About the department
The Department of Sustainable Agriculture (DSA) was established in July 2022 and started receiving students in September 2023.
The Department of Sustainable Agriculture is part of the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences of the University of Patras and it is based in Agrinio city.
The DSA was founded following the needs for a modern and pioneering academic curriculum that will address the dual challenge of food security with better nutrition, improved quality and safety of food and environmental sustainability.
The academic subjects of the Department of Sustainable Agriculture focus on the sustainable, efficient, fair and equitable management of natural capital and of the rural environment, that both are associated with food production and raw materials supplies, supporting at the same time biodiversity and ecosystem services.
The subject of sustainable agriculture includes all forms of integrated agriculture: organic and ecological agriculture, precision agriculture, extensive agriculture, agroforestry, carbon farming, agro-ecology, ecotourism, as well as all other types of agriculture and livestock farming that advance sustainable management and effective conservation of natural resources and natural ecosystems in the face of climate change and in the context of international conventions and European commitments.
Personnel
The staff of the Department consists of 13 faculty members, 1 Professor Emeritus, 2 laboratory teaching staff, 1 technical associate (Special Technical Educational Staff, E.T.E.P), and 6 administrative members.
Studies
The Department offers a 5-year undergraduate program structured into 10 semesters.
According to the aforementioned perception, beyond introductory and core courses of agronomy, undergraduate courses (both, teaching and laboratory exercises) are organized into three (3) specialization fields putting emphasis on modern perspectives of agronomy. The three specialization fields are:
• Sustainable agricultural production, food systems and circular economy
• Management of natural capital, climate crisis and natural disasters
• ‘Smart’ agriculture – application of technology and informatics.
The curriculum gathers 300 ECTS and leads to the Degree of Sustainable Agriculture. The awarded title corresponds to an Integrated Master level 7.
The DSA offers doctoral studies leading to a Doctoral (Ph.D. equivalent Degree) in the field of Agricultural Sciences and related disciplines.
The scope of our Ph.D. program is to train new scientists in all modern areas of Sustainable Agriculture, producing at the same time high quality and modern scientific research. Research Research work of high quality with international recognition is conducted in the Department of Sustainable Agriculture, across a wide range of scientific fields, including:
• Modelling, experimental design and development of innovative physicochemical and biochemical processes for treatment and valorization of agro-industrial wastes and residues
• Soil and water pollution control
• Biotechnology
• Sustainable management of natural capital
• Sustainable management of water irrigation and water resources
• Conservation and management of plant species, habitats, ecosystems and ecosystem services
• Environmental governance and policy
• Vegetation – landscape ecology
• Remote sensing, Geographical information systems & Spatial analysis
• Precision agriculture • Carbon farming • Climate, climate change, weather and climate extremes and natural disasters
• Applications of renewable energy sources
The research at DSA is mostly funded by competitive national and international (European) programs.