Historic
The Postgraduate Program in Forest Science
The Postgraduate Program in Forest Science belongs to the University of Viçosa (UFV). UFV is considered one of the best universities in the country and, since its creation, it has invested in three basic pillars for its consolidation and success: teaching, research and extension. In addition, the first School of Forestry Engineering in Brazil began in Viçosa, Minas Gerais, through the creation of the Escola Nacional de Florestas, on May 5, 1960, which was supported by the FAO. The existence of dozens of Forest Engineering schools in the country and thousands of trained professionals is due to the pioneering spirit of the institution that saw the need for technological development in the forest sector in Brazil.
In March 1975, with its infrastructure in place and with a qualified faculty trained in foreign universities, as well as well-equipped laboratories, UFV started the Postgraduate Program in Forest Science (PPGCF), obtaining its accreditation in the Federal Council of Education on November 6, 1986.
At that time, the training of teachers became possible thanks to agreements with North American universities, mainly with Purdue University and North Carolina State University, which allowed teacher exchanges, sometimes training Brazilian teachers, sometimes sending American teachers who were willing to teaching the first subjects and setting up the laboratories, defining the Program’s first lines of research. Subsequently, the University of Toronto, Canada, joined the Program, giving it a new lease of life with the training of other new Brazilian professors recently hired from UFV and with the donation of various equipment for the laboratories.
On July 29, 1988, the Teaching, Research and Extension Commission (CEPE), the UFV’s superior body, approved the creation of the Doctoral Course in Forest Science, beginning in March 1989 and its accreditation by the Council Federal of Education, on June 8, 1994.
Thanks to the determination of the pioneer professors and their successors, who knew how to maintain this important legacy, Brazil has dozens of Forest Engineering schools, whose several professors were trained at UFV, thanks to the PPGCF. This program also enabled the training of numerous masters and doctors who work in the research activities of public institutions and forest-based companies in Brazil and abroad, placing the country in the world leadership in productivity in the forest sector, contributing to the generation of wealth and social and environmental benefits for Brazil.
The program is divided into four areas of concentration: Forest Management, Environment and Nature Conservation, Forestry and Technology and Use of Forest Products and acts strongly in the training of human resources, with 883 masters and 310 doctors having been awarded since its creation. Professionals trained by the program work at several Brazilian universities and also occupy prominent positions in the country’s main forest-based companies and industries. Currently, 101 students are enrolled in the program, 55 of whom are enrolled in a doctorate and 46 in a master’s degree.
The PPGCF currently has 26 (twenty-six) permanent professors and 5 (five) highly qualified collaborating professors, largely with postdoctoral degrees, who stand out for the technical-scientific production of books and articles in journals with a high factor of impact. These professors also have a long history of working in synergy with the private sector, having carried out joint technological development in this period with more than 300 forestry companies and helping the country to be a leader and important player in the pulp, paper, steel and sheet industries. , energy, among others.
In the last evaluation carried out by CAPES in 2021, the Program obtained a grade of 6, which places it among the best Forest Resources programs in Brazil. At the moment, its permanent faculty is composed of 26 permanent members, the majority, 58%, with CNPq productivity scholarships and a collaborating faculty composed of 5 members, 60% of which are CNPq productivity scholarships..
The main funding sources for the Program are Capes, CNPq and Fapemig. In addition to these development agencies, the Program also counts on the support of different national and international institutions and companies for the development of cutting-edge research for the forestry sector. In addition, the PPGCF has agreements and collaborations with several universities and international research institutes, promoting an intense exchange of students and professors abroad.
In the last four years, the guiding professors approved, with the intervention of the Sociedade de Investigações Florestais, more than R$ 15,000,000.00 (fifteen million reais) in projects with the private sector. Due to its history in public-private partnerships and excellence in serving the productive market with the development of innovative and disruptive technologies, UFV’s Forestry Engineering Department was accredited as one of the Embrapii units. The creation of this unit indicates that the department will receive financial contributions in the amount of R$ 6 million (non-refundable) over the next three years for investment in RD&I projects in partnership with the industries in the sector. The projects, which will be developed by the program’s guiding professors, may involve everything from fiber production (nursery, improvement,
In the last Strategic Planning, the mission and vision of the PPGCF changed in order to make it more and more suited to the realities of Brazilian research.
Thus, the Program’s new Mission is:
Develop scientific and technological knowledge of forest science, through research and training of human resources, in order to provide society with environmentally adequate forest goods and services, which incorporate new, innovative, socially fair and economically viable technologies.
And the vision is:
To be a national and international reference in scientific and technological development in forest science, through high-impact scientific publications, exchanges with other research centers and companies and the training of masters and doctors focused on technological innovation and excellence having a high impact on society.
The values are:
• Ethic;
• Commitment;
• Integration;
• Competence;
• Proactivity;
• Innovation;
• Collectivity.
History of the CAPES concept of the program:
Evaluation period: Concept:
2017-2020 6
2013-2016 5
2010-2012 6
2007-2009 5
2004-2006 4
2001-2003 5
1998-2000 5
1998-2001 6
1996-1998 A
Coordinator history
2020 – Current – Carlos Moreira Miquelino Eleto Torres
2015 – 2020 – Claudio Mudadu Silva
2009 – 2015 – Márcio Lopes da Silva
2008 – 2009 – Carlos Antônio Alvares Soares Ribeiro
2000 – 2008 – Carlos Cardoso Machado
1985 – 2000 – Benedito Rocha Vidal
1981 – 1984 – José Lívio Gomide
1978 – 1981 – Ricardo Marius Della Lucia
1975 – 1978 – Roberto da Silva Ramalho
