Creative Collisions
The Global Change Center (GCC) supports faculty-motivated and -led working groups to promote synergies among Virginia Tech faculty that advance our land grant mission. We support efforts of faculty that might lead to new grant proposals, curricular developments, and contributions to University priorities (experiential learning, strategic areas of investment, undergraduate research). Working groups should have a thematic basis related to global change, be led by GCC affiliated faculty, and serve multiple faculty affiliated with the GCC. Engagement of faculty outside of the GCC as well as collaborators and stakeholders external to Virginia Tech is encouraged but not required.
If you are interested in proposing a new working group, please contact the Dr. Bill Hopkins, Director of the GCC. The process is flexible and designed to support the individualized needs and goals of each faculty team. Generally, working groups develop through a two-step process. First, we encourage and support initial exploratory meetings to develop strong buy-in from a core faculty team and identify priorities for what the working group hopes to achieve. The GCC will provide logistical and financial support for these initial discussions. After gaining momentum and focus through these initial meetings, working groups can propose more resource-intensive needs to meet their specific objectives. Examples include support for workshops, guest speakers, course or proposal development, and novel training opportunities for faculty and students. Longevity of working groups is also flexible (ranging from months to years) and is dependent on the working group’s goals and motivations, as well as demonstrated outcomes from prior resource investments.
