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Land Use Planning and Policy CapabilitiesMSU University: An Overview Since its inception in 1855, Michigan State University has ascribed to the values under which it was founded as the first land-grant university in the United States: to "strive to discover practical uses for theoretical knowledge, and to speed the diffusion of information to residents of the state, the nation, and the world." In operational terms, MSU has concentrated on building its strengths in educating and training succeeding generations of researchers both from the U.S. and the world at large. It has sought to establish collaborative links with people and institutions worldwide. Institutionally, it has generated the means to manage and support a variety of programs here in the U.S. and abroad. MSU is recognized as a center of excellence in international development. The academic and professional community at Michigan State is highly diverse and augments the University’s international goals with a broad array of globally-relevant skills and expertise. People from every county in Michigan, every state in the nation, and 134 countries around the world contribute to the University’s success. Annually, more than 3500 international students enroll in MSU’s graduate and undergraduate programs. MSU hosts hundreds of visitors from around the world every year that come to tour the campus facilities, take positions as visiting scholars, or meet with their colleagues. Hundreds of MSU faculty members are engaged in critical outreach programs in many countries throughout the world, teaching and conducting research. For nearly 40 years, Michigan State University has been a leader among U.S. universities in international development programs. As a university, MSU has had both broad and deep involvement in conducting technical assistance and research in developing countries, assisting the development of new institutions, and providing training for development tasks. MSU remains committed to these same tasks and is actively engaged in development and technical assistance projects worldwide. MSU has managed projects throughout the world, providing short- and long-term in-country technical assistance, degree and non-degree training programs, and extensive backstopping support from the campus. The Office of the Dean of International Studies and Programs has overall responsibility for the university’s international initiatives and manages several overseas projects out of this office as well. International Presence Internationalism has been at the center of MSU’s mission since the 1960s and, under the leadership of President Lou Anna Simon, the university has redoubled its commitment to international development and to the use of Internet technologies to enhance those efforts. Office of International Development As a land-grant university, MSU has a long and distinguished history of involvement in international development, with hundreds of faculty having participated in projects around the world. In order to draw upon the broad range of disciplines and expertise of MSU's faculty, staff and researchers, the Office of International Development (OID) was established at MSU in order to provide technical support and assist faculty and graduate students interested in implementing collaborative, multidisciplinary international development projects around the globe. MSU’s international engagement is based on equal, transparent and reciprocal partnerships with host-country institutions and governments.
II. Response to the Scope of WorkMichigan State University and its internationally-oriented faculty have a firm understanding of the importance of land resources, land policy and property rights to the achievement of economic growth and social development goals in the developing world. Specifically, poorly defined property rights regimes which fail to provide secure tenure create significant obstacles to agricultural expansion and economic productivity across the global south. Likewise, poor land and natural resource policies contribute to unsustainable utilization of natural resources and consequent environmental degradation and declining livelihoods. Incomplete and outdated titling and registration and other administration processes are inhibiting the functioning of land and housing markets, the impacts of which are seen most evidently in the burgeoning cities and shanty towns of the developing world. Finally, land policy and land institutions are critically significant to achieving equitable development and social stability – in many regions of the global south access and ownership of land is unavailable to women and ethnic minorities. With its diverse faculty and global institutional strengths, MSU has the capabilities to provide the research, teaching and liaison services that meet the needs of host country partners. Specifically we will assist the Property Rights and Land Policy team in conducting the following tasks: Assessments of country proposals to fund projects or activities in the theme area of Land Policy with regard to other activities to which land issues are a corollary need, e.g., agriculture, infrastructure, finance.Land is a finite, non-renewable resource. Therefore, its ownership and management impact directly on the productive capacity of a nation. Ownership structure has implications for productivity, resource exploitation, entrepreneurial spirit, and the ability of land owners to invest their capital. In particular, agriculture, mining and other natural resource activities are dependant upon the predictable ownership of land. The structure of ownership, the transparency of ownership, the ability to determine legal ownership (public records), the ability to jointly own land, and the stability of secure land title are all important to for the investment of capital in any utilization of natural resources. Without secure land ownership, effective capital