Department of Environment, Science and Social Sustainability (DESSS)

The Department of Environment, Science and Social Sustainability (DESSS) operates under the School of Sustainable Development and Tourism.

From our diverse range of program on offer, the Department focuses at creating a social and environmental balance that will help our island state and its citizens face the unprecedented socio-economic challenges.

Ranging from undergraduate programs such as the BSc. (Hons) Occupational Safety and Health Management, the BA (Hons) counselling, the BSc. (Hons) Applied Social Sciences, and our postgraduate programs such as the Masters in Sustainability for Business, Environment and Society, the MA in Counselling, the Masters in Climate Chane, Disaster and Health Management, the Masters in Educational Leadership among others, all our programs ensure that we address and understand emerging themes such as protection of human health, environmental sustainability, climate mitigation and adaptation among others. The academic team is highly committed in promoting enhanced quality of education, research and public service on our the UTM campus, for the African region and worldwide.

The Department currently headed by Assoc Prof  S D Lukea Bhiwajee has as purpose to empower our learners to:

• Examine and understand for instance the function of natural systems, occupational health and safety systems, as well as our social systems;
• Understand how social, political, environmental and economic activities impact on the society of island states like Mauritius
• Experiment and test resilient solutions to overcome unsustainable human impacts, environmental degradation and social instability.

Together with the required academic support which our dedicated staff provide, the DESSS also works in close collaboration with its various stakeholders, both national and international, thus providing a window of opportunity to our students. Through various workshops and networking activities, our students are able to interact with prospective employers on the labour market. In its quest of being forward looking, the department will shortly run innovative undergraduate courses in Sustainability, Social Work & Innovation and Post Graduate courses pertaining to Safety, Health and Environmental Management, once all processes are adhered to.