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Dr. Caitlin Ferrarini, Assistant Teaching Professor in Integrative and Global Studies leads "Dissertation Dish"

dfarmer — Fri, 10 Oct 2025 12:00:00 +0000

Professor Ferrarini examines the Potential of Online Community-Based Learning to Foster Global Citizenship Capacities in College Students.

This multi-institutional study examines the potential of fully online community-based learning to foster global citizenship in college students. A mixed-methods analysis of pre/post surveys (n = 187) and alumni interviews (n = 23) found that first-generation students participating in an online community-based learning program during the COVID-19 pandemic reported greater learning gains than their non-first-generation peers. The most influential program factor in shaping student learning and future actions was the development of trusting relationships with partner community members (i.e. mentors, peers, or community members). Recommendations include practical resources that global and civic educators can utilize in their own classrooms.

William San Mart铆n to Speak at UN Environment Programme鈥檚 Panel on the Social Dimensions of Nitrogen Pollution

hshick — Fri, 05 Sep 2025 12:00:00 +0000

William San Mart铆n, Assistant Professor in the Department of Integrative and Global Studies, will participate as a speaker in a technical session of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Working Group on Nitrogen, focusing on the social dimensions of sustainable nitrogen management.

The UNEP Working Group on Nitrogen was established to advance the implementation of UN resolutions on sustainable nitrogen management and to foster collaboration among Member States, policymakers, and stakeholders. While the session is designed to provide insights for these groups, it is also open to the public.

About the event
Nitrogen presents complex, far-reaching challenges for ecosystems, human health, livelihoods, and food systems. Addressing these issues goes beyond technical solutions and requires a systemic understanding of the social, economic, and political contexts in which they occur. Addressing the disciplinary and social disconnect in policy and practice will help to formulate effective, inclusive, and sustainable policy responses to the nitrogen crisis.
The session will highlight critical social dimensions of sustainable nitrogen management, demonstrating the value of integrating these perspectives into research, policy, and governance. Dr. San Mart铆n, together with other leading global experts, will share insights and experiences on addressing nitrogen-related challenges in areas such as human health, diet, agriculture, and governance鈥攄omains where technical solutions alone are insufficient.

Event Details
鈥?Date: Friday, 19 September 2025
鈥?Time: 10:00鈥?2:00 East African Time
鈥?Format: Online
Session agenda and registration: https://www.unep.org/events/online-event/first-technical-session-unep-working-group-nitrogen-social-dimensions

Associate Dean of The Global School

dfarmer — Tue, 03 Jun 2025 12:00:00 +0000

We are pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Sarah Stanlick as associate dean of The Global School, effective August 1, 2025.

A faculty member in the Department of Integrative and Global Studies, Dr. Stanlick is currently an assistant professor who will gain tenure and promotion to associate professor on July 1. She joined WPI five years ago and in 2022 became director of WPI鈥檚 signature first-year experience program, the Great Problems Seminar. As a member of the Global School leadership team, Dr. Stanlick is already an enthusiastic voice for project-based learning across the curriculum and an important advocate for WPI鈥檚 innovative pedagogy to external audiences. We are thrilled for her to be stepping into this new role that touches the entire WPI community.

Dr. Stanlick was awarded an AB in international studies from Lafayette College, an MA in conflict and coexistence studies from Brandeis University, and a PhD in learning sciences and technology from Lehigh University. She was the founding director of Lehigh University鈥檚 Center for Community Engagement and a faculty member in sociology and anthropology. She previously taught at Centenary College of New Jersey and was a researcher at Harvard Kennedy School, assisting U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power.

Dr. Stanlick has taught the Great Problems Seminar and the ID 2050 social science methods course, has advised numerous student projects in the Global Projects Program, and is co-director of the Reykjavik, Iceland, Project Center. She also has developed new courses for two graduate programs, advised and mentored undergraduate students in the Early Research Experience in E-Term, and advised graduate students. She is a regular participant in faculty learning communities at WPI and has engaged in collaborative work to advance the integration of open educational resources and open pedagogical practices across the WPI curriculum. She encourages and models engaged, active citizenship and helps create conditions for all community members to be able to engage similarly.

Her research and publications also contribute to the emerging area of digital technology within global service learning and community-engaged scholarship. Her work establishes crucial foundations for WPI to carry forward global project-based learning into the next era. Dr. Stanlick has served WPI on numerous university committees, most recently being appointed to the Board of Trustee鈥檚 Student Affairs Committee. She has also made significant service contributions to the profession nationally through her work as co-chair of Imagining America鈥檚 Assessing the Practices of Public Scholarship (APPS) collective and as co-director of the Community-Based Global Learning Collaborative.

Please join me in welcoming Sarah to this new role!

We also want to thank and celebrate Associate Dean Kent Rissmiller, who will begin a phased retirement in July 2025 after 36 years of outstanding service to WPI. Kent began his career in WPI鈥檚 Department of Social Science and Policy Studies in September 1988 and was tenured as associate professor in 1994. In 2005, Kent joined the WPI Institutional Review Board (IRB) as a board member, and in 2006 he became the chair, a role he still holds today. In 2006, Kent also took on a new role as associate dean of what was then the Interdisciplinary and Global Studies Division (IGSD). Kent served in this capacity for 10 years, then was appointed dean ad interim of IGSD in 2016. Leading a period of rapid growth in our signature Global Projects Program, he then served as interim dean of The Global School when it was newly launched.

In 2021, Kent became associate dean of The Global School, where he helped oversee our network of over 50 project centers, which serve more than 1,200 students and engage scores of WPI faculty each year. Under his steady and committed leadership, the Global Projects Program has grown from a program that serves only some students to one that engages over 85% of WPI undergraduates in authentic, project-based learning opportunities in communities close to home and around the world.

