Our Department

The Department of Environmental Science at the National Aviation University (NAU) was established on April 26, 2001 (Order of the Rector of NAU No. 53/od dated April 26, 2001) based on the Department of Occupational Safety and Environmental Protection. Its creation was initiated, supported, and implemented by Professor Hryhorii Mykhailovych Franchuk. Under his leadership and with his direct participation, curricula, programs, and methodological materials were developed, and the educational process for full-time students began. Almost immediately, the department introduced a distance learning format and an English-language program (in 2001).

Over more than 20 years, the department has trained over 1,000 specialists (bachelor’s, specialists, and master’s degrees) in the field of ecology and environmental protection. More than 250 graduates have received certificates confirming their qualification as environmentalists in English.

Today, the department provides educational programs in the specialty “Environmental Science”, including the “Ecology and Environmental Protection” professional educational program for bachelor’s and master’s degrees, as well as the “Environmental Science” educational and scientific program for the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree.

Throughout its history, the Department of Environmental Science at NAU has become home to outstanding specialists of global renown in the field of environmental science. These experts have made significant contributions to the development of environmental science in Ukraine, particularly in determination the department’s research directions and the scientific and educational process for students. Among them are:

• Professor Heorhii Oleksiiovych Biliavskyi, Doctor of Geological and Mineralogical Sciences (founder of the environmental audit direction),
• Professor Serhii Arsentiovych Stankevych, Doctor of Technical Sciences (founder of the Earth remote sensing research direction),
• Yaroslav Ivanovych Movchan, Doctor of Biological Sciences (an outstanding environmentalist, founder of the National Ecological Center of Ukraine, the Ukrainian ecological network, biodiversity conservation, and nature reserve management),
• Yurii Oleksiiovych Kutlakhmetov, Doctor of Biological Sciences (founder of the radiobiology and radioecology direction),
• Heorhii Vitaliiovych Lysychenko, Corresponding Member of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (head of the department affiliate at the Institute of Environmental Geochemistry of the NAS of Ukraine, founder of the ecological safety direction for nuclear fuel cycle facilities in Ukraine), and others.

Under the guidance of leading scientists and in collaboration with faculty members, the department has developed and actively implements the following research areas in scientific projects, theses, and student research groups:

• Aerospace research of the Earth’s surface (Prof. T.V. Dudar, PhD M.S. Lubskiy),
• Noospheric and ecological higher education for sustainable development (Prof. T.V. Sayenko),
• Restoration of degraded ecosystems (Assoc. Prof. M.M. Radomska, Assoc. Prof. L.M. Cherniak, Assoc. Prof. A.A. Yavniuk),
• Radioecology and radioactive waste management in Ukraine (Prof. I.V. Matvieieva, Prof. Yu.O. Olkhovyk, Assoc. Prof. A.A. Yavniuk),
• Environmental modeling and forecasting (Assoc. Prof. V.A. Groza, Senior Lecturer I.M. Horbach),
• Environmental impact assessment (Assoc. Prof. A.Ye. Hai, PhD H.M. Yakymenko),
• Physical factors affecting the environment (Prof. O.M. Tikhenko, Assoc. Prof. T.I. Dmytrukha, Assoc. Prof. Ye.O. Bovsunovskyi),
• Ecotoxicological research (Assoc. Prof. T.I. Bilyk),
• Waste management (Assoc. Prof. L.I. Pavliukh, Assistant O.S. Horbachova),
• Aeroecological research on environmental and human impacts (PhD V.D. Savytskyi),
• Sustainable development of Ukraine (Assoc. Prof. A.O. Padun, Assoc. Prof. L.M. Cherniak, Assistant I.V. Horobtsov).

In April 2007, the department launched the All-Ukrainian Scientific and Practical Conference of Young Scientists and Students, “Environmental Safety of the State.” In 2021, the conference celebrated its 15th anniversary and continues to operate successfully, attracting a wide audience of students and young scientists concerned about environmental issues. For a long time, Associate Professor Margaryta Myroslavivna Radomska has been the driving force and organizer of these conferences and roundtables.

Since the department’s inception, industrial affiliates have been established at aviation enterprises such as Boryspil International Airport, Plant No. 410 of Civil Aviation, and various institutes of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, including:

• Scientific Center for Aerospace Research of the Earth,
• Institute of Hydrobiology,
• Institute of Environmental Geochemistry,
• D.K. Zabolotny Institute of Microbiology and Virology,
• Scientific Center for Radiation Medicine,
• O.M. Marzieiev Institute of Hygiene and Medical Ecology of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine,
• National University of Life and Environmental Sciences of Ukraine, etc.

Since November 2021, the department has been headed by Professor Tamara Viktorivna Dudar, Doctor of Technical Sciences, under whose leadership the department is actively developing the field of aerospace Earth research using modern digital remote sensing methods to assess disturbed ecosystems in response to Ukraine’s urgent national challenges.

In 2022, a new scientific research project was launched, focused on developing principles and means of restoration of ecosystem affected by warfare and other anthropogenic impacts. Entire department staff is involved in this work, and it is open to PhD students and students interested in scientific research and Ukraine’s future.

The scientific work of faculty members engaged in this research is done within the framework of Ukraine’s Recovery Plan, which was initiated at the International Conference on Ukraine’s Reconstruction held in Lugano, Switzerland, on July 4–5, 2022.