Head of Environmental Science
Qualifications
Research interests
Biography
Linda Downsborough is the Head of Environmental Science at the Independent Institute of Education, Emeris Ruimsig. As a lecturer and researcher Linda has been integral to designing, co-ordinating and lecturing on a number of water related education programmes at the IIE and has worked on a number of externally funded research grants.
Linda’s passion for the environment started growing up in Zambia and travelling to many of southern Africa’s national parks in Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia. She completed her honours in environmental science at Rhodes University working with conservancies (voluntary conservation organisations). From this research her interest in what drives people to voluntarily participate in conservation activities laid the foundation for her masters dissertation which investigated social learning process within a citrus farming community of practice. Her current doctoral research explores the potential for social network analysis to be used as an educational tool to enhance learning and competency building for various stakeholders within a biosphere reserve context.
Linda is passionate about learning, adult education, social networks and communities of practice all within a natural resource management context and has a number of publications in these fields. She believes that by facilitating and nurturing the connections between people there is enhanced capacity for learning and mutually beneficial decision-making. In 2021 Linda was awarded the IIE Researcher of the Year award.
Head of Environmental Science
Qualifications
Research interests
Biography
Linda Downsborough is the Head of Environmental Science at the Independent Institute of Education, Emeris Ruimsig. As a lecturer and researcher Linda has been integral to designing, co-ordinating and lecturing on a number of water related education programmes at the IIE and has worked on a number of externally funded research grants.
Linda’s passion for the environment started growing up in Zambia and travelling to many of southern Africa’s national parks in Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia. She completed her honours in environmental science at Rhodes University working with conservancies (voluntary conservation organisations). From this research her interest in what drives people to voluntarily participate in conservation activities laid the foundation for her masters dissertation which investigated social learning process within a citrus farming community of practice. Her current doctoral research explores the potential for social network analysis to be used as an educational tool to enhance learning and competency building for various stakeholders within a biosphere reserve context.
Linda is passionate about learning, adult education, social networks and communities of practice all within a natural resource management context and has a number of publications in these fields. She believes that by facilitating and nurturing the connections between people there is enhanced capacity for learning and mutually beneficial decision-making. In 2021 Linda was awarded the IIE Researcher of the Year award.
An educational brand of The Independent Institute of Education
Formed by the strategic evolution of The IIE's Varsity College, IIE MSA, Vega and
the School of Hospitality and Service Management, uniting under the Emeris name.
Emeris is an educational brand of The Independent Institute of Education (Pty) Ltd which is registered with the Department of Higher Education and Training as a private higher education institution under the Higher Education Act, 1997 (reg. no. 2007/HE07/002). Company registration number: 1987/004754/07. View certificate here.
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