Sustainable Management of Environmental Changes and Circular Economy

This program of postgraduate studies is co-organized by the Departments of Planning and Regional Development (DPRD), Civil Engineering (DCE), and Agriculture Crop Production and Rural Environment (DACPRE) of the University of Thessaly, while it is operated from the academic year 2018-2019.

This postgraduate program aims a) at an in-depth diagnosis and understanding of environmental problems, b) to explain how the environmental problems are related to the human factor, and c) environmental programs management of utilizing the science, technology, and governance. The ultimate goal of this program is environmental conservation, which will not be achieved at the expense of social and economic development, but rather for the benefit of society and at a low cost. Given the need to change the linear model of material flow through the economy to a circular model based on the fourfold “reuse, repair, renovation, and recycling,” a switch from the linear model “supply, production, consumption, disposal” to a circular model based on the fourfold “reuse, repair, renovation, and recycling” is required. This change is based on maximizing the efficiency of existing resources. The focus of the pollution control and management plan should be shifted to pollution prevention and waste conversion into resources. The postgraduate program also examines: A) the nature, causes and effects of main forms of environmental change, B) How the environmental change interact globally, regionally and locally? C) How the environmental change affects the ecosystems and societies? and D) the sustainable solutions to this change, through rational management, prevention, mitigation, adaptation, waste minimization, circular economy, and design of new sustainable/green products or services.