Kent has positively impacted generations of WPI faculty, staff, and students through his leadership and contributions as a faculty member and an administrator. It is hard to imagine how the Global Projects Program will continue without Kent at the helm, but we are reassured that he will still be here helping us as we transition the program to the leadership of Dr. Stanlick.

Kent has led the staff of the Global Experience Office, hired scores of advisors, teaching faculty, and adjuncts for WPI鈥檚 Global Projects Program; opened new project centers on five continents; spearheaded multiple IQP assessment initiatives; and oversaw the on-campus IQP. In 2012 he became the director of the Washington, D.C., Project Center, WPI鈥檚 longest-running center. He also advised projects at project centers in Washington, D.C., London, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, and Zurich; raised his sons; and still found time to run regularly with WPI鈥檚 running club, the Footpounders!

Kent has taught courses in the areas of government, law, and public policy. His research has addressed the restructuring of the electric industry, energy conservation in hospitals, and the Green Communities program in Massachusetts. Kent also directs WPI鈥檚 pre-law program and oversees the law and technology minor. He has long been focused on improving learning outcomes for WPI students and he served six years on WPI鈥檚 Undergraduate Outcomes Assessment Committee. In 2010, under Kent鈥檚 leadership, WPI鈥?IRB became registered with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Subjects, and since that time, the board鈥檚 service to WPI has greatly expanded, reviewing thousands of applications.

Kent has been a pillar of the WPI ethos and we will continue to draw on his wisdom for years to come! Please join us in celebrating Kent鈥檚 career and contributions to WPI in the coming year!

MassDEP names Professors Corey Dehner and Paul Mathisen Educators of the Decade

dfarmer — Thu, 15 May 2025 12:00:00 +0000

MassDEP celebrates 50 years of protecting the environment and preserving our future across the Commonwealth at WPI on June 2, 2025. Department of Integrative and Global Studies, Professor Corey Dehner and Associate Professor and Director of Sustainability, Paul Mathisen have been named Educators of the Decade for their guidance and direction at the Water Resource Outreach Project Center.

Global School Celebrates 50 years of the Global Projects Program

dfarmer — Mon, 28 Apr 2025 12:00:00 +0000

On April 15, WPI commemorated an important milestone鈥?0 years of global projects! Over the past five decades, we've built bridges across continents, fostered meaningful connections, and made a lasting impact on communities around the world through our distinctive Global Projects Program. The program provides opportunities for students to travel off-campus to conduct term-length projects that are required for graduation.

As we celebrated this academic year鈥檚 50th anniversary of our first project center in Washington, DC with faculty, students, staff and alumni in the Rubin Campus Center Odeum, we were fortunate to hear from our distinguished leaders who recognize the significance of this transformative educational experience. President Grace Wang and U.S. Representative Jim McGovern reiterated the profound impact global learning experiences have on our students.

鈥淲PI had the foresight to create a program that said education isn't confined to a lecture hall. That true learning happens out in the world side by side with regular people in places that are unfamiliar facing problems are real,鈥?said McGovern. 鈥淲PI students are entering the workforce with practical knowledge, a global perspective, and a proven ability to lead across cultures and disciplines. That gives them an edge.鈥?amp;nbsp;

We heard from Pamela Lynch, 鈥?5 about her Global Projects Program experience in Thailand and how she carried the guiding principles from that student project throughout her career in renewable and sustainable energy. And our leadership in The Global School reiterated the gratitude we feel for our community who plays an important part in a campus program that continues to thrive with your contributions great and small.

鈥淲hat happens in these project centers is so powerful both for the faculty who advise the projects and the students,鈥?said Kent Rissmiller, associate dean of The Global School. 鈥淭his is just a tremendous developmental learning opportunity that does transform lives.鈥?lt;/p>

As we look to the future, we must continue to inspire, innovate, and collaborate, making the world a better place for generations to come. That innovation for the future is already underway. 鈥淭he Global Projects Program helps our students understand how to use their STEM education ethically and responsibly. With the emerging power of artificial intelligence, this kind of learning is more important than ever because all technology only exists in a human context,鈥?said Mimi Sheller, dean of The Global School. 鈥淎s we look towards the future, we are exploring new initiatives that will incorporate responsible AI into student projects, working closely with sponsors around the world, for example, to see how teams can use technology in new ways that help us bridge language differences or respect inherent cultural differences and overcome the biases that might exist in the algorithms and some of the new technologies.鈥?lt;/p>

Thank you for supporting, joining, and celebrating with us and getting excited for what the next 50 years will bring!

WPI Celebrates 50 years!

Associate Dean of the Global School Finalist Campus Visits

dfarmer — Mon, 07 Apr 2025 12:00:00 +0000

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

The finalists for the Associate Dean of the Global School have been selected and each will be asked to lead an open presentation to faculty and staff. Candidates will focus their presentations on their vision for the Global Projects Program, addressing challenges and opportunities. All candidate materials will be posted to the Canvas site.

Presentation Schedule:

路 Sarah Stanlick: April 14th, 10-11AM, Innovation Studio Room 203 or Zoom

路 Aaron Sakulich: April 17th, 9:30-10:30AM via Zoom

路 Jeanine Skorinko: April 22nd, 11AM-12PM, Innovation Studio Room 203 or Zoom

All presentations will be recorded and posted to the Canvas site so members of the community who are unable to attend will have the opportunity to hear from and learn about our candidates. Following the presentations, we invite you to submit your feedback via Qualtrics survey, which will also be posted in Canvas.

Please save the dates and we look forward to your participation in the search!

