Delivered by UWE Bristol and Bristol Zoological Society staff, this online course offers a rich learning experience.

This 30 credit module, Conservation Impact, will cover the theoretical and practical elements necessary to avoid these issues, including scoping knowledge gaps and determining appropriate methodology to assess impact depending on both internal and external factors, such as organisation's budget and capacity, or logistics.

The module will include teaching from conservation practitioners. Content will also be supported by case studies, emphasizing the need to use evidence-based approaches to achieve success in conservation projects.

Careers / Further study

This module can contribute towards the MSc Conservation Leadership and Professional Development Awards. If you have any queries, please contact the Professional Development team using the enquiry form below.

Content

The module syllabus typically includes the following topics:

History of conservation, lessons learned from past projects (failures and successes)

Project design, strategic planning, vision and mission

• Conservation project design
• Project plan
• Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
• Logframe design
• Capacity
• Project constraints and opportunities
• Method selection (complexity vs pragmatism in achieving goals in a challenging environment)

Working with local communities

• Ethical considerations when working with people
• Integrating local communities in conservation project

Situation analysis and Theory of change

• Threats
• Contributing factors
• Drivers of change

Defining the impact

• Processes
• Threats, contributing factors and behaviour results

Measuring conservation impact

• Objectives, tolerance, indicators
• Methods (e.g. population estimate, density, presence/absence, occupancy modelling)

Adaptations of project to risks

• Identifying and evaluating risks to project success
• Priority setting and re-evaluations

Learning and Teaching

This course is delivered 100% online. Creating a flexible learning environment to suit your needs.

This level 7 (Masters level) module will include teaching from conservation practitioners. Content will also be supported by case studies, emphasising the need to use evidence-based approaches to achieve success in conservation projects.

This module will be delivered through a combination of recorded lectures and asynchronous activities, including contributions to forums, wikis and guided reading.

You will also be offered live, interactive tutorial classes and facilitated group work.

Teaching will include case studies and scenario-based teaching. Teaching will be practice-led, using case studies and UWE Bristol and/or Bristol Zoological Society projects as examples.

You will have access to learning materials a few days prior to the first live online session.

Assessment

Assessment for this module comprises a written assignment (1,500 words) involving a grant proposal to assess your learning of conservation project design and impact assessment.

You will have opportunities to receive formative feedback, both in the form of peer critical analysis of elements of the draft submission and from your teaching team.