and labor investments will not occur. MSU has the capacity to evaluate the relationship between specific land based industries (mining, forestry, tourism, agriculture, etc.) the legal ownership system and the factors that affect performance, productivity, and profitability, including land ownership and tenure patterns. Such analysis would be useful in educating government institutions on the need to embrace appropriate agricultural land reforms, provide access to nationalized estate lands or promulgate laws and procedures that govern equitable land ownership. Likewise, with its pool of experienced economists, development anthropologists, political scientists, legal scholars and urban planners, MSU has the right mix of disciplines and professions to work with partner countries on policy reforms, new legislation, and targeted projects to achieve economic and development targets. Here are some examples of MSU current research, project experience, and expertise: Evaluation of Land Policy and Gender EquityMSU WID faculty bring significant country expertise to the table, having conducted research and/or provided technical assistance on gender and land rights/policy issues in Eastern and Southern Africa, Latin America, and Europe and Eurasia regions. Rural and urban factors addressed include, among others, those related to: gender and property rights vs. actual titling practices; access to information and legal services related to land tenure; inheritance and divorce rights; and the interface among these factors and development programs focusing on sustainable natural resource management, agribusiness and infrastructure, enterprise development, municipal management/urban development, and microfinance. Assessment of the Botanical, Medicinal, and Natural Product Industries’ Capacity Consumers in western nations are increasingly demanding nutraceutical products, with implications for growing demand for botanical and medicinal products produced in developing countries. Indeed, the nutraceutical market is one of the factors growing markets in the United States and many of the western countries. As Americans and other western nation citizens are becoming more educated and possessing themselves with the knowledge of the relationship between diet and disease, the demand for preventative medicine has grown. Despite the opportunities in developed countries, the connection between such countries and developing countries, which typically have an abundant supply of natural products, remains weak. There is the potential to grow local developing country economies by developing the local capacity for natural product production and by connecting connective infrastructure to the international nutraceutical product pipelines. An assessment of local wild crafting capacity, production capacity, product clusters, availability of processing facilities, potential for improving shelf life, potential for primary processing, and international market connection opportunities is needed for many developing countries. A MSU faculty member (could add name) has recently completed such work Nigeria, Ghana, and Cote d’Ivoire. Identifying Business Incubation Locations Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have been identified as the engines of economic development in third world countries. Entrepreneurial ability, which has been central to the development of industrial and business capacity in the developed world, needs to be exploited in building the new economy in developing nations. Literature on the performance of SMEs suggests that in developing countries, they typically lack an enabling environment for the effective conduct of their activities and for adequate growth. Amongst the identified lacking infrastructure are: access to capital, access to technology, access to start up production facilities, assistance in making market connections, assistance in tapping into export markets, and connections to larger and higher level companies who could demand their services. The concept of business incubation is gaining ground in developing countries. Identification of optimal locations for business incubators, optimal SMEs that would be the focus of each specific incubator, optimal resource reliance structures is critical to the development of a successful incubator. MSU faculty have experience in establishing business incubators and in building and implementing the scope of services to make them functional. We propose a program to help partner countries identify their potential, develop a business plan for a network of incubators and provide technical assistance in the establishment of such incubators. Land Use and Land Cover Analysis Increasingly, developing countries are developing the capacity to generate imagery that adequate represent the use of land. The interpretation of such imagery into specific land use classes that are relevant in policy, decision making, and planning is a key area of strength at MSU. Various MSU units, including Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems, Computational Ecology and Visualization Laboratory, Institute of Water Research, Land Policy Institute, Center for Global Change and Earth Observations and Planning and Zoning Center are well positioned to assist scientists and professionals in developing countries in enhancing their land use and land cover analysis and capacity. There are about a dozen active research projects at MSU that utilized satellite imagery to derive critical land use and land cover information products that have been adapted by developing countries including Kazakhstan, Afghanistan, and Brazil, and China. The Center for Global Change and Earth Observations, for example, has developed and operationalized satellite observations to monitor rangeland productivity and assess grassland grazing capacity in arid and semi-arid regions in Central Asia. Through these research projects over the past two decades, handreds of thousands