Best,

The GS Assoc Dean Search Committee:

Kris Wobbe (chair, DIGS, CPBL)
Laureen Elgert (DIGS)
Aarti Madan (HUA)
Adam Powell (MME)
Lisa Stoddard (DIGS)

WPI Podcast Explores Mentorship Program for Students Interested in Sustainability

jcain — Thu, 27 Mar 2025 12:00:00 +0000

In a new WPI podcast, we highlight the university鈥檚 Sustainable Career Mentorship Program that gives students who are interested in sustainability an opportunity to connect one-on-one with professionals working in green jobs or sustainable fields.

Podcast guest Elisabeth 鈥淟isa鈥?Stoddard, one of the program organizers, is an associate professor of teaching of environmental and sustainability studies and in The Global School.

Listen to the episode. You may also read the transcript below.

Jon Cain:

It is a journey to choose and find your way into a career, so it can be really helpful to have people with you on that journey. That's one of the ideas at the heart of the Sustainable Career Mentorship Program at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. It launched in the fall of 2024, and it's a resource for students interested in exploring careers in green and sustainable industries. Today we'll explore the program, so if you're a student, you can decide if it's right for you. Hi, I'm Jon Cain from the Marketing Communications Division at WPI. This podcast brings you news and expertise from our classrooms, campus and labs. I'm here at the WPI Global Lab in the Innovation studio, and I'm excited to be joined by an organizer of the mentorship program. Elisabeth "Lisa" Stoddard is an associate professor of teaching in environmental and sustainability studies and in The Global School at WPI. Lisa, thanks for being here.

Lisa Stoddard:

Hi. Thanks so much for having me.

Cain:

Why don't we start right off the top. I'm going to ask, what is the Sustainable Career Mentorship Program at WPI?

Stoddard:

So the Sustainable Career Mentorship Program, pairs, WPI students who are interested in careers and sustainability with WPI alumni and professionals in green jobs or sustainable fields.

Cain:

So you've got mentors and mentees. How often do they meet and what are some of the topics that they discuss?

Stoddard:

We ask them to meet at least twice a year, one in the fall semester and once in the spring semester, but through the pilot program this year, we found that our mentors and mentees often meet more often and that can range from maybe once a term to once a month.

Cain:

Do they meet in person or virtually or some combination thereof that sort of works for them? Is there any sort of format or template to it?

Stoddard:

Yeah, so we have some folks who meet in person, and that's really for people who live either in Worcester or Boston in terms of the employers or the mentors, and they can meet the mentees on campus or somewhere in the Worcester area. For others, they're going to be meeting via Zoom just because it's much more convenient and they can do that more frequently. We also have some who do a little bit of both, so they might meet more frequently via Zoom and then on occasion meet off campus. We also have at the end of the program a lunch where everyone is invited on campus, all of the mentors and mentees to celebrate and recognize the mentors and to talk with them a bit about what鈥檚 going well with the program and where we might improve.

Cain:

That's great. It sounds like there's a lot of different opportunities to check in along the way.

Stoddard:

Yeah. And you also mentioned what topics are they covering? So we have mentees that range from first year students to seniors, and so for some of our first year students, they're thinking about maybe they have an interest or areas that they're really passionate about, but they don鈥檛 know what jobs match with that passion or those areas of interest. We have seniors who already have a job secured after graduation, but those jobs might not be in a sustainable field, so they want to know how can they approach that job, do well in that job and that position, but shift towards a more sustainable career. We have some other students who might be interested in learning about types of internships or research opportunities and getting some really detailed guidance from somebody in that field who might be able to tell them about those opportunities, but also to make some connections for them, maybe some first introductions. We have other students who might want an expert from that field to review their resume and to help them to think about what they might highlight for a particular job, and also to practice some interview questions. We also have some folks who, some mentees who are really hoping for the opportunity to maybe work with their mentor on site, and that doesn't happen for everybody. It may not be a fit, but we have some mentees who might join a mentor at a conference and be able to get exposure to expertise or discussions or conversations, organizations and people who they might not have had a chance to meet before. So the topics range, the opportunities range. We try to find a balance of having a structure that people can work in where the goals are clear. There's some guidelines around when folks should meet and how often they should meet, but then we allow that relationship to develop and for that mentor to kind of bring to the mentee the resources and assets that they each have.

Cain:

Lisa, how many WPI students are part of the program and how many mentors are there?

Stoddard:

So we currently have 17 students who are part of the program as mentees, and we currently have 25 mentors. And of those 25 mentors, 14 of them are WPI alumni.

Cain:

What types of jobs or fields do the mentors come from?

Stoddard:

So the mentors come from quite a diverse range of fields. They range from conservation to renewable energy, battery storage, sustainable metals, green architecture, green entrepreneurship or business, climate resilient design, urban planning, water waste management, sustainability consulting, and some others.

Cain:

So I wanted to talk a little bit about who's able to participate. Are there any requirements that WPI students need to meet to join the mentorship program? Do they have to come from a specific major?

Stoddard:

So we've designed the program so that any student on WPIs campus can participate in the program. So it's open to every major every year, and we've recently had some requests for graduate students to join the program. So we're happy to welcome undergraduates and graduates into the program. The real requirement is that they have some interest in sustainability or interest in a green field. It doesn't have to be a full commitment. It could be an area that they want to explore. They have to be willing to commit at least to meeting with their mentor twice a year and to doing the preparations needed for that meeting. And that's really up to the mentor and mentee. So if they decide that the student is going to develop their resume or a cover letter or look for particular job opportunities or internship opportunities, they would do that in advance.

Cain:

So have you found that you've got a pretty wide breadth of students from different majors since it is open to everyone with that interest?

