MSc Conservation and International Wildlife Trade

The MSc in Conservation and International Wildlife Trade provides you with the knowledge base to address trade regulation and management at both the national and international levels.

Overview

International wildlife trade is big business and ranges from high volume timber and fishery products to the more traditional wildlife products from endangered species used in horticultural, pet, leather and medicinal trades. International trade and over-use are implicated in the decline of around one third of threatened species.

Equally, many of the world’s poorest people depend on the use or sale of wildlife products for their livelihood. Meeting the twin goals of reducing poverty and stemming the rate of species loss requires improved management of trade in natural resources.

The programme examines the dynamics of international wildlife trade from all angles: the practical mechanisms set up to regulate wildlife trade, the ecological assumptions, social, cultural and economic drivers of trade, along with the challenges, pressures and the political environment that underlines relevant international law and policy.

This pathway is designed for people from areas such as government management and scientific authorities, NGOs, international agencies and donors who are working to improve sustainability of wildlife trade. It examines a number of mechanisms for delivering sustainable wildlife trade, especially the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), with whom DICE has developed a Memorandum of Understanding to offer this pathway.

Teaching and assessment

Assessment is carried out primarily through coursework with written examinations for some modules. The research dissertation is written up in the format of a paper for publication.

Programme aims

This programme aims to:

• produce postgraduates equipped to play leading roles in the field of international conservation and biodiversity management
• develop new areas of teaching in response to the advance of scholarship and practice
• provide you with opportunities to gain a interdisciplinary perspective on conservation issues through collaborative exchange between DICE and the wider University
• develop your competence in applying theoretical and methodological skills to the implementation of conservation practice and biodiversity management
• develop your critical and analytical powers in relation to policy formulation and data analysis and interpretation.

Careers

The School has a very good record for postgraduate employment and academic continuation. DICE programmes combine academic theory with practical field experience to develop graduates who are highly employable within government, NGOs and the private sector.

Our alumni progress into a wide range of organisations across the world. Examples include: consultancy for a Darwin Initiative project in West Sumatra; Wildlife Management Officer in Kenya.