Admissions
Submitted by lakemihret on
staff photo
Academic Rank
Assistant proffesor(phd)

Biography:
Dr. Fitsum Dechasa Kibret is an Assistant Professor currently affiliated with Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia. She has nearly 20 years of experience as a teacher, researcher, and course chairperson in the university. As a staff in the university she has demonstrated strong commitment in teaching, research and community engagements, leadership, mentoring graduate and under graduate students as well as in curriculum development thereby fostering academic growth. With a PhD in Development Studies (Environment and Development), Fitsum has accumulated significant theoretical and practical knowledge, complemented by fieldwork experience. She has also ample experience in research activities collaborating with national and international researchers and development organizations. Fitsum has collaborated with institutions such as, Ministry of Peace (MoP), FHI360, IRC, KNCV, the KIT Royal Tropical Institute, Austrian Development Cooperation (APPEAR), and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), among others, for research on rural livelihoods, food security, gender, and youth in Ethiopia. Her collaborations in research activities with such organizations have further enriched her ability to work with diverse stakeholders and conduct impactful research. In addition to her academic credentials, Fitsum actively engages in different professional networks, including the Society for Eco-tourism and Biodiversity Conservation and the Female Academic Network at Bahir Dar University.

Awards and Honors

 [2022] Certificate of Recognition for Special Contribution in the National Volunteer Community Development Service Program implemented by the Ministry of Peace (MoP).
[2022] Certificate of Recognition for providing professional service as an External Reviewer of the Curriculum “MA in Governance and Development” of Injibara University.

Work/Teaching Experience 

  • [2020- Current] Assistant Professor in Development Studies (Environment and Development), Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia 
  • [2009-2020] Lecturer, Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia 
  • [2007-2009] Assistance Lecturer, Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia 
  • [2006-2007] Graduate Assistance II, Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia 
  • [2005-2006] Graduate Assistance I, Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia

Research Interests

 Fitsum‟s research interest include areas such as institutions and policy issues related to resource management, environmental education; environmental and resource economics; socio-economic topics such as gender and livelihood issues, poverty, migration and unemployment. Her work takes a holistic approach to sustainable development. 

Research Projects since Joining BDU
[May 2022 to 2026] Strengthening Research and Educational Competences of Higher Education Institutions for Gender sensitive Urban (Informal Settlement) (GIRT). Sponsored by APPEAR it is a collaborative project among Bahir Dar University, Addis Ababa University, Mekele University, Donau Universität Krems (Danube Universität Krems) from Austria and Lurio University from Mozambique (as a project member).

[September 2022- August, 2027] BDU_IUC Phase II, VLIROUS (Belgium) supported Project No 6 (P6): Socio-Economics, Sustainable Livelihood and Environmental Management in Northwest Ethiopia (as a project member).

Conferences and Workshops Attended 

  • Conference on „Scholars in the National Dialogues Shaping the Agenda for the Future‟ organized by The Life & Peace Institute and Addis Ababa University's Institute for Peace and Security Studies – IPSS (December 08-12, 2024), Bishoftu, Ethiopia. 
  • Workshops organized by Ministry of Peace (MoP) (July 05, 2024), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; and August 16, 2024, Bishoftu, Ethiopia. 
  • Ethiopian Women Scholars‟ Day Workshop Organized by Bahir Dar University Women Scholars. (November 11, 2020), Bahir Dar University, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia 
  • National Workshop Organized by the Biological Society of Ethiopia (BSE) in collaboration with Environment, Biodiversity and Climate Change Forum (EBCCF) (September 03, 2020), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. 

  • Embedding Social Science in One Health: Strengthening Capacity in the Horn of Africa. (November, 18-20, 2019), IRLI, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

    Publications

  • Fitsum Dechasa, Feyera Senbeta, Dawit Diriba Guta (2023). Knowledge, attitude and participation intention to use and management of wetlands: evidence from the central rift valley of Ethiopia. Environment, Development and Sustainability, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-023-03946-y
  •  Fitsum Dechasa, Feyera Senbeta, Dawit Diriba, Bikila Warkineh (2020). Stakeholders‟ Action
    and Involvement in Wetland Resources Management in Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia. Ethiop. J. Biol. Sci., 19(1): 31–60, ISSN: 1819-8678 www.ajol.info/index.php/ejbs 
  • Fitsum Dechasa, Feyera Senbeta, Dawit Diriba Guta (2020). Economic values of wetlands‟
    services in the Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia. Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10018-020-00277-4.
  • Fitsum Dechasa, Feyera Senbeta, Dawit Diriba (2019). Determinants of household wetland
    resources use and management behavior in the Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia. Environmental Sustainability, https://doi.org/10.1007/s42398-019-00075-z
  • Fitsum Dechasa Kibret (2014). Unemployment and Labor Market in Urban Ethiopia: Trends and
    Current Conditions. Sociology and Anthropology, 2, 207-218. Doi:10.13189/sa.2014.020601.
  • Fitsum Dechasa Kibret and Fikirte Demissie Tulu (2014). The Socio-economic Impacts of Bahir
    Dar Tannery: Bahir Dar, Ethiopia. Natural Resources and Conservation, 2, 51-58. Doi: 10.13189/nrc.2014.020401.
  • Fitsum Dechasa Kibret and Fikirte Demissie Tulu (2014). Challenges of Potable Water Supply System in Rural Ethiopia: The Case of Gonji Kolela Woreda, West Gojjam Zone, Ethiopia. Natural Resources and Conservation, 2, 59-69. Doi: 10.13189/nrc.2014.020402.
  • Fitsum Dechasa (2010). An Assessment of Street begging problem in Ethiopia: Case of Shashemene Town. VDM, LAMBERT Academic Publishing, Germany.
Department
Geography and Environmental Studies