Stoddard:

Yeah, it's really exciting to see. We have students from robotics, data science, mechanical engineering, civil and environmental engineering, environmental and sustainability studies. We have students in robotics who are interested in designing robots to remove pollution and waste and trash from the ocean. We have a student who is a civil engineering student who's interested in conservation and she's interested in figuring out different ways that we can build corridors for wildlife to go through. We have some students in data science who are interested in using data science to create climate models or to predict where animals and plant species might move in a changing climate to see how those ecosystems might be disrupted, but then also what interventions we can do to support those animals and those ecosystems and the human communities that are reliant upon them.

Cain:

Really an important reminder of the breadth of the sustainability challenge and also the fact that people can come at this from a lot of different ideas and areas of expertise. So it's great that there's that opportunity for folks to sort of explore what interests them and not be restricted.

Stoddard:

And it's been great because we've had some students who might have an interest, let's say in urban sustainability or green architecture, climate resilient design. And when we, at first, if we don't have a mentor that we see as a fit, we then will reach out to our alumni and then even a broader network. So our alumni start to connect us to people in the field. We, at first didn't have somebody to really match with our student who was interested in taking civil engineering and conservation and looking at how to get into a career and creating wildlife corridors. But our alumni network helped us to identify somebody to bring into the mentoring program, and so now we have a match for that student and they've really hit it off and are making a lot of progress.

Cain:

. Lisa, why do you think it's so important that WPI students who have an interest in working in sustainability have this type of program available to them?

Stoddard:

It's really fascinating for me to learn about how these different students from different majors and mentors from different fields, how they all look at sustainability, climate resilience, how they look at it differently. And when you look at the environmental and climate problems that are out there, they're complex. And so to see that we have a cohort of students developing expertise and knowledge and becoming ready for the job market to tackle these global problems that are at a crisis level, it's exciting and inspiring to see that because we need that diverse set of knowledge, majors, minds, insight to address that kind of problem. At the same time, I see that as a real asset to WPI and to the workforce.

Those students, in terms of their majors, they travel really differently around our campus. So if you have a student in mechanical and robotics and social science and humanities, they're taking classes often quite separately from each other. They're not all in the same labs, they're not doing all the same projects. And so, there's been a request from students who are interested in sustainability to be able to develop a cohort, to get to work and collaborate together, to learn what each other are doing, to become part of a network, both at WPI, but then beyond with alumni and with employers and professionals in the field. So, because of our conversations with students around this, we decided to create this mentorship program, but also the annual event for Careers for Sustainable and Just Communities as ways to bring students together to help to enhance and form that community in that cohort.

Cain:

It sounds like there's a lot of benefits to the mentorship program that go beyond just the career preparation.

Stoddard:

Yeah, absolutely. There's one other thing I wanted to mention about the benefits of the program. I think when our students are looking at the job market and at careers that are out there, I think they can really see, and we can all see a growth in green jobs and in the sustainable career industry. When we look at the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, it shows that there's an increase in over 25,000 new jobs between 2020 and 2030 in the area of green jobs or sustainable jobs or jobs that are in sustainability. So, one of the benefits is that we're preparing our students for a job market that's actively looking for qualified people. So, if we can take student passions and interests and we can prepare them through these programs, through the mentorship program and career event to be able to show up for those jobs, qualified, excited, and prepared, we're enhancing their ability to get those jobs that they're passionate about and to be able to help fill positions to address the climate crisis. And when we're looking globally, the World Economic Forum shows that green jobs are growing twice as fast as workers in green fields. So we are globally having twice as many jobs as we have workers to fill them in the kind of green and sustainability sector.

Cain:

It sounds like there's a great opportunity for this program to kind of connect the dots between the student interests and the market demands.

Stoddard:

Absolutely.

Cain:

We talked a little bit about this earlier when we talked about the types of jobs or fields that the mentors come from, but I wanted to sort of dive in a little bit further on that. Can you give me some examples of the types of work that might fall under the umbrella of sustainable careers?

Stoddard:

So, we're really seeing green jobs pop up in the fields of urban planning about how do you design cities to be able to manage flooding, to be able to manage wildfires or extreme heat? How do you design cities so they're much more efficient so we're using less energy sources, so we're sharing resources better? As I mentioned before, there's a lot of interests and a lot of need to pay attention to ocean ecosystems. So that can range from students looking at ocean ecosystems and biology to robotics and cleaning the ocean of trash to finding innovative ways to manage ocean acidification and rebuilding corals. WPI is really strong and data science and in computer science, and so there's a lot of interest in the climate world of figuring out how do we get large data models that can help us to understand and to predict what might happen in a certain city, a certain region in terms of climate change impacts. Also being able to use those large data sets to make some predictions and to understand if we change some things, if we make some things more resilient, if we move away from coastal areas, what are the ways that we would need to do that? I think that data science and computer science have a lot of power in terms of being able to address the climate crisis by using large data model sets. We also have a lot of attention right now to PFAS, a chemical, and a large number of areas that are working on the removal of PFAS from waterways. We鈥檙e seeing a lot with students who are interested in mechanical engineering looking at urban resilient design, renewable energy. We're seeing students in biology where organizations are interested in the intersection between biology and biotechnology, climate change and health, and where those three come together. For students in chemistry and chemical engineering, looking at green chemistry, how can we still meet certain needs that we have, but do those in a way that is less harmful to the environment? I think the largest growth that we're seeing in the job market right now is coming around renewable energy, and that also links to jobs in battery storage and also sustainable mining. And so we're seeing in the Boston and Worcester area, a lot of really innovative startups that are thinking about how can we recycle metals for increased and more sustainable battery storage, and then how can we mine metals more sustainably so that as we shift towards more renewable energy and climate resilience, that we're thinking about the communities where those materials are made, where they're disposed of, so that we're doing that shift in a socially responsible way that addresses issues of environmental justice.

