She is one of the few scientists and young female PhD graduates that the University of Rwanda is endowed with. Dr Brigitte Nyirambangutse defied all sorts of odds when she decided to carry out her PhD studies in “Natural Sciences, specializing in Environmental Sciences” that only few female colleagues would have ventured in. Brigitte graduated in November, 2016 at the University of Gothenburg. Her studies were funded by the UR-Sweden programme for Research, High Education and Institution Advancement.
According to her, PhD journey has been of tremendous richness in terms of knowledge and skills acquisition. She will give back to her University and society in general, through teaching and doing research as a knowledgeable, confident and skilled person.
She testifies to have had great field experiences either here in Rwanda or in other tropical/temperate forests that she got a chance to visit.
“I had many opportunities to work with preeminent professors in my field, and has equipped me with skills and expanded my collaboration and networking” She said, adding that she gained exposure by attending international conferences and got a chance to present her own research findings.
MAIDEN STUDY IN TROPICAL AFRICA
Key aspects of the novelty of Brigitte doctoral research project are that it was conducted in Africa, in montane tropical forest. She used Nyungwe Forest as a case study. The study was hailed as it was the first of its kind in tropical Africa, by providing valuable clues into the way that Afromontane tropical forests are different, with the carbon stocks of late successional forest stands being higher than those reported for Central and South America thereby suggesting that loss of African forests has disproportionately large consequences for global carbon emissions.
The results from her PhD research will be of value for understanding and managing the role of tropical montane forests in the global C cycle. Specifically, the data will be useful to better understand tropical montane forest C stocks, fluxes, and productivity, how these are shaped by disturbance and how they are affected by other environmental factors.
“Now that UR has opened its Postgraduate programmes (at MSc and PhD level), this requires having PhD holders who would be guiding and shaping these programmes. I am very happy that I have already started giving my contribution at college level,” noted Brigitte.
Brigitte is using all her accumulated knowledge, mainly through teaching but also through dialogues between policy makers and various stakeholders including academia in Rwanda. Her research interests lie in Tropical Ecology and forest ecosystem functioning. Her contribution is mainly in the area of environment and climate change, forest management and productivity, climate change mitigation and green growth.
Upon her return back from studies, Brigitte has been working with the Centre of Excellence in Biodiversity Conservation and Natural Resources Management on proposal for Landscape Approach to Forest Restoration and Conservation; a project funded by Rwanda Environment Management Authority to determine research priority areas for the Gishwati-Mukura National Park. She noted that all research projects proposed will involve students from University of Rwanda in the conservation biology programmes at BSc, MSc and PhD levels.
She has also been working with the Ministry of Environment and NIRAS/NATURA as a coordinator in a baseline study on green growth/investment in Rwanda. The assignment was among others to develop for the very first time, a practical definition of green investment, green technology and green jobs to mention but a few.
Brigitte hails the support of UR-Sweden programme that enabled her to study in a flexible way and allowed her to do her research at the same time taking care of her family.
“If it wasn’t this Programme, the chance of pursuing my doctoral studies would have been very minimal” she noted.
She referred to a saying that goes “when you educate a woman you educate the nation” and noted that “inspiring other girls and women to pursue their dreams in our society is a one of the positive impacts of this scholarship”.
The scholarship was indeed a great opportunity to upgrade her degree in the field of Environmental Sciences, needless to mention that the country has handful qualified personnel in biology field. She is relishing that the Programme has boosted her career and is happy to give back to her home University.
“During the PhD, you are involved in presenting your research to colleagues and different audiences, networking during conferences and academic events. These activities enhance your communication skills and enable you to become a member of highly esteemed networks” she concluded.
By Darius Murangwa
Communications Officer