The Master's program in Geography, Planning, Environment and Development (GAED) trains specialists in sustainable territories, in connection with planning, environmental and development issues, in tropical island areas with a strong focus on the territory of Réunion.

The Master's program is structured along three lines: the first is that of methodological teaching units, the second is that of disciplinary teaching units, the last is that which includes the research dissertation of the first year (M1), of the second year (M2) and finally the internship.

Educational goals :

The GAED Master's program aims to train professionals and researchers capable of analyzing territorial dynamics, developing diagnoses, and designing sustainable development projects. It develops skills in geomatics, spatial analysis, risk management, planning, and governance, with a particular focus on island and tropical contexts.

Training opportunities:

This Master's program is fully aligned with the strategic directions of the New Training Offer (NOF) 2025-2029, consistent with current ecological, territorial, and societal transitions. Rooted in the Réunion territory, it addresses the specific needs of an island region facing significant environmental, demographic, and planning pressures. It promotes collaborative territorial development through close collaboration with local authorities, urban planning agencies, consulting firms, environmental NGOs, and businesses.

Its affiliation with the Indian Ocean Space and Society (OIES) research laboratory guarantees training through and for research, integrating contemporary challenges of sustainable development, risk management, territorial innovation, and spatial analysis. The Master's program also fosters a growing international focus, particularly with countries in the Indian Ocean region, thanks to strong institutional partnerships.

Led by a multidisciplinary teaching team, this Master's program enhances students' employability by offering presentations by professionals and developing transferable skills sought after in the fields of local development, sustainable planning, and territorial expertise. It thus serves as a catalyst for academic and socio-economic development within the overseas context of Réunion.

The GAED Master's program boasts several major strengths that make it a leading program in the field of planning and sustainable development of tropical territories. It benefits from a stable teaching team, composed of renowned professors and researchers, and is affiliated with the OIES laboratory, ensuring a strong link between teaching and applied research.

Its location in Réunion allows for direct immersion in the specific challenges of island, tropical, and overseas territories: resource management, environmental vulnerabilities, urban pressures, ecological transition, and regional cooperation in the Indian Ocean. The Master's program offers a multidisciplinary approach combining geography, urban planning, environment, geomatics, cartography, and risk management.

It offers a good balance between theoretical training, practical professional experience (internships, field studies) and international exposure. Partnerships are established with local institutions (local authorities, urban planning agencies, NGOs, government departments) and regional structures (Comoros, Mauritius, Madagascar and beyond in sub-Saharan Africa).

The training offers a course adapted both to pursuing a doctorate and to rapid integration into the professions of territorial development, planning, environment or cooperation which are still largely lacking in many local authorities, administrations or technical services, associations or consulting firms in Reunion and beyond.

Total working hours: 768 hours (including the minimum 280-hour internship)

The course offering is structured into semesters and teaching units grouped into majors and minors. Training time is evenly distributed throughout the week, and course content is designed progressively across the different semesters.

The major teaching units consolidate disciplinary skills:

• Five modules in semester 1: Epistemological approach in geography, an epistemology of insularity, territories and heritage, health and socio-spatial environment, territorial diagnosis and local development.
• Two course units in semester 2: Accessibility and insularity, tourism challenges: economy, identities and territories
• Two modules in semester 3: Health and development and risks, environment and governance.

The major teaching units consolidate transversal skills:

• Three Foreign Language modules (S1, S2 and S3).
• Two French language reinforcement modules (Writing workshops in semesters 2 and 3).
• Six Research Methodology modules (S1, S2 and S3)

Semester 4 (second semester of the second year – M2) does not include any formal teaching: it is reserved for the internship (120 hours), research and methodology seminars, finalizing the writing of the research paper, and preparing for the defense.

Minor modules provide the opportunity to personalize the multidisciplinary training path (one to choose from per semester: literature, information-communication, geography, history, English, digital humanities, preparation for category A competitive exams, module relating to Artificial Intelligence issues) and implement tools from various disciplinary fields while developing transversal skills.

The skills acquired during this training are in line with those of the RNCP record

Skills specific to the training:

• Implement advanced and specialized uses of digital tools
• To mobilize and produce highly specialized knowledge
• Implement specialized communication for knowledge transfer
• Contributing to transformation in a professional context
• Conduct a territorial assessment
• To assist territorial governance stakeholders in decision-making by guiding operational approaches towards the sustainable development of territories
• Produce spatial analysis

A minimum two-month internship (280 hours) during the second year of the Master's program is mandatory.