Cain:

What have you heard from the students who are mentees? What type of feedback have you received from them about how the experience has been so far since the launch in the fall?

Stoddard:

So, from our students, we're hearing that they feel like they're really making progress, they're connecting with their mentors. So I think that that's really important that they are finding people that they feel like they can relate to, people that are inspiring them, that are motivating them. I've heard from students that they're working on resumes and cover letters. They've had the opportunities to practice interviews. They're joining their mentors at conferences, that they're learning quite a lot. They've had a certain understanding of what green jobs are out there, but this has really expanded their knowledge and understanding of what the opportunities are. And I've heard from a number of students who say that they love their mentors, that they're really enjoying the relationship that they're building with them, and that it's having a lot of benefits in their ability to connect and network with those outside of WPI as well as inside of WPI.

Cain:

What's the data that you're going to be collecting along the way? What types of information?

Stoddard:

We're collecting both qualitative and quantitative data through surveys, emails, and then interviews. So, a lot of the data that we started collecting at first was asking the mentors and mentees what their goals were for participating in the program. And then research shows us that mentorship programs are most successful when there's some clear goals that are set out. So, we had students use multiple choice survey and scale to note what things that they're interested in particular. So, we had students select those types of things in addition to, are you interested in attending a conference with your mentor or joining them at their job site for a particular day? So we handed that information over to the mentors so that they could understand that better. And then collectively, the mentor and mentee can come up with a plan for their time together. So that time is used most wisely. Midterm, we've collected some data about what's working well and what's not working well, and what kinds of support do you need from the program. And then we'll collect some data at the end, both in terms of what's working well or what's not, get some ideas from the mentors and mentees about how we can modify the program, grow the program, offer additional opportunities.

Cain:

I often think about the mentorship programs, and I immediately think about the benefits that the mentees get out of it. I'm wondering what you have sort of seen so far or heard from the mentors, in many cases our alumni, about what they're taking away from the experience so far. What have you heard?

Stoddard:

Yeah, so it's been really interesting to see that our mentors and our alumni have talked about it being really exciting and inspiring to see who's coming into the field. They've been working on these really difficult issues for a decade or so. And I think seeing students coming in who have new ideas, who have new experiences and insights, who are coming to the field with a fresh sense of what's possible, what's most urgent and important. And so, it's, from what the mentors have told me, it's been really kind of a bright part of their day, week, month to be able to talk to the mentees and to get excited and inspired. Others have told me that supporting young people who are entering into careers in stem and in particular one mentor referenced that there's not a lot of women in her field. And so, supporting mentees who identify as female coming into her career has been really exciting for her and to be able to support that particular person in ways that she wishes she had had that kind of support earlier on. I think like our mentees; our mentors get excited about making a connection and finding someone who has a similar passion. And so, they really enjoy spending the time talking to each other and they feel really rewarded with seeing the progress that their mentee is making. And to be able to help their mentee make connections that their mentee may not have had before was a really rewarding feeling for them.

Cain:

You mentioned earlier that 14 of the mentors are graduates of WPI. I'm wondering what you think it means to the current students to have connections with WPI alumni?

Stoddard:

From what they've told me, I think it's helpful and inspiring for them to see people who are once in their position out on the ground in a field that they're excited about. I think all of our mentors are wonderful and our students find connections, but I think when a student can see an alumni who had some of the same classes, some of the same professors, some of the same experiences, they also went on IQP and MQP and had those really rewarding and life-changing experiences, and then can see them out on the field, can see the ways in which employers really value A WPI degree and what WPI students bring. So, I think it's that there's already that connection. There's already that relationship that exists, and I think it helps students to envision themselves in that particular career. And I think also for the mentors seeing themselves in the students a bit really motivates them to want to help that student to succeed.

Cain:

Lisa, this mentorship program began as a spinoff of sorts from another program at WPI that you help organize. You had mentioned it earlier, the Careers for Sustainable and Just Communities Networking Events that happen here on campus. What happens at these events and how frequently are those held?

Stoddard:

This event again came from student interest and student requests. And so I think one of the really cool things about WPI is that student voices are heard. And so, if students want to see growth in a particular area, want support in a particular area, they can advocate and work with faculty and staff and organizations on campus to get that done. So that's really what happened here. That sparked this whole programming area of programming around sustainable careers where two students coming and talking with an alumni and coming to us saying they want more opportunity around these areas. And so, at this particular event, we have about 30 to 35 employers come. And again, they're coming from a diverse set of areas, from conservation to energy to green architecture, et cetera. We have about maybe five employers in each of those areas sit at a round table. And the intent of this design is for students to be able to come in a casual setting and sit down at a table with folks in the energy industry and the renewable energy industry and ask questions, what's your job like day to day? What is the organization that you work for? What are the goals of your organization? How much money do you make? What do you like about your job? What do you not like about your job? And so, it's a much more casual way to get to know folks from those events. We've had students get internships, we've had them make connections, we've had them identify new mentors. We usually have a hundred to 120ish students come to the event each year, and we host it for about three to four hours. Students and employers come in, they grab a snack, and then they'll sit down at their tables and students rotate throughout the tables with an opportunity to talk to one or more people from each of the different career areas. So it's really intended to be a networking and kind of a one-off mentoring event where students can ask questions, get advice, and meet a diverse group of people from a diverse set of green fields and jobs.

