Main Page  >  Departments  >  Department of Physical Geography of the World... Department of World Physical Geography and Geoecology

Prof. E.P.Romanova

The Department was founded in 1938 by professors B.F.Dobrynin and A.S.Barkov as the Department of Regional Physical Geography. After World War II it was renamed as the Department of Physical Geography of Foreign Countries. In 1989, the new name appeared: the Department of World Physical Geography and Geoecology.

The department was headed by Professor B.F.Dobrynin (1938-1941), Academician of the Academy of Pedagogical Sciences A.S.Barkov (1941-1950), K.I.Lukashev (1951-1953), Academician I.P.Gerasimov (1953-1954), Professor A.M.Riabchikov (1954-1990), Professor P.D.Gunin (1993-1994), Professor G.N.Golubev (1991-1993, 1994-2008).
Since 2008, Professor E.P.Romanova is the Head of the Department.

The Department present original scientific school of physical geography at global and continental levels. A number of theoretical concepts developed at the Department became fundamental, among them belt-zonal differentiation of land, methods of classification and small-scale mapping of natural landscapes, assessment of natural resources potential of continents, concept of present-day landscapes, etc. During last two decades the investigations included geoecological issues, among them global transformation of natural environment and geoecological assessment of land at regional and local levels. The Department leads the development of principles of geoecological mapping of landscapes.

Teaching and research staff
Full Professors: E.P.Romanova (global and regional geoecological issues, Western Europe), T.M.Krasovskaja (investigation of polar regions, economics of nature management, cultural landscapes).
Associate Professors: N.N. Alexeyeva (Asia except Russia, historical and cultural aspects of geoecology), N.N.Kalutskova (recreation resources, protected natural areas, ecological tourism), O.A.Klimanova (Africa, geoecological regional studies, school geography), N.M.Dronin (geoecopolicy, climate changes and food security).
Leading Researchers: I.E.Timashev (geoecology and landscape management), V.P.Burov (remote sensing in landscape studies), E.Y.Kolbovsky (landscape planning, green structure of cities, digital tecnologies for geoecology).
Senior Researchers: T.I.Kondratieva (North America, natural resources management and geoecological aspects of sustainable development), G.S.Makunina (landscape-geophysical systems, landscape geochemistry), Y.S.Grinfeldt (South America, nature management of coastal zone, legal issues of geoecology), A.A.Medvedkov (climate change, geoecological factors of regional development, ethnocultural aspects of geoecology, scientific fundamentals of school geography), E.V.Milanova (global mapping and assessment of land use/land cover changes), A.Arshiniva (geoecological issues in Centtral and Eastern Europe), T.A.Kovaleva (present-day landscapes and geoecological issues in Australia), N.O.Tel’nova (Northern Europe, remote sensing methods of geoecology).

Profile of graduates

Bachelor degree – 4 years
Title of course: Ecology and Nature Management
Graduate degree: Bachelor of World Physical Geography and Geoecology

Master degree – 2 years for bachelors
Educational Master Program: “Geoecological Fundamentals of Sustainable Development”

1. Internal Masters
Title of course: Ecology and Nature Management
Graduate degree: Master of World Physical Geography and Geoecology
2. External Masters
Title of course: Ecology and Nature Management
Graduate degree: Master of Geoecology

The department of world physical geography and geoecology trains the experts capable to conduct complex landscape and geoecological researches, to give an assessment of natural resource to the capacity of territories, to develop ecological justifications for an assessment of impact on environment (EIA), to estimate natural and anthropogenous processes and an environmental risk, to generalize world experiment on prevention of negative impacts on environment, to develop programs of regional environmental policy.
The graduates know several foreign languages, possessing good skills in the sphere of GIS-technologies, and also a broad environmental outlook are demanded in labor market. Our graduates work in government institutions of federal level, research, educational and scientific institutions, the academic institutes. They do successful career in many large Russian and foreign companies, work in the non-governmental ecological organizations (The World Wide Fund for Nature, the International union of conservation, Greenpeace, etc.), and also in the organizations of UN system (The center of the international projects at UNEP, UNESCO, etc.). Our graduates are demanded and abroad: they work at universities of the USA, Great Britain, Belgium, Hungary and other countries.

Main courses\Curriculum
Present-day Landscapes of the Continents, Physical Geography of the Continents, Geoecology, Introduction in Geoecology, Global Geoecological Issues, Regional Geoecology, The Doctrine about Biosphere, Anthropogenic Landscapes, Methods of Field Landscape Investigations, Remote Sensing Methods in Geoecological Investigations, Geoinformatic Systems, Geoecological Mapping, Natural-Recreational Resources of the World, Theory and Practice of Nature Protection, Geoecopolicy, Economical Basis of Geoecology, Ethnocultural Basis of Geoecology, Nature Management, Environmental Management.

Research divisions
Laboratory of Natural Resources and Technogenic Transformation of the Environment (Head of the Laboratory – N.M.Dronin).

Fields of Research: geoecological issues, landscape and geoecological regionalization of land, natural resources potential of countries and regions, global climatic changes their consequences for natural landscapes and socio-economic systems, geoecological basis of sustainable development, geoecological regional studies, monitoring of technogenic changes of geosystems, geoecological aspects of recreational assessment of the territory, economical assessments in geoecology, ethnocultural aspects in geoecology, analysis of functioning of the world system of protected areas.

