ecosystems Services,

- Silvicultural Management based on Growth Modeling for Decision Support,

- Environmental Policy and Nature Conservation,

- Spatial Dimension, Assessment and Solutions,

- Ecosystem Modeling,

- German B1+.  

Softwares I mastered would be helpful to held researches. I studied collect and analyses data programs Vensim and GIS. Vensim is a visual modeling tool that allows you to conceptually design, document, implement, analyze and optimize system dynamics models. GIS is an abbreviation for Geographic Information System, a widely- used program applied mostly to analyze tendencies over lands, forests, and oceans. My professors were highly qualified in their subjects that provide academic excellence and demand from students corresponds. Professors required commitment and discipline, despite they are always eager to help you.  

HNEE student life is saturated with sports activities; students could play football every Friday, volleyball or basketball could be played on Tuesdays and Thursdays, badminton on Wednesdays. Students had discounts to visit the pool. I could also travel to the city for sightseeing for free because the university provided a green card. 

I lived in a WG (shared apartment) with students from Germany and Romania. I had to learn cooking vegan food living with vegans and turned vegan myself. Especially, I fell in love with vegan pancakes, just yummy. As soon as I arrived back to Kyrgyzstan, sure enough, I have meat in my diet. Actually, it is hard to refuse eating meat due to the lack of substitute products and habitualized local cuisine.  I liked the German tradition of gathering with fellow students, where we cooked, practiced German, got to know each other better, and had fun together. The international office organized a trip twice a semester. I was lucky to see beautiful Poland, visit museums and taste Polish food.

This exchange gave me new impressions, unforgettable memories, filled my days with bright moments. Read more information about the student life at HNEE and programs available in English on hnee.de.

***

          My name is Nurali Orozbekov, I am a senior student from the LAS department, majoring in Enviromental Management and Sustainble Developmet. I spent the fall semester of 2018 at the University of Eberswalde for Sustainable Development in Germany. I studied forest science, environmental economics, and ecosystem modeling there. We’ve been working with programs such as BWinPro and Vensim making different models and visualizing digital data.

The university is very much focused on practical exercises. Every week we went to the surrounding forest where we studied different types of trees and took measurements. In addition, the university has own woodworking enterprise, a laboratory and several greenhouses where students conduct practical training.

I also managed to improve my German language skills, as there were free language courses for foreign students.

Regarding extracurricular activities, we participated in the National Forum on Biological Diversity where the importance of insects for the ecosystem and their protection was discussed. After the classes, we also practiced therapeutic therapy in the local forest called “Landscape Therapy” (a small forest walk).

Eberswalde University has two campuses. One is located in the center of the city which is more oriented towards the study of theory. The second campus based in the surrounding forest. Students spend most of their time on practice there. Students travel by bike from one campus to another, because this is one of the most convenient types of transport in the city. Another surprising fact about the university is that it bears the status of the greenest university in Germany, as it has an EMAS (Environmental Management and Audit Scheme adopted by the European Commission) certificate and meets all its standards.

In general, the exchange semester in Germany enriched me with a lot of knowledge and experience. I had a great opportunity to make new friends from all over the world because in our group there were students not only from Germany or Europe but also from Nepal, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Ecuador, and Mexico.

I strongly recommend everyone to spend the exchange semester abroad and discover something new.

Zhanara and Nurali want to thank Prof. Zheenbek Kulenbekov, head of the EMSD department for support, HNEE, and sponsors, especially the German Ministry of Education for financial help. 

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