Cain:

I'm wondering what drives you or motivates you to work so hard to keep the networking events and the mentorship program going on top of everything else that you're doing in terms of teaching and advising?

Stoddard:

Two things, really. One is the students. So, I'm very passionate about sustainability, about climate resilience, about climate justice, and seeing students who have that passion as well. I see them in my classes where they'll write to me after a project where they're literally lighting up over their excitement about gaining deeper knowledge in an area and identifying innovative solutions to problems that are really important to them. And so having those students come and want more support and to be able to provide that for them in a way where I can see what they're studying at WPI, what they're passionate about, how that can connect to a career that not only will they be able to have a livelihood and a job, but also one that will make them incredibly happy and passionate, and also one that helps to address the climate crisis. So I think that's first and foremost, is that seeing our students, I love our students. I'm so impressed with their knowledge, and I'm so inspired by their passion that anything that I can do to help move that forward is wonderful to me. It's really gratifying. It's probably the best part of my job. And I think the second part of it is I have twin nine year olds who are growing up in a world where we're dealing with the climate crisis, and I think about their future, and I think about what can I possibly do to try to help address this and to create a livable, environmentally sustainable and just world for my kids and other people's kids to grow up in. And so, when I think about 25, 50, a hundred, more students that are coming from diverse fields from all across our campus who are tackling this issue in a number of different ways, by supporting those students, that's one way that I can help to address the climate crisis.

Cain:

I know that there were a lot of people that have been working really hard to make these programs possible, these two programs at WPI. I'm wondering if you could tell me a little bit more about who some of your campus partners have been in this.

Stoddard:

Yeah, absolutely. So, The Global School, in particular, Laureen Elgert, who's the head of the Department of Integrative and Global Studies; she and I used to run the environmental and sustainability studies program together when we really started thinking about this type of programming. So, she's been a really wonderful partner. And then her leadership in The Global School has helped to kind of amplify that along with the Dean of The Global School, Mimi Sheller and others that have kind of expertise in that area. And then in the Department of Social Science and Policy Studies, Rob Krueger and others, Rob helped to start the Environmental and Sustainability Studies program has been supportive of these ideas and this type of programming. Also, the Office of Sustainability with Paul Mathisen and Nicole Luiz have been really helpful in bringing some of their programming together with the programming that we're developing so that we're not working in silos and isolated spaces that we're all bringing things together to collaborate. The Center for Career Development: Brittany Taylor has really been our point person who's been helping us with, I'm not an expert in career services, so Brittany's been helping us with how do we recruit mentors, how do we bring people to campus, how do we bring employers to campus? And then how do we prepare students to have effective and efficient and productive and meaningful conversations with them? So, she's been really critical with that. And then Hannah Shick from The Global School, she's helped with developing and designing our website, and that's been an incredible resource because our students can go on there, see who's available for mentors. We also have a page that lists current opportunities for internships and employment conferences and other opportunities related to sustainable careers for students.

Cain:

Lisa, if a student is interested in learning more about either of the programs, the networking events or the mentorship program, how can they get more information?

Stoddard:

They can reach out to me by email. My email is eastoddard@wpi.edu. They can also Google WPI Careers and Sustainability, and they'll see different tabs there that they can look through. One of them being the Sustainable Career Mentoring Program, one being events, one being green internships, and then the last being green job boards. So they can navigate that website. And on the Sustainable Career Mentoring Program tab, they'll see an application that they can fill out. I would encourage students who have any interest at all to reach out. I think that sometimes we worry if we have an interest in something and if we pursue it and we're not sure if that's the direction that we want to go to, we don't want to commit to that. And this is a really nice and safe space to students to be able to explore an interest, to have the opportunity to meet and talk with someone, to see if this is a fit, a potential fit for their future.

Cain:

Well said. Lisa, thanks so much for being here and telling us more about the mentorship program and the opportunities available to students who have an interest in sustainability. It's been fantastic.

Stoddard:

Thank you so much for having me. I really appreciate you taking the time to help us to share this with students, and it's been a real pleasure chatting with you.

Cain:

Likewise. Lisa Stoddard is an associate professor of teaching in environmental and sustainability studies, and in The Global School at WPI. You can hear more podcasts like this one at wpi.edu/listen. There you can also find audio versions of stories about our students, faculty and staff, everything from events to research. You can also check out the latest WPI News on Spotify, Apple podcasts and YouTube podcasts. You can also ask Alexa to open WPI. This podcast was produced at the WPI Global Lab in the Innovation Studio. Varun Bhat provided audio engineering help. Thanks for listening.

Puerto Rico Project Center Wins Community-Based Participatory Research Grant from Sociological Initiatives Foundation

hshick — Wed, 26 Feb 2025 12:00:00 +0000

The Puerto Rico Project Center won a $24,900 Community-Based Participatory Research grant from the Sociological Initiatives Foundation. The project will map and connect "rescued schools" across Puerto Rico, clarify government processes and advocacy strategies for school ownership transfer, and increase the political influence of communities working to repurpose abandoned schools into community centers. The project is a collaboration with three rescued schools in Puerto Rico that serve as IQP sponsors and much of the grant will be facilitated through student IQPs.

The Puerto Rico Project Center is co-directed by Assistant Professor of Teaching John-Michael Davis and Instructor Scott Juisto in the Department of Integrative and Global Studies.

The grant has been published on the Sociological Initiatives Foundation website: https://www.sifoundation.org/past-grants/

WPI Honored as Leader in Field of Educational Development and GenAI

mlumsden — Fri, 08 Nov 2024 12:00:00 +0000

WPI is being recognized as leading the field in educational development around generative AI (GenAI). The POD Network, which is the premiere professional association for professional and organizational development in higher education, is awarding a WPI team the Robert J. Menges Award for Outstanding Research in Educational Development.