Main accomplished research: Fundamentals of geoecology, theoretic approaches to the study of the ecosphere and society interaction have been developed. Map of the Zonal Landscape Types of the World, Map of the Present-Day Landscapes of the World (in English), global models of geographical zonality and their transformation under anthropogenic influence have been compiled and published. The concept of landscape-geoecological systems was developed, landscape-geoecological maps of the continents were compiled. GIS “Present-Day Landscape of Europe” was developed. Classification schemes of landscape cover change for case regions of Russia were worked out using remote sensing data. Ten pages of the pilot Atlas of land use were compiled.

Future research activities: theoretical and methodical issues of geoecology, environmental assessment of ecosphere, GIS “Landscape-Geoecological Systems of the World”, methods of optimization of nature management and nature conservation at global, regional and local levels, geoecological regional studies, analysis and mapping of regions with higher geoecological risks, ecological and economical methods of geoecological risk assessment.

Scientific and academic contacts : staff members deliver lectures in a number of Universities in Russia and abroad (Astana, Sevastopol’, Geneva), supervise over scientific work of Russian and foreign trainees. Cooperation with the Ministry of Natural Resources, organizations within RAN system (the Institute of Geography, the Institute of Water Problems, Oriental Studies Institute, Institute of Latin America etc.), the Academy of Land Use Planning is being developed. Professor E.P.Romanova is the deputy chairman of the Teaching and Methodological Councils on Ecology and Geography of the Teaching and Methodological Association on Classic University Education.

International contacts: participation in the activities and management of international research programs and scientific associations (International Geographic Union, European Environment Agency, etc.), in the meetings organized by UNEP, EECUN, in the international scientific conferences and symposia. The Collaboration Center under the Global Environment Outlook Program of UNEP acts on the basis of the department. Agreement on scientific cooperation between the MSU Faculty of Geography and Belogradchic community (Bulgaria) is being carried out, documents for including of the “Belogradchic Rocks” territory into the world network of geoparks was compiled and transferred to UNESCO. Three-year project on summer training school for young teachers from East European countries between the MSU Faculty of Geography and Central European University (Budapest) was successfully realized on the basis of the department. The department also cooperates with the universities of Kassel, New-York, Bangkok, Heidelberg, etc

Main publications
Romanova E.P., Kondratieva T.I., Alekseev B.A., Klimanova O.A., Kovaleva T.A., Golubev G.N. Physical geography of continents and oceans in two volumes. volume 1, book 2. North America, South America, Africa, Australia and Oceania, Antarctica. Moscow, RAS, 2014

Klimaniva O.A., Geoecological regional geography: Natural and anthropogenous factors of formation of regions. Moscow, LENAND, 2014

Dronin N.M. Climate change and food security of Russia: historical analysis and model forecasts. Moscow, GEOS, 2014

Alekseeva N.N., Klimanova O.A. Physical geography of continents. General regularities. Moscow, Faculty of Geography, 2012

Kalutskova N.N. Theory and practice of nature conservation. Moscow, Faculty of Geography , 2011

Krasovskaya T.M., Yevseev A.V., Solntzeva N.P.Environmental Hot-Spots and Impact Zones of the Russian Arctic. Moscow, 2010

Vlasova T.V., Arshinova M.A., Kovaleva T.A. Physical geography of continents and oceans. Moscow, “Academia”, 2005, 2007, 2008.

Kolbovsky E.Y. Landscape planning. Moscow, Academy, 2008

Environment and Development: Policies for Our Susstainable Future. Ed. N.Dronin, R.Richer, E. Timar. CEU Press, Budapest-New York. 2008.

Krasovskaya T.M. Nature management in Russian North. Moscow, LKI, 2008.

The world of geoecology. Moscow, GEOS, 2008.

Alekseeva N.N. India. Moscow, “Izdatelskii Servis”, 2008.

Klimanova O.A. Resource studies and resources of the world. Africa. Moscow, MSU Faculty of Geography, 2007.

Gorshkov S.P. Doctrine about biosphere. Introduction. Moscow, MSU Faculty of Geography, 2007.

Alekseev B.A., Kalutskova N.N., Solntsev V.N., Ryzhkov O.V., Tregubov O.V., Antsiferova A.A. Using of GPS and GIS technologies for studiing natural complexes of protected areas (landscape structure of Voronezh reserve). Tula, Grif and Co, 2006.

Golubev G.N. Geoecology. Moscow, “Aspect Press”, 2006.

Dronin N.M., Losev K.S., Mnatskanian R.A. Renewable resources consumption: environmental and socio-economic consequences. Moscow, GEOS, 2006.

Dronin N., Bellinger E. Climate Dependence and Food Problems in Russia (1900-1991). Budapest: CEU Press, 2005.

Alekseev B.A., Alekseeva N.N., Arshinova M.A., Golubev G.N., Kalutskova N.N., Klimanova O.A., Kovaleva T.A., Kondratjeva T.I., Makunina G.S., Romanova E.P. Geoecological state of landscapes. In “Geography, Society, Environment”, v.2. “Functioning and Present-Day State of Landscapes” (ed. Djakonov K.N., Romanova E.P.). Moscow, “Gorodets”, 2004. pp. 299-476.