Master in Valorization and Sustainable Development of Mountain Areas

The Master's Degree Course in VALORIZATION AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF MOUNTAIN AREAS, taught in English, aims to form professionals who are capable of promoting the enhancement, development and sustainable management of mountain territories, by applying innovative approaches and a systemic vision. Multidisciplinary training will integrate environmental and agro-forestry knowledge with proficiency in the economic, legal, historical-geographical and communication skills necessary to clearly delineate the specifics of mountain territories. This will foster the ability to highlight and transmit unique and valuable elements of the mountain context.

The graduate will be able to promote the creation of products and/or services of economic and social value beginning from the specific environmental, natural and agro-forestry resources of the mountains, following the principles of sustainability and in relation to local and global processes operating at the level of environmental (e.g., climate change) and socio-economic factors (depopulation, competitiveness and new models of development, etc.) and related national, European and international intervention policies.

The master's degree program will allow graduates to acquire concrete knowledge, skills and abilities specific to the environmental characteristics of mountain agro-forest ecosystems, specific technologies and methods for monitoring and sustainable management of the mountain environment and its resources, and to optimize the services rendered (ecosystem services, tourism, etc.) and the products that can be obtained. Indeed, the training aims to promote the sustainable enhancement of the specific resources of mountain territories in strategic sectors for the economy such as tourism (e.g., planning and promotion of greenways and paths, dissemination/environmental education), energy from renewable sources, as well as (with regard to "bio-resources" and mountain agrobiodiversity) traditional local short supply chains (e.g. agritourism companies, catering, crafts, etc.) but also in typical industrial supply chains in various sectors such as agri-food, medicinal/health, nutraceutical, cosmetic, manufacturing (e.g. textile) biotechnology, or in the context of the bioeconomy and the circular economy. The specific knowledge, skills and competence of a historical-geographical, juridical-legislative and economic nature will allow the graduate to contribute to the development of business, marketing (product, service and territorial strategies) appropriate to the mountain context, both for the start-up of new businesses and for the planning and management of interventions in the context of programs and strategies for the development of these areas. Furthermore, the expert professional of the mountain territory knows how to use effective communication techniques and methodologies (transversal skills applicable across a range of sectors) including the most innovative digital technologies (web, social, etc.). This is essential to effective interaction with service and innovation centres, between the mountain and urban, local and "global" scales, for continuous training, networking, technical-scientific dissemination and outreach, as well as the marketing of the territory and its products and services.

The master's degree in VALORIZATION AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF MOUNTAIN AREAS is characterized by unique elements with regard to training for the management and sustainable development of mountain territories, including international orientation (the inclusion of these territories in an international framework of dialogue is essential to their development) and multidisciplinarity. Another unique aspect is the logistical location of the course, which takes place entirely at the UNIMONT pole of the University of Milan, which has been active for 25 years at Edolo (a mountain municipality in the central Alps) exclusively dedicated to the development of mountain areas through teaching, research and third mission activities. The location of the centre favours teaching within the mountain environment and gives students the opportunity to experience, on a day-to-day basis, the characteristics of the territory that, as professionals, they will influence. However, from a methodological and operational point of view students are guaranteed an experience that is anything but "local", as UNIMONT is part of an "ecosystem" that includes the main sector stakeholders at regional, national and international levels, effectively connecting the local dimension with the supralocal, facilitating the processes of innovation, capacity building and empowerment of human capital essential for the enhancement of these territories.

Therefore, the master's course is specific for mountain areas, includes multidisciplinary and the connection between the local and the "global" dimension.