satellite images have been acquired and available to MSU faculty members for interpretation and utilization. These images and derived land use/cover information can be made available to developing countries for improved management practices. National Security Implications of Land Use and Land Tenure A typical developing country has highly populated cities, with large sections of the country being rural or undeveloped in nature. Agriculture tends to be the domain of rural areas, many of which are at significant distance from cities. The absence of well developed storage facilities and warehousing capacity, especially for perishables and other foods, increases the likelihood that disruptions in the food distribution system could create significant urban hardships with the results that civil unrest might or could ensue. Many developing countries have not conducted an assessment of their food distribution networks to determine their vulnerability to terrorism and other possible disruptive activity. MSU faculty could assist partner countries in conducting necessary risk analysis to determine national vulnerability to distribution interruptions. Location of Gamma Irradiation Facilities Due to poor product quality, excessive field heat, product deterioration, spoilage and blemishes, that arise from poor harvesting and handling technology, the level of product loss is high in many developing countries. To maximize international exports, developing nations need to improve their material handling and processing capacity. Gamma irradiation technology is a framework that improves exportability and shelf life of raw agriculture products. The strategic deployment of such technology at critical locations would better connect the world market to local production capacity of many countries. 2. Engage in discourse with partner country ministries, NGO, donor organizations or private individuals regarding project activities which are related to land use issues MSU faculty have extensive field experience and are accustomed to working across cultures with a variety of governmental and non-governmental organizations. Specifically, networking and participatory planning efforts by MSU faculty with gender expertise have included those with USAID, UN agencies, bilateral donors (e.g. CIDA, GTZ, SIDA), national level ministries, technical services providers, universities, national and international NGOs and other organizations and individuals representing gender concerns and other marginalized groups (e.g. women’s advocacy groups, small producer organizations, urban neighborhood associations, etc.). 3. Research current and past country and technical material on land tenure/land useExamples of relevant MSU experience include: MSU WID Program faculty have already carried out original research and/or conducted background research using primary and secondary data and technical materials on gender and land use/policy concerns in Moldova, the Europe and Eurasia region, Kenya, Malawi and elsewhere. For example, in Malawi researchers have been examining how the new land, water and irrigation policies and laws are likely to affect women’s rights to land in matrilineal and patrilineal areas. Work on the harmonization of new natural resource and land policies and laws has also been undertaken. Faculty from the Center for Global Change and Earth Observations have been conducting land use and land cover analysis across different temporal and spatial scales to provide critical information on land degradation, productivity, carbon stocks, rate of urban sprawl, deforestation, and agricultural intensification. More importantly, these geospatial information of land use has been effectively integrated into decision support systems to assistant land managers to make sound decision that balance the economic merit and environmental degradation. For example, a prototype of rangeland information system (RANGES) derived from remotely sensed satellite imagery has been developed and utilized in many developing countries. This information system and the land use information products have been used to examine the war impacts on rangeland productivity in Afghanistan, to quantify shrub reduction and its linkage to regional climate change in Kenya, to assess grassland degradation due to policy changes over the past twenty years in Kazakhstan, to monitor/assess the effectiveness of national effort on reforestation and afforestation projects in China, and monitor deforestation and selective logging activities in Southeast Asia, Brazil, and Ecuador. These land use information products are being used by commercial companies such as Applied Geosolutions, LLC, to assess environmental consequences of land use change (emission of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases) in various part of the globe. Faculty from MSU’s College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the School of Planning, Design and Construction have conducted research and/or provided technical assistance related to urban and rural land development, land use regulation, economic development, land use planning, and municipal financial management in many locations across the globe. Specific faculty projects include: capacity building in local government management and planning in Romania, urban land use planning and informal settlement upgrading in the cities of sub-Saharan East Africa, provision of affordable housing in India, and new building technologies and sustainable cities, agro-ecological planning in East Africa, the Caribbean basin and Central America. Individual faculty members have collaborated with FAO’s land tenure service in project development initiatives such as in Slovenia, focusing on redistribution and retitling of nationalized land under the communist regimes. MSU faculty also collaborate with the Indonesian Land Management Agency on designing new agrarian reform initiatives. Faculty in the Department of Community