Kimberly LeChasseur (Morgan Teaching & Learning Center), Gillian Smith (IMGD), Yunus Telliel (HUA), and Geoff Pfeifer (DIGS) are being given the honor for their paper, 鈥?..But We鈥檙e Not Stochastic Parrots: CTLs Leading GenAI Pedagogy.鈥?The paper explores what it means to form inclusive GenAI educational development supports within institutions of higher education, rather than focusing exclusively on building technical knowledge and skills. The paper鈥檚 title is a reference to AI systems that parrot back human-like responses that may be convincing, yet ultimately are merely performative and lack authentic meaning.

The team has been behind much of the professional development at WPI on GenAI for teaching and learning, including the GenAI for Teaching and Learning microcourse, two Professional Learning Communities on GenAI, and several seminars and AI jam sessions. While analyzing what they were learning, the team generated a new framework for understanding where centers for teaching and learning fit into the university鈥檚 broader pedagogical ecosystem. The framework describes GenAI initiatives and interventions with a range of foci from technical to humanistic, as well as a range of scopes from depth (such as a master鈥檚 degree program in AI) to breadth (such as a university-wide undergraduate learning outcome on AI).

鈥淭he framework can be used as a tool to assess which types of GenAI initiatives are present within an institution鈥檚 pedagogical ecosystem and point to any gaps,鈥?says LeChasseur.

In addition to providing a professional community for educational developers, the POD Network serves as a leading voice on teaching and learning in higher education. The WPI team鈥檚 paper will be presented in Chicago at the 2024 annual meeting on November 13 and will be available on the POD Network website.

Caitlin Osorio Ferrarini, assistant teaching professor in The Global School, received an Excellence in Diversity and Inclusion in International Education (EDIIE) Award from Diversity Abroad

dfarmer — Thu, 07 Nov 2024 12:00:00 +0000

Caitlin Osorio Ferrarini, assistant teaching professor in The Global School, received an Excellence in Diversity and Inclusion in International Education (EDIIE) Award from Diversity Abroad October 31 at their conference and awards gala in Washington D.C.

鈥淚 was honored to be recognized for my recent scholarship, which has focused on assets that diverse students, particularly first-generation college students and students of color, bring to global learning experiences,鈥?said Ferrarini. 鈥淭he Diversity Abroad Network has been an important part of my scholarly and professional development during graduate school, and I admire their commitment to improving practice and ultimately global鈥痩earning outcomes for all students.鈥濃€?lt;/span>

Diversity Abroad is a membership organization that inspires and supports educators, policy makers, industry professionals and other stakeholders in leveraging global educational programs to support the academic success, interpersonal development, and career readiness of students from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds.

The EDIIE Awards celebrate outstanding institutions, organizations, and individuals who have developed inclusive practices that increase access, foster diversity and inclusion in international education and promote an inclusive environment for international students on campus. Ferrarini was awarded in the category of Global Student Leadership: Graduate.

Ferrarini graduated in May with a PhD in Education from the University of Massachusetts Boston. She dedicated research during her doctoral studies to experiential global learning with a focus on creating inclusive and critical pedagogy and programming.

Read more about Ferrarini鈥檚 award: 2024 Excellence in Diversity & Inclusion in International Education Award Recipients

Professor Tsitsi Masvawure discusses global health on Challenge. Change. podcast

hshick — Mon, 21 Oct 2024 12:00:00 +0000

Tsitsi Masvawure, assistant professor of anthropology and global health in the Department of Integrative and Global Studies, was a guest on the podcast Challenge. Change. The podcast is produced by Clark University.

In the episode 鈥?lt;/span>Taking the Temperature of Global Health,鈥?Masvawure was joined by Ellen Foley, a medical anthropologist and professor in the Department of Sustainability and Social Justice at Clark University.

Masvawure, who is a director of the Master of Science in Global Health program and the minor in global public health at WPI, discusses why she believes there is a need to clarify and re-frame what global health is if its aspirations for more equitable collaborations are to be realized.

Masvawure and Foley co-edited The Routledge Handbook of Anthropology and Global Health, published earlier this year. In the book, Masvawure authored a chapter that makes the case for the United States to be seen not just as a place of global health expertise, but also as a space that could itself benefit from global health intervention.

Listen to the podcast episode here.

You can find other episodes of the Challenge. Change. podcast here.

7th Community Based Global Learning Summit for a Better World: Global Learning, Hope, and Justice Conference at WPI

dfarmer — Mon, 14 Oct 2024 12:00:00 +0000

Collaboration for a Better World: Global Learning, Hope, and Justice

Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, MA
November 8-10, 2024

Since 2011, the Community-based Global Learning Collaborative Summits (formerly Global Service-Learning Summits) have been a mainstay to bring together stakeholders in deep, integrative, ethical community-based global learning.

The Summit Series has developed an inclusive community of practice advancing best practices and aspiring to the highest standards of community-campus partnerships for global learning locally and internationally. Members of this community include diverse stakeholders: students, educators across disciplines, practitioners, community organization representatives, and community members.

Each CBGL Summit has stimulated conversations around critical issues facing the field. Through an applied conference framework, participants build community and determine action steps. The 7th Global Community-Based Global Summit theme is: Collaboration for a Better World: Global Learning, Hope, and Justice

Consistent with CBGL Summit precedents, the upcoming Summit at Worcester Polytechnic Institute seeks proposals that prioritize community partner perspectives, community partnership/impact research, and case studies that involve community voice in the writing process (both co-written or co-edited by community partners) related to effective, inclusive partnerships that advance shared approaches to global learning, inclusion, and transformation.

