Extended Funding of CNRD

Sharing of knowledge between universities
Funding for Centers for Natural Resources and Development (CNRD) at TH Köln

For more than ten years the Centers for Natural Resources and Development at TH Köln (University of Applied Sciences) have been connecting universities worldwide with a focus on teaching and research on the management of natural resources. 34 scientific institutions are currently cooperating within the network. CNRD is now being funded for another three years through the exceed program of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) in order to pass on its many years of experience to new exceed centers.

With the exceed program, the DAAD promotes cooperation with reference to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) between German universities and universities in countries in the global south. In 2009 the funding started with five projects – including the CNRD, coordinated by Prof. Dr. Lars Ribbe from the Institute for Technology and Resource Management in the Tropics and Subtropics (ITT). For a further funding phase, seven new projects have now been selected, which benefit from the experience of the preceding projects.

“The CNRD network has grown steadily since it was founded and today supports multilateral master -, doctoral – and online programs, conducts cooperative research projects and regularly organizes specialist conferences. In particular, it has designed a model for integrating teaching, research, transfer and application in the form of living laboratories, that are currently being implemented with numerous partners worldwide. We are pleased to pass on this management knowledge to the new exceed centers”, says Professor Ribbe, former head of the ITT and currently founding dean of the Faculty for Spatial Development and Infrastructure Systems.
In addition to the transfer of expertise, the CNRD will also continue its previous activities.