Agriculture, Recreation, and Resource Studies have worked on project design and implementation initiatives with respect to a number of agrarian reform and land tenure / productivity issues. For example, over the past 23 years, we have engaged in transmigration issues in Indonesia. The focus includes research on land use, land tenure and productivity assessments. We also have faculty engaged in land tenure issues in the Caribbean basin (Dominican Republic, Haiti and Jamaica) and Central America (Honduras, Costa Rica and the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico). Our faculty have also developed and taught workshops related to agrarian reform and rural development under auspices of the UNDP in Beijing for planners of all Chinese provinces. MSU has additional expertise in Southeast and East Asia that relates political economy and state-society relations to problems of economic development. Political liberalization and democratization reforms affect the distribution of economic assets such as land, and in the role of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the formulation and implementation of development policies. The importance of political institutions and political processes in determining who benefits and who is harmed during the development of poor countries. The research focuses on the political economy of redistributive agrarian reform, the role of NGOs in shaping and implementing agricultural and environmental policy, sustainable agriculture and natural resource management, and the legal rights of indigenous populations. This research is intended not merely to document these issues, but to guide policymaking through applied policy analysis. A key area of research includes investigation into the relationship between land tenure and agricultural sector growth, optimizing international competitiveness based on industrial clustering, growth management and strategic connection of the land based industries. One study applies the Japanese One Village – One Product concept to the assessment of natural mining and agricultural resource endowment of a developing country. The identification of industrial clusters and the conduct of feasibility analysis on value added industrial processing activities could be implemented to reposition each cluster region given the regional endowment profile and the analysis of export potential. MSU’s Famine Early Warning System Interest Group (FEWS) is working on an initiative to complement the emphasis in existing FEWS networks with remotely sensed information and food price indicators to derive a more geographically sensitive and timely ability to alert authorities of impending food deficits. It offers analytical and methodological expertise to identify and monitor an integrated set of indicators of impending critical food shortage including: environmental (e.g. land cover, cloud cover, rainfall), economic (e.g. food prices, distress sales) and behavioral (e.g. reduced food intake, increased consumption of famine foods, children out of school, migration). The disciplinary interests of the faculty cover a wide range of topical issues related to FEWS as well as technical skills including remote sensing, GIS, logistics, climatology, field surveys, and training. Different information sources are examined in sequence to provide an increasing awareness of the food supply system. The environmental and socio-economic information can then be analyzed through an expert system designed to improve in-country early-warning capabilities which complement the logistical requirements of food delivery systems. 4. Development of background documents on land use issues for due diligenceProducts/deliverables resulting from faculty research and technical assistance to date include a variety of refereed publications and reports, professional presentations and meeting participation related to topics such as the following representative listing: 5. Presentations to key staff and partners to create a deeper understanding of land use issuesMSU faculty are committed to sharing knowledge and learning from our partners as we build upon our expertise in the arena of land policy and property rights. MSU faculty and partners will make themselves available to inform discussions, educate, and improve understanding of issues affecting land tenure rights. 6. Travel to and attendance at meetings, conferences, and workshops relating to country proposals or development programsMSU faculty and partners will engage with counterparts and be present at all meetings, conferences, and workshops where we’ve been asked to help build upon the development programs outlined by host-countries. 7. Travel to assigned countries for review, assessment and implementation oversightMSU faculty and partners are interested in traveling throughout the world to work with our host-country partners on evolving initiatives that will affect property rights and land policy as a component any project initiative. 8. Prepare short notices and other documents on land use issues to help guide partners including comparative experiences, best practices and synthesis of current trendsIssues of particular concern to host country partners in designing, implementing and evaluating present and future property rights and land policy initiatives include those to:
MSU WID faculty and staff offer expertise in each of these areas, with ability to provide a comparative perspective across regions, best practices and updates on current trends in gender and land use/policy research, activity design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation. Tasks related to gender and land use/policy concerns in which MSU faculty have notable expertise include those related to:
III. Key MSU Institutions and ServicesMSU has several established institutions that would share responsibility for responding to specific requests for technical assistance. In this section, we provide a brief overview of the work of a few of these entities. Land Policy Institute MSU’s Land Policy Institute (LPI) was created to bring together entities from across the university who had land use policy agendas and integrate their work to collectively address state, regional, national, and international land use problems, including sustaining natural resource based industries (http://www.landpolicy.msu.edu). The LPI provides infrastructure support to coordinate this program that involves faculty who are members of the Environmental Sciences and Policy Program. The LPI, a university-wide program, has put into motion an adaptive program development model aimed at building research and outreach capacity among land use faculty at MSU, its partner institutions and stakeholders across the state. An important component of this program model is to provide leadership in the area of land use policy and to support faculty by providing resources to form strong, multidisciplinary research teams. In addition to linkages from the LPI, the Planning and Zoning Center at assists with providing outreach experiences for students and to connect students with real-world experiences with policy and decision-making that utilize evaluation services valuation information. The Planning and Zoning Center provides expertise on things such as land use types and the inventory of land use and land cover, regulatory and non-regulatory tools to manage natural and cultural resources, agricultural, forest and water preservation techniques and policy, community planning at the local and regional levels, zoning and other regulatory tools. Accomplishments to Date: Through the Land Policy Institute, MSU has developed a coordinated strategy for bringing together scientists with land use expertise from across the University. MSU expertise ranges from fields such as land economics, urban planning, landscape architecture, land use planning, regional economic development, agricultural preservation and viability, brownfields redevelopment, zoning, geographic information systems, forestry, tourism, communications, community development, resource development and conservation, and various forms of outreach. Through the Michigan Higher Education Land Policy Consortium, the Land Policy Institute has established a relationship with Wayne State University and Grand Valley State University. Expertise databases exist that are used in building teams and developing partnerships for collaboration. MSU has well over 100 ongoing projects in land use, funded through an internal grant program that leverages foundation dollars. Through the People and Land Initiative, the research of the faculty is integrated into the community development activities of local communities. Through its network of Land Policy Educators, land use education is delivered across the State. Finally, the Citizen Planner Program, an outreach education program focused on planning commissioners, has provided training to over 3,000 local officials involved in land use. The MSU land policy institute is led by a nationally-recognized agricultural economist, Dr. Soji Adelaja. It has recently recruited an Associate Director to expand its international portfolio, Dr. Gerhardus Schultink. MSU Center for Global Change and Earth Observations The Center for Global Change and Earth Observations is a multi‑disciplinary support unit to environmental studies campus wide. The CGCEO provides state‑of‑the‑art remote sensing and GIS services, outreach instruction and technology transfer in the fields of remote sensing and GIS, and conducts research grant and contract work. The Center’s research has been strong on geospatial technologies, climate and land interactions, environmental and health relationships, land use and land cover change patterns and processes, ecosystems services and functions, and socioeconomic drivers and climate forcing of global change. As reflected in many research projects of faculty members in the CGCEO, the Center has been at the forefront of developing integrated approaches, a mix of quantitative and qualitative methodologies, to address complex environmental issues and will continue its leadership in such interdisciplinary research. The CGCEO’s research themes focus on the intersection among the land use/cover change, climate change, and social drivers, to produce new knowledge of the interactions of social and physical processes in the international context. The building blocks of the research themes are based on existing research activities in each of the disciplines: social, land, atmosphere, and GISc technology, while the backbone of the Center’s activities is focused on the intersections of these disciplines. The Center’s research themes concentrate on the quantification of the intrinsic linkages between and among interacting social, land, and environmental systems. Their research effort is truly international covering more than 20 countries of major continents, including Africa, Asia, South and North Americas, Central Asia and Eurasia. The Center’s resources are routinely applied to land use/cover change, climate change, and ecosystem degradation issues under study by faculty throughout the College of Social Sciences, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, and College of Natural Science. The Center’s goal is to understand the dynamics of global change and the role of human plays through the management of terrestrial lands. Institute of Water Research The Institute of Water Research (IWR) promotes and coordinates water research, education, and advisory services for the inland waters and Great Lakes of Michigan. In addition to support to academic units, the IWR serves as a focal point to which on- and off-campus units can turn for advice and assistance. Active research programs include aspects of socio-economic water planning, water conservation, groundwater education, water quality, agriculture, fisheries, advanced waste utilization and