Expanding our horizons to National Park Donauauen

Studying at MODUL University Vienna isn’t just books and classrooms – a variety of excursions to locations near and far help to enrich the educational experience with on-site learning.

MSc students Natalie Miletic and Jelena Siric filled us in on their recent visit to National Park Donauauen on Vienna’s outskirts:

As students of the M.Sc. program in Sustainable development, Management and Policy we embarked upon a new learning experience at the National Park Donauauen. As part of our curriculum we are listed in a course with the M.Sc. students in International Tourism Management. The course, Environmental Management and Sustainable Development, is meant as an in-depth introduction to environmental and sustainability issues for the tourism students. While for the sustainability students it assists us in refining our knowledge by engaging in dialogue with the tourism students who are contributing a different perspective.

The idea of this excursion came from one of the tourism students while we were discussing the theoretical aspects of the class. The suggestion was to see a real-world example of practiced environmental management. From this suggestion our professor, Sabine Sedlacek, and the other students believed this to be a great idea for a variety of reasons. Since the majority of the classes are made up of international students, we rarely get a chance to learn about Austria. Our professor then suggested going to the National Park Donauauen as an excursion for one of our classes.

The experience of the park was incredible. Not only was the scenery worthwhile but the conversations we had as a group helped us to fully cement some of the aspects of environmental management. Unfortunately, the park was closed for the winter season; we were not able to go into the park facilities. But, thanks to the fantastic preparation of our professor, she was able to provide us a great understanding of the parks role in environmental management in urban settings.

During our visit and walk in the National Park, we learned that it is recognized by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature Resources) as a Category II Riverine Wetlands National Park. It was interesting to learn that the Park extends to the Slovakian border, with that it makes it the largest ecologically intact natural riverine environment in Central Europe. We were witnesses to an enormous variety of habitats in just the small area we visited, in which the total area of the park is 9,300 hectares. During our walk we observed the impact of humans on nature with the various agricultural ventures that were happening in the heart of the park. This demonstrated that a balance between human systems and environmental systems can occur. More importantly, we understood that this park is integral for multiple services that cannot be fully imitated by humans. It provides a natural retention area for flood waters, it assists in guaranteeing high-quality drinking water and lastly it is a recreational area for the public.

Overall this excursion was a great unison of the two programs. It allowed us to expand our horizons by experience the natural beauty of Vienna. During this time it can be said that it enhanced our comradery as a class. Yet, as an educational experience it helped us to understand the practicality of environmental management and the benefits of ecosystem services to humans.