Registration fees are set annually by the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Space and are available on our institution's website: Register at the University of Reunion

• To have a good academic level or even demonstrate progress during higher education.
• Having obtained an annual average (from L1 to L3) ≥ 12/20
• Mastery of theoretical and conceptual frameworks in the fields of geography, planning, environment and development theories
• Knowing how to identify and select various specialized resources to document a topic
• Analyze and synthesize data for use
• Argumentation with a critical mindset
• Easily use the different registers of written and oral expression of the French language.
• To use written and oral comprehension and expression with ease in at least one foreign language
• Easily use the different registers of written and oral expression of the French language.
• Solid knowledge and geographical culture
• Proficiency in technical geographical tools (cartography and GIS)
• Knowledge of data analysis (quantitative and qualitative)
• Demonstrate human and interpersonal skills.
• Being able to work collaboratively in a team.
• Respect diverse opinions and cultures.
• Demonstrate autonomy in organizing one's work.
• Being able to demonstrate intellectual curiosity and adaptability in the face of new challenges
• Propose a professional project consistent with the themes and objectives of the master's program in the fields of geography, planning, environment, or development.
• Promote the diversity of your experiences and background. Experiences or internships in geography, planning, the environment, or development will be valued. The same applies to involvement in community projects, volunteer work, or field experience.

• The admissions committee for the GAED master's program will pay particular attention to the grades from the different years of the candidate's post-baccalaureate studies.
• Training and research project, CV, consideration of grades in production (technical expression modules, languages) and in methodological modules and in "technical" modules (GIS) in the previous curriculum.
• CV and certificate of activities
• Any comments or recommendations from teachers.
• Cover letter

Admission to the GAED Master's program is primarily aimed at holders of a Bachelor's degree in geography, planning, environment or related disciplines (social sciences, urban planning, territorial economics).

Depending on the student's situation, applications for admission to the first year of the Master's program (M1) follow three specific procedures (the national platform MonMaster, Études en France, Validation of Acquired Experience). For more information, please consult the university's student services page. Enroll in the first year of a Master's program

Baccalaureate + 3 or equivalent

The GAED Master's program is primarily intended for students holding a Bachelor's degree in geography, planning, environmental science, or related disciplines (sociology, economics, political science, urban planning). The program also attracts multidisciplinary profiles seeking to acquire territorial expertise applied to ecological transition, risk management, or sustainable development in island areas.

In continuing education, the GAED master's program targets professionals returning to studies who wish to enhance or develop their skills in the fields of planning, urbanism, territorial or environmental project management.

Particularly concerned are: agents of local authorities (urban planning, environment, development), employees of design offices, decentralized state services (Directorate of the Environment, Planning and Housing, Directorate of Food, Agriculture and Forestry), urban planning or development agencies, as well as professionals in the non-profit sector or regional cooperation in the Indian Ocean.

35 seats

For more information, you can consult the university's student services page: Register at the University of Reunion

In 2023-2024:

M1: 65%

M2: 48%

Events

After completing the GAED master's program, graduates can pursue a doctorate in geography, planning, environment, or urbanism. Some also continue their studies with further training in engineering, urban planning, or landscape architecture schools, or in specialized master's programs in public policy, geomatics, or environmental management. Others take competitive exams for the civil service (local or national) or prepare for professional certifications (e.g., project management, GIS, etc.).

The sectors of activity and types of employment targeted by this training correspond to those listed in the RNCP record

Public service and local authorities:

• Project manager in land-use planning
• Environmental Studies Officer
• Territorial urban planner
• Sustainable Development Project Manager
• Ecological Transition Consultant
• Head of urban planning

Engineering firms, consulting firms:

• Urban planning or environment consultant
• Territorial Data Analyst (GIS, geomatics)
• Research officer specializing in territorial diagnosis or public policy evaluation
• Expert in urban resilience and climate adaptation

NGOs, associations, development agencies:

• Territorial Project Coordinator
• Facilitator of local participatory processes
• Environmental mediator

Research and teaching:

• PhD student in geography or planning
• Research engineer or research assistant in public laboratories
• Trainer in territorial development