treatment, limnology, and other disciplines. IWR routinely hosts researchers from countries throughout the world. Office of Women and International Development (WID) The MSU Women and International Development Program (WID) is recognized nationally and internationally for its unique program in teaching, research, and service. Established in 1978, WID cooperates with a broad spectrum of departments and units across campus and links approximately 150 faculty and students interested in processes of global transformation and gender. WID encourages teaching and research on issues of third world women and works to ensure that technical assistance projects reach and involve women in the developing world. The program sponsors an ongoing speaker series, organizes informal study groups of faculty and students to explore selected topics, and hosts national and international scholars who pursue research, offer courses, and speak on women's issues worldwide. WID also maintains the only publication series nationally and internationally devoted solely to issues of women and development processes, and affiliated faculty serve as the editors of The Women and International Development Annual, published by Westview Press. Over the years, these efforts have been supported by numerous awards, including grants from USAID to support WID's efforts to assist the Agency in implementing its WID policy. Major examples of this work include the involvement of WID in planning and implementing the Agency's Bean/Cowpea CRSP and the engagement in a USAID Women and International Development indefinite quantity contract led by Management Systems International as our consortium’s lead. College of Agriculture and Natural Resources The MSU College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR) has a long history of involvement in international work, with over half of its 450 faculty having participated in more than 175 MSU projects related to agriculture, natural resources, institution building, and rural development. Major funding agencies for CANR international programs include the US Agency for International Development, Kellogg Foundation, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), USDA, World Bank, the FAO, Inter-American Development Bank, host-countries, and others. The primary mission of the CANR Office of International Programs is to support and coordinate international activities in the college. OIP staff support departments and faculty in developing new overseas study courses and encourage increased international subject matter into curricula. The OIP develops and coordinates short-term training activities for researchers, scientists, executives, and other professionals from around the world and provides overall direction for the CANR Institute of International Agriculture. A broad range of disciplines and expertise is available to draw upon. The college, consistently ranked among the top five agricultural colleges in the U.S., has 9 academic departments which are totally administered from within plus 3 that are joint with other colleges on campus. Key among the units are: Agricultural Economics Agricultural Engineering Animal Science Botany and Plant Pathology Community, Agriculture, Recreation and Resource Studies Crop and Soil Sciences Entomology Fisheries and Wildlife Food Science and Human Nutrition Forestry Horticulture PackagingCANR faculty work with researchers, scholars, and professionals, many of them MSU alumni, throughout the world. Formal Memoranda of Understanding have been undertaken with several of the CGIAR institutions, including ICRAF (Kenya), ICARDA (Syria), and ICRISAT (India); there is ongoing collaboration between CANR and CIAT (Colombia) researchers. CANR faculty have strong ties to other CGIAR institutions: ILRI (Kenya/Ethiopia), IRRI (Philippines), IITA (Nigeria), and particularly CIP (Peru), and ISNAR (the Netherlands). Many CANR international linkages, however, are researcher‑to‑researcher in national agricultural research institutions. CANR faculty members work collaboratively with colleagues, many of them alumni, in such sub-Saharan African countries as Botswana, Ethiopia, Ghana, Uganda, Ivory Coast, Lesotho, Malawi, Kenya, Mozambique, Mali, Senegal, and South Africa. In addition to the departments previously identified, CANR is home to a number of centers and institutes, resources which can be drawn upon to provide technical assistance. Institute of International Agriculture The Institute of International Agriculture (IIA) is the primary coordinating entity for promoting, facilitating, and supporting international research opportunities within the CANR. The Institute has a long-standing record of excellence with USAID and other development agencies. For example, IIA currently manages the Partnership for Food Industry Development and the USAID-funded Bean/Cowpea Collaborative Research Support Program. Institute faculty and staff manage other projects such as the BASIS CRSP and RAISE PLUS along with several activities funded by USDA. Department of Agricultural Economics The MSU Department of Agricultural Economics is internationally renowned for its applied research in African agricultural and food security policy. For over 25 years MSU faculty have been engaged in market and household level research aimed at informing problems as diverse as food security, poverty reduction, agricultural productivity, market inefficiencies, household livelihood strategies, and food aid targeting. Working closely with African colleagues and building research and analysis capacity have been the hallmark of this applied work. Food security research and technical assistance has been provided throughout Africa, notably in, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Rwanda Senegal, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Uganda. MSU’s Agricultural Economics faculty are also internationally recognized for their groundbreaking work in the development of Market