Master in Environmental and Food Economics

The relationship between the environment, natural resources, and the agri-food system plays a central role in the development of modern societies. The issues of sustainable economic development, the management of natural and energy resources, and the sustainability of the agri-food system represent new economic and policy challenges.

The Master degree in Environmental and Food Economics provides the conceptual and analytical tools for participants to be able to address those challenges. Advanced expertise in economics and business administration and management, quantitative methods, and specific theoretical and applied knowledge in environmental and natural resource economics and in the economics and management of the agri-food chain is provided. The aim is to equip students with a solid understanding of the instruments to promote sustainable economic development, the management of natural resources (water, soil, energy), environmental and energy policies, management and innovation of the agri-food sector, internationalization of agri-food companies, food security issues and rural development.

The Master degree in Environmental and Food Economics represents a novelty in the Italian university system, by combining topics of environmental and climate change economics with the economics and management of the agri-food sector, carefully selects the contents of its courses, and for being taught entirely in English.

The Master degree in Environmental and Food Economics is organized in two curricula: i. Environmental and Energy Economics; ii. Economics and Management of the Agri-Food System. The professional profiles that characterize the two curricula can be summarized as follows.

The professional profile of the Environmental and Energy Economics curriculum is more oriented to the world of institutions, both public and private, with job opportunities in national, EU, and international institutions, public administration, Energy Authorities, FAO, OECD, European Commission, public and private research organizations, and research departments of large national and multinational companies, as well as the green economy. The professional profile of the Economics and Management of the Agri-Food System curriculum is more oriented to the world of private business with job opportunities in agri-food companies (small and medium enterprises, multinationals, GDO), as well as in producer organizations and national, EU, and international institutions that carry out research and studies in the fields of agricultural and food policies, food security, and rural development (FAO, World Bank, OECD, and the European Commission).

The University of Milan is a public teaching and research university, which - with 8 faculties and 2 schools and a teaching staff of more than 2000 professors - is distinguished by its wide variety of disciplinary fields. A leading institute in Italy and Europe for scientific productivity, the University of Milan is the largest university in the region, with approximately 64,000 students; it is also an important resource for the socio-economic context of which it is a part. Milan is, in fact, the capital of Lombardy, one of the most dynamic and international regions in the European Union, a leader in the national economy that stands at the Italian forefront of research and development investments and commitment to technological innovation.

The University of Milan also possesses a remarkable artistic and cultural heritage that includes important historic buildings, inherited and acquired collections, archives, botanical gardens and the old Brera Observatory commissioned by Maria Teresa of Austria. The University’s departments are housed in important historic edifices in the center of Milan and in modern buildings in the area known as Città Studi (the City of Studies). Among the palazzos that house the University’s facilities are the old Ca' Granda (the big house) – a monumental complex from the 15th-century in the heart of the historical city centre - the 18th-century Palazzo Greppi designed by Giuseppe Piermarini – who built the Scala Theatre in Milan – and the 17th-century Sant’Alessandro College commissioned by the Arcimboldi family. The book collection , which is one of the richest in the region, is preserved in 47 libraries, while the APICE Centre collects rare and valuable book stocks and archives. The University also has a Choir and its own Orchestra, which actively contributes to the cultural life of the city and receives international acknowledgments on an increasingly frequent basis.