IGERT:REsponding to RApid Environmental CHange (REACH): From genes to ecosystems, science to society

虽然不断变化的全球气候和随之而来的生物反应一直是地球历史的一部分，但当前人类参与的环境变化的速度是前所未有的。其中最重要的变化包括全球变暖、栖息地丧失和物种引入新的地理区域。在生物学上，物种可能会通过改变形态、行为或生理来对快速变化的环境做出反应。人类以独特的方式适应环境变化，从过去吸取教训，预测未来，并利用公共政策来塑造行为。这一综合性研究生教育和研究培训(IGERT)更新奖的目标是发展对应对快速环境变化所需的生物和社会机制的多学科理解。环境问题的动态化意味着解决方案必须是持续取得的成就，需要持续致力于监测、管理和适应。通过课程学习、研究合作和实习培训的研究生将精通应对快速环境变化所涉及的基本科学和社会问题。学生还将组织研讨会，将公民、机构代表、政策制定者、非政府组织和工业界聚集在一起。与霍华德大学和加州州立大学富勒顿分校的新合作将扩大扩大参与的努力。由于环境变化是全球性的，学生们将有机会通过实习和研究活动发展国际合作。过去和拟议开展的所有活动都为解决社会最紧迫的环境问题作出了直接贡献。IGERT是一个NSF范围内的项目，旨在应对培养具有跨学科背景、所选学科的深厚知识以及满足未来职业需求所需的技术、专业和个人技能的美国博士科学家和工程师的挑战。该项目旨在通过建立创新的研究生教育和培训新模式，在超越传统学科界限的合作研究的肥沃环境中，催化研究生教育的文化变革。

While shifting global climate and concomitant biological responses have always been part of Earth's history, the rapidity of current human-mediated environmental change is unprecedented. The most important of such changes include global warming, habitat loss and the introduction of species to novel geographic areas. Biologically, species may respond to rapidly changing environments through altered morphology, behavior or physiology. Humans uniquely adapt to environmental change by learning from the past, forecasting the future, and by using public policies to shape behavior. The goal of this Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) renewal award is to develop a multidisciplinary understanding of the biological and social mechanisms needed to respond to rapid environmental change. The dynamism of environmental problems means that solutions must be on-going accomplishments, requiring continuing commitment to monitoring, management, and adaptation. Graduate students, trained through coursework, research collaborations, and internships, will become proficient in the fundamental scientific and social issues involved in responding to rapid environmental change. Students will also organize workshops that bring together citizens, agency representatives, policymakers, non-governmental organizations and industry. New collaborations with Howard University and California State University-Fullerton will expand efforts to broaden participation. Because environmental change is global in scope, students will have opportunities to develop international collaborations through internships and research activities. All of the activities of the past and proposed IGERT make direct contributions to solving society's most pressing environmental problems. IGERT is an NSF-wide program intended to meet the challenges of educating U.S. Ph.D. scientists and engineers with the interdisciplinary background, deep knowledge in a chosen discipline, and the technical, professional, and personal skills needed for the career demands of the future. The program is intended to catalyze a cultural change in graduate education by establishing innovative new models for graduate education and training in a fertile environment for collaborative research that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries.