Annual IFRI training program

A 9 – 10 week training program in IFRI concepts and methods is held in the fall of each year at one of the two CRCs in the USA, alternating yearly between Indiana University in Bloomington and the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. The training program consists of three components: seminar sessions introduce participants to IFRI’s theoretical foundations, a larger body of work on local resource governance issues, the IFRI instruments and methods used in data collection, principles of research design, basic data analysis, and report-writing. Fieldwork in a forest community provides hands-on training in field methods. Finally, the computer laboratory component covers data entry and database management.

Members of existing CRCs and graduate students at the two universities have priority in enrollment, although other interested individuals are welcome when places are available. The course has been held at the University of Michigan (contact Arun Agrawal) and at Indiana University. Sample syllabi  for Michigan and  Indiana.

International IFRI training program

Training programs in IFRI research methods are held on an adhoc basis around the world as demand requires. Recent training sessions in Thailand (2010) and Uganda (2012) have been facilitated by IFRI staff from the University of Michigan and Indiana University, respectively. IFRI training programs are invaluable for new CRCs that are joining the IFRI network, for current CRCs who wish to refresh their staff or train new staff, and for organizations interested in obtaining research skills in collecting socio-ecological data using well-respected methods.