Guest lecturers from Uganda
This week, GRÓ LRT hosts three guest lecturers from Makerere University and the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) in Uganda.
The visit started with Dr Jerome Lugumira, from NEMA, and Dr Daniel Waiswa, from Makerere University, giving a lecture Wednesday on Uganda’s ecosystem challenges and the country’s plans for the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. Then Thursday, Dr Gerald Eilu from Makerere University, gave a full-day lecture on biodiversity and its importance for human societies, addressing the issue in the context of ecosystem services, international frameworks, and strategies for biodiversity conservation.
Dr Lugumira is a soil scientist and a Natural Resources Management Specialist at NEMA, whereas Dr Eilu and Dr Waiswa both come from Makerere University. Dr Eilu is an Associate Professor in the Department of Forestry, Biodiversity and Tourism and Dr Waiswa is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Geography, Geo-Informatics and Climatic Sciences.
During their stay, they also joined the GRÓ LRT fellows on a half-day land literacy excursion, where the aim was to observe different stages of land condition and see how land condition knowledge is applied in Icelandic conditions.
The visit from Makerere University and NEMA was part of GRÓ LRT and Makerere University Erasmus+ Mobility Project, running from 2022-2024. GRÓ LRT, Makerere University, and NEMA have been working together since 2007. Seven faculty members and researchers from Makerere University, and 26 specialists from local governments in Uganda (through NEMA) have participated in the GRÓ LRT six-month training in Iceland. GRÓ LRT, Makerere University, and NEMA have also worked together in developing a short course on “Sustainable land management, land restoration and linkages to climate change” for environment-, agricultural-, natural resources- and forest officers in districts in Uganda. The short course has been run three times in Uganda, from 2017-2019, and Prof. Eilu, Dr Waiswa, and Dr Lugumira were the key Ugandan specialists in developing the short course and providing the training.
