A group of 15 undergraduate students from the Institute of Earth Systems, accompanied by members of staff, spent a week in Tenerife on an intensive field trip focused on the study of spatial planning and governance in island environments. The students are currently in the final year of the Institute’s B.Sc. (Hons) in Earth Systems, and this activity, which took place between 18 and 25 March, is one of several fieldwork exercises undertaken both locally and abroad during the three-year degree programme.
Tenerife is the largest and most populated of the seven Canary Islands, a group of volcanic islands situated in the Atlantic Ocean, off the northwest coast of Africa. During the trip, the students visited different types of protected areas across the island, including the Parque Rural de Anaga/Macizo de Anaga Biosphere Reserve, the island of La Gomera (another Biosphere Reserve) and the Teide National Park (World Heritage Site and Starlight Destination), as well as Natura 2000 sites and other areas that are protected under national law. Other activities included a snorkelling session at Abades Beach and a whale watching trip along northern coast of Tenerife. The students were accompanied by Institute staff and local specialists on all field trips, and also engaged with local students and faculty from the Universidad Europea de Canarias in La Orotava during a half day seminar.
Organised as part of a third-year study unit titled “Spatial Planning and Governance”, this field trip enabled the students to explore the topic of land use planning and its critical analysis, the evaluation of protected area governance and management, and the issue of light pollution as a planning/conservation concern, allowing them to compare planning initiatives and strategies in Tenerife with those implemented in Malta. Over the coming weeks, the students will be preparing a portfolio of video and oral presentations based on the analysis of their observations in the field, as well as working on a number of written assignments.
The Institute will shortly be organising an exhibition of student photos taken during the trip.
