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Online Training Program

Access to international training from anywhere in the world.

Do you want to connect with world-renowned scholars and professionals working on tropical forest restoration?
ELTI offers a suite of online training options including our online certificate program, online short courses, blended courses (with online and field components), and a self-paced Coursera course.

Enroll in our online training activities to:

  • Access the materials and experience of ELTI and Yale University: ELTI specializes in developing and delivering high-quality training experiences for environmental leaders in the tropics. These materials employ a variety of teaching tools, including interactive presentations, pre-recorded video lectures, and diverse readings.
  • Connect with a diverse community of participants and experts: ELTI online courses have a strong emphasis on providing participants with diverse international perspectives, presented through case studies and on-the-ground examples. During and after the course, participants become part of a community of learners and benefit from the diverse experiences of environmental practitioners worldwide.
  • Develop practical skills and receive personalized attention: ELTI online courses provide the opportunity to exchange ideas with invited experts in the live sessions, receive personalized feedback, and adapt homework assignments to the individual needs and interests of the participants. The homework assignments during the course are designed to help participants develop practical skillsets that they can apply to their work and local context.

Is this program for you or your organization?

The audience for the ELTI online courses is broad, including practitioners and other environmental decision-makers involved in natural resource management or restoration in the tropics. Participants work in a variety of sectors including local and national governments, non-governmental organizations, private companies, community associations or cooperatives, academia, and public-private partnerships. This diverse audience not only enhances ELTI’s scope and reach but also enriches courses with diverse perspectives.

Individual applicants: Check out our upcoming events and sign up for our newsletter to be to be notified when we open enrollment for upcoming course offerings.

Organizations: ELTI offers organizational discounts for online events and custom training opportunities for organizations and institutions. Through organizational partnerships, ELTI has delivered online and blended (online and field) courses to the staff and affiliates of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, International Union for Conservation of Nature, World Wildlife Fund for Nature, UN Environment Programme, the World Bank, and other institutions. Reach out to us by email to design a course specifically for your audience.

Online training curriculum and course offerings

ELTI uses online education strategies and resources as a tool to build the capacity of decision-makers working in the tropics to conserve and restore tropical forests. The curriculum focuses on social and ecological considerations for planning, implementing and monitoring diverse land management interventions. We emphasize the importance of integrating conservation and restoration into the broader cultural, social, and economic context within tropical landscapes.

Rather than be prescriptive, the courses aim to present a broad range different management approaches, including: a) restoration techniques ranging from more passive (natural and assisted natural regeneration) to more active (tree planting) methods; 2) approaches on a continuum between secondary forest restoration to integrating trees into productive systems (agroforestry and silvopastoral systems); and 3) planning at different scales ranging from farm or site-level interventions to methodologies for Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR). Our courses also have a strong focus on participatory approaches to stakeholder engagement, capacity building, and managing landscapes for diverse goals.

Online certificate program (10 months)

Tropical Forest Landscapes: Conservation, Restoration and Sustainable Use 

This yearlong online certificate program builds upon the expertise of YSE faculty and ELTI’s extensive training experience and network throughout the tropics. You will gain knowledge, practice skills and apply concepts to your work and context.

This 10-month non-degree program consists of the following courses:

  • Fundamentals: Ecological and social concepts: The Fundamentals course presents an overview of ecological and social foundations for planning effective conservation and restoration projects. Participants learn about (a) relationships between people and natural resources in the tropics, (b) ecological processes that affect tropical landscape management, (c) disciplinary approaches to tropical land management, and (d) planning sustainable and resilient interventions.
  • People: Human dimensions and engagement: The People course challenges participants to analyze socio-cultural and political factors that drive the actions of stakeholders in forest landscapes. Participants explore (a) who is making decisions and why, (b) how different systems of ownership and knowledge can support sustainable practices, and (c) how power, gender, and social status affect the management of and access to resources.
  • Strategies: Land use planning and implementation: The Strategies course exposes participants to approaches to conserve, restore, and sustainably use forest landscapes using interventions that align with local conditions. Participants learn how to select, plan, and monitor activities for multiple goals, including (a) timber and non-timber forest products, (b) sustainable agricultural production, (c) ecosystem services and (d) mitigating and adapting to climate change.
  • Funding: Financial concepts and tools: The Funding course equips participants to evaluate opportunities and tradeoffs across potential funding sources for conservation and restoration. Building from efforts in prior courses, participants will learn about a) basic financial concepts and project planning, b) major types of funding sources and what funders are looking for, and c) the types of funding that are likely to be a good match for their initiative.
  • Capstone: Designing a conservation or restoration project: The Capstone project course presents a suite of project tools and concepts to apply to real-world projects. Participants will learn underlying principles of project planning, practice techniques, and apply concepts to the case study that they select. Participants complete the course with experience in designing, planning, and monitoring projects.