Information Systems in such countries Ethiopia, Mali, and Mozambique. In Rwanda, MSU has been noted for having built one of the most comprehensive agricultural data bases in all of Africa. Department of Animal Science Nearly half of the 50 faculty members in the Department of Animal Science have international experience. Several conduct ongoing collaborative research with overseas institutions and research organizations in Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Africa. In the 1990s, major issues facing the faculty are quality and safety of animal products, improvement of biological and management efficiency, sustainable agricultural systems, and environmental concerns. The emerging field of biotechnology has provided new approaches for addressing these challenges. A major initiative was funded in the mid-1990s to revitalize animal agriculture, which resulted in the construction of state-of-the-art facilities and labs and hiring additional faculty members, research technicians, and extension agents. More recently, a campus‑wide Animal Genome program has been established with significant activity in the Department of Animal Science. The department has taken leadership for developing both degree and non-degree courses in animal waste management. Department of Community, Agriculture, Recreation and Resource Studies This Department assists with the development of sustainable communities by conducting excellent scholarly research, teaching and outreach in (1) leadership, education, and communication, (2) community, food, and agriculture, (3) natural resources, land use, and the environment, and (4) recreation and tourism. As scholar-practitioners, and as a multidisciplinary department, it addresses critical issues at the interfaces of agriculture, natural resources, recreation, and communities. The public scholarship of research, teaching, and outreach helps people in their roles as residents, landowners, businesses, and governmental and non-profit institutions to make informed decisions while not compromising future generations. The focus of the Department is to help people understand the dynamic interactions in their communities, ecosystems, and the world, as well as opportunities for sustainable revitalization. This work is rooted a just, engaged, and dynamic society. Department of Crop and Soil Science The Department of Crop and Soil Sciences has more than 40 faculty members, many of whom work collaboratively with researchers throughout the world. Scientists have extensive crop and soil simulation modeling expertise, and two endowed chairs (C. S. Mott Chair for Sustainable Agriculture and the Homer Nowlin Chair for Water Quality) regularly collaborate with international agricultural research centers. State-of-the-art facilities include over 80,000 square feet of laboratory space. Recent developments in the field of remote sensing aid crop and soil scientists in studying the various plant/soil conditions through the use of high altitude, infrared photographic imagery. Researchers are studying ways of genetically redesigning crops for higher yield, better quality, and resistance to diseases and drought. Department of Forestry The Department of Forestry has 24 faculty members, many with experience in Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Africa. Faculty members have diverse backgrounds covering all facets of forestry, from genetics and ecology to social sciences and wood products. They have expertise in many areas of forest conservation planning and policy with a strong emphasis on sustainable forest management, including ecological, economic and social dimensions. Past and ongoing research includes ecological analysis of managed natural and plantation forests and unmanaged forests, using remotely-sensed data and field data. Social science faculty members are involved in public participation research and application and in spatial and temporal modeling of forest systems, including production and protection forests. Environmental Science and Policy Program A hallmark of environmental work at MSU is unprecedented integration across fields - agriculture; natural and social sciences; communications; engineering; human, osteopathic and veterinary medicine; humanities; and law. The common goal is to advance fundamental science and to solve practical problems. Faculty networks coalesce to form teams around new scientific opportunities and new challenges to society, with centers and institutes facilitating these interdisciplinary efforts. MSU's ESPP signature program areas highlight these networks and our areas of excellence:
Institute of Consumer Responsive Agriculture Research activities of MSU’s Institute of Consumer-Responsive Agriculture focuses on strategic management of agribusinesses, including studies on globalization strategies, supply chain management, social capital, cooperative finance, scenario analysis, and strategic planning methods and practices. The Institute works extensively with agribusiness and food firms in the area of strategic management, agri-food supply chain relationships, product-oriented agricultural marketing, and cooperative strategic and financial management. Outreach and Extension (Technology Transfer) MSU Extension (MSUE), the educational outreach component of the land grant mission of the university, has offices in each of Michigan’s 83 counties, with more than 300 locally-based staff who help citizens access and utilize the knowledge resources at MSU. Campus-based faculty share expertise derived from research and other scholarly activities to support the county extension programs. As a land grant university, MSU has a deep commitment to community work, through faculty outreach and through the services of MSU-Extension. In relation to human capacity building and the transfer of technical knowledge, several innovative approaches are used to design short-term human resource development programs. They include individual