IRES Track III: International Research Experience and Professional Development in Built Environment Sustainability

在这个项目中，路易斯安那州立大学（LSU）与美国热能与流体工程师协会（ASTFE）和香港理工大学（HKPU）合作，成立了美港建筑环境可持续发展领导力发展中心。该中心共同为美国研究生开展国际研究和专业培训活动。建筑环境可持续性作为一项全球性挑战，影响着数亿人的福祉、他们的社区及其生活的未来。香港独特的可持续城市发展挑战和解决方案可以为美国学生提供关于这一主题的卓越国际研究经验。该项目为美国研究生应对这一全球挑战做好准备，并培养一支多元化的、具有全球竞争力的科学、技术、工程和数学（STEM）劳动力队伍。 LSU的朱益民博士、Tracey Rizzuto博士和Tyree Mitchell博士、ASTFE的Yong Tao博士和香港理工大学的Geoffrey Shen博士是该项目的主要成员。该中心利用美国大学在研究和领导力培训，ASTFE？庞大的专业网络，和一个国家科学基金会资助的研究网络（即，RCN-SEES-SHBE）开发中心的基础设施。香港理工大学可持续城市发展研究所（RISUD）的教师组成了一个多学科专家的初步人才库，在建筑，工程，建筑，计算机科学和社会科学为在香港的美国学生提供导师。通过ASTFE，专业协会和学术界之间的合作建立的广泛网络使PI能够从全国代表性不足的群体中招募研究生。该项目作为一个原型，为研究生提供国际研究经验，在一个沉浸式的环境超出了典型的学术界。 该中心试点三个年度计划，涉及19名美国研究生。每个年度计划为期九个月，包括一个访问前的虚拟训练营，一个为期八周的美国学生访问香港，以及一个为期八周的访问后计划。参观前虚拟训练营为美国和香港的学生和导师提供关于领导力发展和建筑环境可持续性的自定进度的在线学习课程、项目物流信息以及虚拟团队合作机会。为期八周的香港之行让学生们在香港参与创新实验室和文化沉浸式研究和专业发展活动。访问后的活动重点介绍了美国学生和导师在美国接待香港同学，以及美国学生和香港同学之间的持续合作。在为期九个月的课程结束时举行年度活动。在整个项目中，美国学生与香港同学一起在建筑环境可持续性领域进行研究。该计划还组织学生主导的活动，如发展学生的章节和活动，海报会议，和网络研讨会，让学生练习领导技能和发展专业网络。该项目的目标之一是，项目执行机构探索一种注重可扩展性和互惠性的模式，以确保所有利益攸关方获得最大利益的最佳机会，加强学术界、工业界和专业协会在国内和国际上的伙伴关系，并在拟议期限之后维持该项目。在第二年和第三年，参与计划的院校会寻求让更多有兴趣参与计划的香港大学自行拨款。该中心计划与其他专业协会合作，探索将这一模式推广到其他学科。 除了发表研究成果外，项目团队还利用ASTFE的媒体和推广计划，中心的网站和社交媒体宣传学生活动。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

In this project, Louisiana State University (LSU) works with the American Society of Thermal and Fluids Engineers (ASTFE) and Hong Kong Polytechnic University (HKPU) to establish the US-Hong Kong Center of Leadership Development in Built Environment Sustainability. This center jointly conducts international research and professional training activities for US graduate students. Built environment sustainability as a global challenge affects the well-being of hundreds of millions of people, their communities, and the future of their lives. Hong Kong's unique sustainable urban development challenges and solutions can offer US students exceptional international research experiences on this topic. This project prepares US graduate students to deal with this global challenge and develops a diverse, globally competitive science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workforce. Drs. Yimin Zhu, Tracey Rizzuto, and Tyree Mitchell at LSU, Dr. Yong Tao at ASTFE, and Dr. Geoffrey Shen at HKPU are key members of the project. The Center utilizes the US universities' strengths in research and leadership training, the ASTFE?s vast professional networks, and an NSF-funded research network (i.e., RCN-SEES-SHBE) to develop the Center's infrastructure. Faculty at the Research Institute of Sustainable Urban Development (RISUD) at HKPU form an initial pool of multidisciplinary experts in architecture, engineering, construction, computer science, and social sciences to provide mentorship for US students in Hong Kong. The broad network established by the collaboration among ASTFE, professional societies, and academic communities enables the PIs to recruit graduate students from underrepresented groups throughout the nation. This project serves as a prototype for providing international research experiences for graduate students in an immersive environment beyond the typical academic circles. The Center pilots three annual programs involving a total of 19 US graduate students. Each annual program lasts for nine months including a pre-visit virtual training camp, an eight-week visit to Hong Kong by US students, and an eight-week post-visit program. The pre-visit virtual training camp provides self-paced online learning programs on leadership development and built environment sustainability, information of program logistics, and virtual teaming opportunities for US and Hong Kong students and mentors. The eight-week visit to Hong Kong engages the students with an innovation lab and culturally immersed research and professional development activities in Hong Kong. The post-visit program highlights US students and mentors hosting Hong Kong peers in the US, continued collaboration between US students and Hong Kong peers. An annual event is held at the end of the nine-month program. Throughout the program, US students with their Hong Kong peers conduct research in areas of built environment sustainability. The program also organizes student-led activities such as developing student chapters and activities, poster sessions, and webinars for students to practice leadership skills and develop professional networks. It is an objective of the project for the PIs to explore a model focusing on scalability and reciprocity to ensure the best chance of maximizing benefits for all stakeholders, increase the partnership among academia, industries, and professional societies domestically and internationally, and sustain the project beyond its proposed duration. In Years 2 and 3, the PIs seek to include additional universities in Hong Kong that are interested in participating with their own funding. The Center plans to work with other professional societies to explore the extension of this model to other disciplines. In addition to publishing research results, the project team utilizes ASTFE's media and outreach programs, a website of the Center, and social media to publicize student activities.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.