Participants of the online certificate program can enroll in an optional one-week field course that immerses them in a tropical forest landscape with multiple and oftentimes competing land use practices. The Field course challenges participants to think critically about what it takes to turn a project plan into action. Participants: (a) visit conservation and restoration projects, (b) meet people who are making a difference in the field, (c) practice skills, and (d) enhance their teamwork abilities.

See more details on the online certificate program website (https://environment.yale.edu/certificates/tropical) and sign up for our mailing list to receive important program updates. 

Online short courses (5 to 7 weeks)

Advance your knowledge through a series of presentations, discussions, readings, and case studies. Exchange experiences and expertise with ELTI facilitators and other guest speakers in weekly live sessions. These courses typically range from 5 to 7 weeks long.

The online short courses typically range from 5 to 6 weeks, involving a time commitment of 4-5 hours per week. Some courses have an additional intensive model by which participants engage in weekly exercises to develop a preliminary management plan and receive feedback from peers and instructors. These intensive short courses range from 6 to 7 weeks and involve a time commitment of 6-10 hours per week.

Tropical forest restoration and agroforestry (5 weeks; English, Spanish): Explore basic concepts of forest restoration and agroforestry with inspiring examples of restoration in practice from around the world. Learn how to plan, implement, and manage restoration and agroforestry systems as part of a broader effort to restore tropical forest landscapes. Check out an example from our 2021 course report.

Forest landscape restoration in the tropics (7 weeks; English, French, Spanish, Portuguese): Discover concepts and techniques needed to develop and implement strategies for Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) in tropical regions. Learn how FLR opportunities can be identified, analyzed and prioritized, using the Restoration Opportunities Assessment Methodology (ROAM), as well as discuss strategies to unlock finance and scale up FLR. Check out an example from our 2021 course report.

Tropical forest restoration in human-dominated landscapes (6 weeks; English, Spanish, Portuguese; Indonesian): Discover the basic principles of forest ecology, natural and human disturbances that impact tropical forests, the socio-political and cultural contexts that influence restoration initiatives, and the potential to regenerate ecosystem services on a site. Check out an example from our 2017 course report.

Working with communities for forest management and restoration (6 weeks; English): Explore principles and case studies on community and stakeholder engagement to inform practice and to provide guidance on how to apply this knowledge to the implementation of their own projects. Check out an example from our 2017 course report.

Sustainable agricultural landscapes (6 weeks; Spanish): Explore the synergies between conservation, restoration and sustainable production in agricultural landscapes. The course provides global examples by which production systems can strengthen local livelihoods and cultures while also adhering to the principles of agroforestry and agroecology. Check out an example from our 2018 course report.

For more information, and to be notified when these courses are offered, please fill out the Online Training Program Interest Form.

New courses under development

Coming soon! Carbon storage and carbon projects for the buyers of carbon credits (English): Build interdisciplinary knowledge, strengthen technical expertise, improve confidence and leadership skills, and enhance peer-to-peer networks of diverse stakeholders working to identify and invest in successful carbon initiatives.

Coming soon! Mangrove restoration and blue carbon (English): Learn about the field of mangrove ecology, the emerging momentum around blue carbon, and the unique challenges and strategies that come with the restoration of coastal and aquatic ecosystems.

For more information, and to be notified when these courses become available, sign up for our newsletter.

Blended (online and field) courses

The Online Training Program offers opportunities for blended courses which combine in-person components (in-country workshops, field visits, group exercises) and virtual components (online content, live discussion, and practical assignments).

Example of past blended courses include:

If you’re interested in exploring this blended approach, contact us via email.

Self-paced Coursera course

ELTI's self-paced Coursera course, Tropical Forest Landscapes 101, explores the technical, social, and funding aspects of managing tropical forest landscapes. The materials in this course offer a selection of key content from ELTI's yearlong online certificate program. Participants can enroll in this self-paced course for free at any time of year and pay a small fee to access a certificate of completion (waivers available).

 

ELTI participants during a field course in the Azuero Peninsula, Panama
Eva Garen