The Department of Urban and Rural Development was formed in January 2006 by the joining of the Department of Landscape Planning Ultuna (LPUL) and the Department of Rural Development and Agroecology (RDA). We currently employ approximately 100 people.
LPUL started as a small educational unit under the Department of Landscape Planning at SLU Alnarp, with the sole purpose of teaching at the first two years of the landscape architect program. It became a full department in 1994, with the responsibility of the full five-year programme.
Apart from this, the department grew by adding new branches. The Swedish EIA Centre was formed in 1999. The same year, the division of environmental communication joined the department and for a couple of years, agrarian history was also a part of the Department of Landscape Planning Ultuna.
LAG has had several shapes during the years. One of the origins is the SLU International Rural Development Center (IRDC), another is the many projects in rural development that SLU has been engaged in. There is also a close connection to SLU External Relations, with its many contacts with our surrounding society.
As a result of our latest fusion, our field of interest has increased substantially, now covering "North" as well as "South", with special emphasis on Sweden, the Nordic countries, the Baltic region, Africa and Southeast Asia. |