The graduate in VALORIZATION AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF MOUNTAIN AREAS is a specialist in the enhancement and sustainable development of mountain areas who operates using innovative and specific scientific and technological methods and approaches with particular reference to the analysis, monitoring, conservation, management and enhancement of natural and agro-forestry resources (e.g. analysis and monitoring of mountain ecosystems, planning of forestry and silvicultural restoration and conservation actions, protection and production functions including ecosystem services; collaboration in defining natural resource management plans, enhancing agrobiodiversity, etc.). The graduate will be able to collaborate in the design, implementation and promotion of unique products and/or services of economic and/or social value deriving from the environmental and agroforestry resources of the mountain territory (e.g. planning and coordinating interdisciplinary interventions for the tourist/recreational and educational use of the territory; enhance and promote the use of energy from renewable sources, with specific reference to local sources and the forest-wood-energy supply chain; collaborate in defining processes for enhancing traditional and innovative local products, etc.). The graduate can use their training for the identification of business strategies and resource enhancement in relation to specific governance and development policies and regulations, participation in the management of projects for the enhancement and development of the mountain territory in the context of local, regional and national programs, and European and international cooperation. The graduate can apply digital technologies and communication methods to networking, strategic marketing and scientific dissemination of environmental resources and products and services of mountain areas.

Additionally, graduates will have the ability to understand and interpret the specific legal, administrative and socio-economic cultural framework of these territories, to understand dynamic phenomena related to change (climatic and demographic), within the context of the planning of interventions allowing ecological and digital transitions for the definition of new models of sustainable development.

The graduate is able to: - recognize the specific environmental, natural and agro-forestry resources of the mountains and the ecosystem services connected to them; - evaluate the evolution and effects of climatic and anthropogenic factors on the natural and agro-forestry components of the environment, the main impacts and adaptation and/or mitigation strategies; - recognize and safeguard biodiversity heritage using specific intervention programs, including didactic-educational actions, with particular reference to agro-biodiversity; - apply scientific, technological and economic knowledge to collaborate in the promotion of processes for enhancing traditional and/or innovative products from raw materials (bio-resources, agrobiodiversity) from natural and mountain agro-forest ecosystems, interacting with specialists from different sectors in multidisciplinary working groups; - identify calls for regional, national and European funding programs for the development of mountain areas and collaborate in the design and management of systemic enhancement and development interventions; - use territorial information systems and the most innovative technological tools for territorial monitoring, management and planning, also for the purposes of tourism and energy enhancement; - apply specific knowledge about the economic and cultural environment in which companies and public and private subjects operate, identifying appropriate strategies for enhancing resources, additionally to support decision-making processes in governance, in the planning of interventions for territorial development and enhancement products/services; - apply specific knowledge regarding the juridical-legislative framework from which policies, strategies, programs and regulations relating to the sustainable development of mountain territories are derived, for the planning of sustainable development interventions and technical support for managing the complexity of these areas; - work in interdisciplinary and international groups; - apply economic and marketing knowledge to working processes for territorial development (territorial marketing); - apply specific technical knowledge to collaborate with professionals from sectors specializing in promoting the use of energy from local renewable sources, combining methods of assessing economic sustainability with methods of quantifying environmental impacts; - apply knowledge related to the use of digital technologies and communication tools for networking and effective interaction with service and innovation centres, strategic marketing and technical-scientific training and dissemination. Professional opportunities include entrepreneurial activities, or as a freelance consultant or employee with coordination and responsibility roles in private or public, national or international companies in strategic sectors for the mountain economy, such as environmental, environmental tourism, agro-forestry, energy and project management for the development of mountain areas at: - technical-professional firms and consultancy and design companies for the enhancement and development of the territory; - forestry companies and consortia; - local action groups - LAGs; - territorial and tourism promotion consortia; - farms; - syndicates of agricultural producers; - trade associations; - parks and protected areas; - Municipalities, consortia and unions of Municipalities, Mountain Communities, Provinces, Regions, Ministries; - developmental agencies; - foundations and NGOs; - training and dissemination bodies and companies; - research and development bodies; Graduates can carry out freelance activities as a Doctor in Agronomy and Forestry, and after passing the state exam and enrolment they can access recruitment contests for positions as officials of the former State Forestry Corps and other Environmental Policing Corps, pursue a research doctorate in Italy or abroad, or a second level master's degree.

The professional profile covers the following categories: Agronomists and Foresters; Planners, landscape architects and specialists in the reclamation and conservation of the territory; Researchers and technicians with degrees in agricultural, zootechnical and animal production sciences; Editors of technical journals.

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.