The department of Regional and Resource Planning was formerly known as “Teaching and research office for geography” in the "Department of Earth Sciences". In 1986, normal undergraduates of geography major was admitted within Yunnan Province, which has been the origin of the Geographical discipline in Yunnan University. In 1992, the major of Economic geography and urban-rural regional planning open to the whole country was added and the normal major of geography was ceased in the following year. In 2002, Yunnan Institute of Geography was merged in and combined together with the original department of Earth Sciences to form the School of Resource Environment and Earth Science, in which the department of Resources Environment and Urban-Rural Planning Management and the department of Geographical System were merged into the department of Regional and Resource Planning. In 2005, the major of Geographical Information System was independent to become the department of Geographical Information Science. The undergraduate major in this department changed twice, going through Geographical Normal major, Economic Geography and Regional Planning of Urban-rural Areas, and Resource Environment and Urban-rural Planning Management. According to the adjustment of the professional directory from the Ministry of Education in 2013, the undergraduate majors of “Physical Geography and Resources Environment” and “Human Geography and Urban-rural Planning” were added to admit undergraduates. At present, there 3 postgraduate majors, namely Physical Geography and Human Geography belonging to the first-level discipline of Geography, and Land Resource Management belonging to the first-level discipline of Management. Teaching Staff: There are currently 23 faculty members, including 4 professors (researchers), 14 associate professors (associate researchers), and 5 lecturers (assistant researchers). 14 of them have doctoral degrees while 7 of them have masters’ degrees. Disciplinary Characteristics: The Department has a good cooperative relationship with domestic and foreign educational and researching institutions and obvious advantages in the domestic theory and application of regional development management. The research work in the field of Karst environmental processes, Risk management of mountain hazards in plateau, Land resources development and land ecological security pattern, Water resources utilization, Land space planning and regional development, and Industrial layout and development, etc were carried out widely and had abundant results. Currently, the department establishes the Karst International Joint Research Center with the Karst Institute of Slovenia and has been involved in a series of scientific expeditions in western China. Research Overview: In recent 5 years, the faculty members of this department undertook 18 projects of Natural Science Foundation of China and Social Science Funds, the total funding of which reached up to 10 million yuan. Annually, the department had fruitful awards for scientific and technological achievements, published more than 30 academic papers and submitted more than 5 investigation reports. Undergraduate Cultivation: The cultivation of undergraduates in the major of Physical Geography and Resource Environment and Human Geography and Urban-rural Planning emphasize the solid foundations for physics and mathematics, the application of 3S technology, the characteristic professional directions, and the innovative practical ability. The very basis for the major of Physical Geography and Resource Environment are features and changes of earth’s surface, natural resource management, and environmental protection. The teaching and practice work are carried out in two characteristic professional directions of Resource Utilization and Digital Management and Environmental Quality Evaluation. As for the major of Human Geography and Urban-rural Planning, the basis are macro-view and medium-view regional planning and land use planning and management. The teaching and practice work are carried out in two characteristic professional directions of Urban-rural Planning, and Land Resources and Planning. Major Subjects: (1)Discipline basic courses: a. The major of Physical Geography and Natural Resources: Advanced mathematics, General chemistry, Cartography, Geology and Geomorphology, Weather, climate and hydrology, Plant-soil geography. b. The major of Human Geography and Urban-rural Planning: Advanced mathematics, Physical geography, Human geography, Economic geography, Methods of social survey research, etc. (2)Professional Core Courses: a. The major of Physical Geography and Natural Resources: Introduction to environmental science, Fundamentals of ecology, Human Geography, Introduction to remote sensing, Principle of geographical information system, Environmental Planning, Introduction to resource science, Geographical research methods. b. The major of Human Geography and Urban-rural Planning: Introduction to remote sensing, Principle of geographical information system, Transportation layout and planning, Regional analysis and planning, Land use planning, Principles of urban-rural planning, etc. (3)Professional Elective Courses: a. The major of Physical Geography and Natural Resources: Land resources science, Spatial analysis and modeling of GIS, Land use planning, Water resources utilization and protection, Resource environment remote sensing, Environmental monitoring, Environmental impact assessment, Environmental impact assessment of groundwater, Air pollution meteorology, Karst environmental science, etc. b. The major of Human Geography and Urban-rural Planning: Land management science, Land management information system, Land assessment, Land degradation and remediation, Land consolidation and reclamation planning, Land resources science, Resources and environmental economics, Remote sensing digital image processing, Fundamentals of surveying, Geo-science English, etc. Main practical teaching parts: (1)The major of Physical Geography and Natural Resources: Experimental courses and practical field practice are included. The former one consists of the experimental courses for professional core courses and professional elective courses. The latter one is made up of the second-year comprehensive practice for physical geography in Yuanjiang and Xinping, the second-year comprehensive practice for human geography in Xinping, the third-year comprehensive practice of 3S technology in Chengjiang, and the fourth-year graduate thesis training, etc. (2)The major of Human Geography and Urban-rural Planning: Experimental courses and practical field practice are included. The former one consists of the experimental courses for professional core courses and professional elective courses. The latter one is made up of the second-year comprehensive practice for physical geography in Yuanjiang and Xinping, the second-year comprehensive practice for human geography in Xinping, the third-year comprehensive practice for planning and design in Ruili and Mangshi, and the fourth-year graduate thesis training, etc. Situations of postgraduate entrance exams and employment: The rate of passing the postgraduate entrance exams among previous students is more than 30%. Students succeeded in matriculation to Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Lanzhou Cold-Arid Region Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Peking University, Zhejiang University, University of Science and Technology of China, Nanjing University, Wuhan University, Sun Yat-sen University, Beijing Normal University, East China Normal University, Nanjing Normal University and Yunnan University, etc. Previous graduates were employed in those provincial land, housing construction, environmental protection, forestry, traffic, agricultural and development and reform departments, all kinds of resource management institutions and relevant research institutions, universities and public institutions to work on researching, teaching, planning and management, etc, which were widely praised. Laboratory Construction: This department has already built the International Karst Water Laboratory, Soil Science Laboratory and Sample preparation chamber, etc. The Regional and Land Use Planning Laboratory is under construction now. With the continuous support from central finance and provincial-ministerial projects, basic teaching, the bidding and purchasing of laboratory facilities and scientific research equipment have progressed smoothly while teaching, experimentation and research conditions have improved rapidly since 2010. Practice Base Construction: The department signed the agreement on field teaching practice base with public institutions and governmental departments like government of Xinping county, Yunnan province, Bureau of Hydrology and Water Resources of Yuxi, Meteorological Bureau of Yuanjiang county, Housing and Construction Bureau of Ruili, and Housing and Construction Bureau of Mangshi, etc, which provided students with enough space to enhance their professional practical abilities. |
