Humanity and Environmental Science Master Program
Mission Statement:
The globalization of economy, culture, and society has modified Earth’s life-support
systems. The deterioration in ecosystem services, the benefits that society receives from the
ecosystems, is so drastic that cross-disciplinary collaboration is required to address many
pressing environmental problems. A new research center has been proposed at the NDHU to
promote ‘Integrative Sciences’—a new approach to ecological studies that seeks to combine
insights, perspectives and methods from the conventional sciences with those of indigenous
ecological knowledge (IEK). The program offers a graduate curriculum for training students in
both conventional scientific and indigenous traditional natural resource-use management
methods and concepts and foster the development of understanding amongst scholars and
practitioners of the applied sciences, the social sciences and IEK. It will cultivate an attitude
of respect toward the rest of the natural world and responsibility for the ecological, social
and cultural consequences of its ongoing degradation. Integration involves the blending of
the methodological and conceptual traditions of several disparate disciplines.
Graduate Degree Program:
The aim of the graduate curriculum offered by the Institute for the Study of Humanity in
Nature and defined through the active collaboration between the College of Environmental
Studies and the College of Indigenous Studies is to provide an understanding of
environment/society integration and interaction from both indigenous and conventional
scientific points of view. The program will provide a solid grounding in the comparative
strengths and potential synergies of indigenous and conventional scientific ways of knowing.
It will provide Taiwanese and international students with the requisite skills, and help to
develop the attitudes, that will enable them to participate in the effective co-management
of natural resources among indigenous peoples, local communities and the state.
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Humanity and Environmental Science Master Program
Objectives:
 Graduating a generation of students with the technical and intellectual skills needed to
take on lead roles in ecologically responsible natural resource-use management in their
communities and nations and to assist other rural communities with this vital task.
 Promoting cross-disciplinary collaborative research on adaptive co-management of
natural resources in such a way that resilience can be built into our social-ecological
systems.
 Ensuring a solid grounding in philosophy (ontology and epistemology) as a basis for the
Integrative Sciences.
 Imparting a greater respect for and understanding of indigenous and conventional
scientific ways of knowing the world.
 Teaching skills in the use of tools for effective natural resource-use management,
including Public Participatory Geographic Information Systems and Parametric
Management.
Program Course Requirement:
Minimal Total Credits：24 credits
Compulsory Courses：9 credits
Course Name
Seminar (I)
Seminar (II)
Seminar (Ⅲ)
Master Thesis
Credit
1
1
1
0
Course Name
Directed Study (I)
Directed Study (II)
Thesis Research (I)
Thesis Research (II)
Credit
1
1
2
2
Elective Courses：15 credits
Core Courses：
1) History and Philosophy of Conventional Ecological Science
2) History and Philosophy of Indigenous Ecological Knowledge
3) Socio-Ecological Systems: Knowledge, Justice and Ethics
4) Indigenous Ecological Knowledge in Actions
Elective courses：
1) Adaptive Co-Management
2) Environmental Justice
3) Indigenous peoples and eco/culture tourism
4) Nature & Society
5) Ecofeminism and Ecology
6) Science, Technology & Society: Studies of Environmental Issues
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Humanity and Environmental Science Master Program
Students must earn 9 credit hours from the elective courses offered as core
courses in the Humanity and Environmental Sciences Program. Students may also
take graduate-level, English-taught courses offered by the Department of Natural
Resources and Environmental Studies (NRES) international program to satisfy the 6
remaining elective credit hours with approval from his/her advisor and the chairperson
of the department.
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Humanity and Environmental Science Master Program
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