To work toward a more sustainable future, one must first reimagine that future. Beginning this spring, a new program at NC State will engage student teams in doing just that.
Through the redesign of the United Parcel Service (UPS) Foundation Endowment agreement between the UPS Foundation and NC State Continuing and Lifelong Education, the Sustainable Futures Fellows will welcome its first cohort of interdisciplinary student teams in the Spring 2025 semester.
Selected fellows will work in teams of four students alongside a faculty mentor to explore unique sustainability challenges and opportunities across key sectors of the economy, including energy, agriculture, forestry, manufacturing, transportation and more. For 15 weeks, teams will engage in rigorous research and analysis, identifying the drivers, disruptions, transitions and transformative opportunities that may shape a chosen industry over the next 10, 20, 50 and 100 years.
“The Sustainable Futures Fellows Program is all about creating space for students to imagine bold, innovative futures,” said Christopher Galik, professor and director of the Sustainable Futures Initiative. “This new program will empower students to lead the way, imagining forward-oriented solutions to our most pressing challenges.”
The program requires teams to meet with a faculty mentor, attend relevant university events, complete an online course on futures thinking, and present a final report on their team’s work.
Fellows are expected to work in their teams for five hours each week, receiving a $1,500 stipend for the semester. Faculty members who serve as a mentor for a team will also receive a $2,000 stipend. Teams will be eligible to apply for summer funding to continue their work through research or experiential opportunities.
“We are excited to engage students in this important work and look forward to the ideas that emerge when students from different disciplines collaborate to tackle the biggest challenges of our time,” said Dawn Rodriguez-Ward, program coordinator for the Sustainable Futures Initiative.
Applications are being accepted through November 22, 2024, and are open to undergraduate and graduate students. Priority will be given to students applying as an interdisciplinary four-person team with representation from at least two of NC State’s academic colleges. A letter of support from a potential faculty mentor is strongly encouraged, but not required. Individual student applications may also be accepted with students placed into larger teams if space is available.
Learn more and apply at go.ncsu.edu/futuresfellows.
This post was originally published in Sustainability News.