training programs, short courses, workshops, internships, observational tours, and seminars, conducted both in the US and in host country settings, targeting either local, regional, and global communities. Numerous departments and units work hand-in-hand, and in many cases collaborate with other public and private institutions in the US and worldwide, to design and implement these programs. MSU has outreach and extension professionals who routinely develop and/or conduct training programs on a global scale. Individual Training Programs To upgrade research, policy, management, networking, and business skills, MSU routinely organizes individual short-term training programs for international professionals. Short-term individual training programs range from a few days to six months and are conducted both on campus and throughout the state or US. Off-campus meetings with local business owners, government officials, and various industry representatives, field demonstrations, and observational tours are routinely organized through county extension offices. MSU’s approach of “train the trainers” is used extensively; many participants, upon return to their home countries, have been able to share their knowledge with their colleagues. Short-Courses One- and two-week short courses have been organized in several areas of land use research and development. Some are organized in groups to provide hands-on experience in target areas. Participants from around the world attend these courses. For example, the Land Policy Institute, in cooperation with three colleges (Agriculture and Natural Resources, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences) draws upon its faculty and community partners to conduct these programs. Internships Internship programs are designed in such a way that placements are made in the private sector, governmental agencies, or research/outreach programs through MSU, and opportunities are provided for interns to interact with MSU faculty and students. Again, this provides hands-on experience in target areas of specialization. Study Tours Study tours have been an important element of the international and domestic outreach efforts. Executives, educators, county extension staff, local governmental representatives, and other professionals have participated in two-week study tours in such countries as China, Chile, Brazil, Guatemala, Belize, Mexico, Poland, and Ireland. The study tours present land systems of the host country in the context of the local culture, and daily discussions forge deeper understandings of the host country’s history and society, and their place in today’s global economy. College of Social Sciences The College of Social Science at Michigan State University (MSU) is a community of scholars committed to creating, disseminating, and applying knowledge in the social, behavioral and economic sciences. Faculty engage in both disciplinary and interdisciplinary collaborative research to gain in-depth answers to real world problems on local, national, and international levels. The college is the largest and among the most diverse at MSU; more than 6,300 undergraduate and graduate students are enrolled in its 13 major disciplines. Nearly 400 tenured and tenure-stream faculty provide instructional, research, and outreach services within its eight departments, four schools, and nine centers and institutes. Anthropology Economics Family and Child Ecology Geography History Political Science Psychology Sociology School of Criminal Justice School of Labor & Industrial Relations School of Planning, Design and Construction (Urban & Regional Planning) School of Social Work Center for Advanced Study of International Development Center for Global Change & Earth Observations Center for Integrative Studies Chicano –Latino Studies Program Environmental Science and Policy Program Global and Urban Studies Institute for Public Policy & Social Research Julian Samora Research Institute MATRIX: The Center for Humane Arts, Letters, and Social Sciences Online College of Law The Detroit College of Law affiliated with Michigan State University in 1995. Now as the MSU College of Law, it is possible for law students to pursue both a law degree and another advanced degree at the same time. Students can earn both a law degree and a master’s degree in just four years. Currently, there are 12 dual-degree programs with MSU with several more planned. The association between the two schools has led to a comprehensive interdisciplinary legal education program at the law college. Today, the college remains one of only two private law schools to be affiliated with a research university. Related International Institutes/Center/ProgramsSeveral MSU international groups and regularly scheduled development-oriented activities illustrate MSU's comparative strength in institution building and development. They provide an important and broad-based means for MSU project managers and personnel to draw upon the breadth and depth of MSU's worldwide experiences in agricultural research and development. They also offer an extracurricular, yet institutionalized, means which builds the participation of international and domestic students directly into the international work of the university. These groups and activities include:
Contract and Grant Administration he Office of Contract and Grant Administration (CGA) holds fiscal audit authority and responsibility for the MSU contractual portfolio with both domestic and international external donors. In fiscal 2006-2007 awards for sponsored projects reached $308 million. To ensure that MSU is aware of, and can comply with the various agency regulations, CGA is organized by funding agency. CGA has a separate group dedicated to administration of international projects. Steinzor, Nadia (2003) Women’s Property and Inheritance Rights: Improving Lives in Changing times – Final Synthesis and Conference Proceedings Paper. Bethesda, MD: WIDTECH. |
