Department of Urban and Rural Development

Sustainable transformations require not only new ideas but also knowledge meeting practice. We combine education, research and collaboration to contribute to the societal change needed to meet challenges such as the biodiversity and climate crises.

  • Our issues range from today’s and tomorrow’s discussions about forests, agriculture, urban and rural areas to climate adaptation from a historical perspective
  • We offer courses that are not available at any other universities in Sweden, and we are responsible for around 90 courses within seven different education programmes
  • We work closely with government agencies, organizations, and other societal actors to develop both knowledge and practice
Francesca leans over some flowers and smells them

Sniff the stress away – Francesca explores which nature smells could help reduce stress in cities

Measuring people’s brain activity in parking lots and asking them to smell flowers is not unfamiliar to PhD student Francesca Taufer. Her background in cognitive science and close connection to nature led her to explore a sense we tend to pay little attention to, and its potential to reduce stress.

A dock in Malmö

Can Malmö’s waterfront make room for people and nature?

What if a quayside could do more than separate the city from the water? In Malmö’s Nyhamnen, a new research project is exploring how nature-based solutions can create waterfront environments that are more resilient, inclusive and biodiverse.

A forest that has burned, vegetation on the ground has started to grow.

What rural communities can teach us about wildfire prevention and recovery

Rural communities play a key role before, during and after wildfire. SLU research in Spain, Chile and Sweden shows how rural communities help prevent wildfires, respond when they occur and recover in their aftermath. Learning from them is crucial in a future of more frequent and intense wildfires.

News & Events

News

Calendar

Some of the ongoing projects
Landscape Management

Health Promoting Forests

Providing practical advices for urban forest landowners, through action on how to manage forests for the human best.

Agrarian History

Sami Natural Resource Use from year 1550 to 1800

The project investigates how Indigenous peoples manage the transition from a foraging to a food-producing economy and how that change affects people.

Rural Development

Include2Restore

The project develops inclusive meeting places where people together find solutions for the restoration of pastures in the Karamoja border area between Uganda and Kenya.

Research groups

Research groups