Registration closes on 10/15/2024: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/7th-cbgl-summit-for-a-better-world-global-learning-hope-and-justice-registration-939011216827

The Precarity of AI? One Philosophy Professor Discusses AI's Uncertainties

rtatarek — Wed, 07 Aug 2024 12:00:00 +0000

鈥淚 think we鈥檙e living in a time that鈥檚 rife with all kinds of precarity,鈥?said Geoffrey Pfeifer, associate professor of global studies and philosophy at WPI. 鈥淧recarity of our knowledge systems, precarity of our political systems, precarity of our environment, precarity of jobs and work life.鈥?amp;nbsp;

Precarity of artificial intelligence.

A philosopher by training, Pfeifer does not identify as an expert in artificial intelligence research. Yet, as is the case for most professionals today, the implications of AI are inescapable in his work, which focuses on social and political philosophy, global justice, and critical pedagogies. When he helped with the design and instruction of a critical AI micro-course for faculty earlier this summer, he started to understand problems in the environmental impact and ethics of AI, particularly chatbots.

Associate Professor Geoffrey Pfeifer

鈥淭hey鈥檙e consuming so much energy,鈥?he said. 鈥淵ou can imagine what this means for us when we think about the environment and climate change and fossil fuel usage. And people in the AI space are starting to say that we may see limits on AI鈥檚 ability to do what it does because we鈥檙e limited by its energy consumption.鈥?lt;/p>

Pfeifer is not the only philosopher with concerns about AI鈥檚 slippery slope. The annual Society for Philosophy in the Contemporary World (SPCW) conference, held July 17鈥?0 at WPI, included multiple presentations that addressed the conference theme of 鈥減recarity鈥?through AI. Pfeifer, coeditor of the SPCW鈥檚 Journal of Philosophy in the Contemporary World, was host of the conference. His two departments at WPI, Integrative & Global Studies and Humanities & Arts, cosponsored the event.

One conference presentation, by Richard Frohock, a PhD candidate in philosophy at the University of South Florida, examined AI chatbots and the precarity of our knowledge systems鈥攊n particular, what might happen when AI takes over the role of expert. In the same way that 鈥渇ood deserts鈥?result from the absence of nearby grocery stores in certain communities, Frohock theorized that AI could lead to 鈥渆xpert deserts鈥?where human experts in certain fields have been replaced by chatbots.

Pfeifer said his own questions about chatbots have bled into questions around extractivism, a term that he used to describe the practice of mining minerals for chip production primarily in the Global South. He said that the social and political implications of extractivism go beyond climate to things like land ownership, environmental degradation, and the impact on local residents.

This raised further ethical concerns around what Pfeifer called the hidden labor of training chatbots and generative AI models. For example, OpenAI and similar companies employed workers in economically disadvantaged countries to manually filter out 鈥渁ll the horrific content you can find on the internet.鈥?In recorded interviews, some of these workers report that they were traumatized by what they were exposed to, lost their families as a result of this trauma, and were inadequately compensated.

鈥淭hese are global justice questions,鈥?he said. 鈥淎nd this is all hidden stuff that we don鈥檛 see.鈥?lt;/p>

The precarity generated by AI doesn鈥檛 stop there. Other ethical questions that are top of mind for Pfeifer include the lack of transparency in data collection and the perpetuation of biases in AI training data. But don鈥檛 mistake his caution for complete pessimism.

鈥淪ometimes I catch myself sounding so negative. I think it鈥檚 less negativity and more trying to be critical and make sure that we鈥檙e paying attention to these things.鈥?amp;nbsp;

鈥淚 don鈥檛 think it means that we have to reject AI or not train people to work with AI,鈥?he added. 鈥淏ut these are issues that we鈥檙e going to need to confront as a society. And we should train our students to be aware of them so they can think about ways to minimize these harms as infrastructure gets built out.鈥?lt;/p>

While many things in the contemporary world may be precarious, WPI鈥檚 capacity to train the leaders of the future is not one of them. The university believes that the key to shaping the future of AI is specialized education with a dual foundation in technical expertise and responsible practices. In late 2023, WPI announced the launch of its Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence, boasting a curriculum that was jointly crafted by industry leaders and faculty experts to address the same ethical considerations that Pfeifer and others have raised. This fall, the university will welcome its first cohort of graduate students in the program.

WPI faculty, too, are benefiting from AI training. The micro-course on critical AI literacy that Pfeifer contributed to was spearheaded by resident experts Gillian Smith, director of the Interactive Media & Game Design department, and Yunus Telliel, assistant professor of anthropology and rhetoric.

William San Mart铆n (DIGS) awarded an NSF grant to accelerate research and policy to reduce global nitrogen pollution

dfarmer — Tue, 18 Jun 2024 12:00:00 +0000

William San Mart铆n has received a 4-year NSF grant for the project Accelerating Coordination across Research and Policy Networks to Halve Nitrogen Waste (iN-Net) ($1.49 million, Award 2412593). The project works with international scientific networks and policymakers in South Asia, Africa, Latin America, the US, and Europe, as well as with intergovernmental organizations, including the United Nations Environment Program - Nitrogen Working Group, a forum of 80+ government representatives created in 2019 to explore the challenges of governing nitrogen pollution and developing new national and international policy instruments.

In collaboration with researchers David Kanter at New York University, Xin Zhang at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Sciences, and Peter Groffman at the City University of New York, the project aims to support the mandates of recent UN Resolutions on Sustainable Nitrogen Management and the ambitious goal of halving nitrogen waste by 2030.

While nitrogen pollution may not have received the same level of public attention as carbon emissions, biodiversity loss, or climate change, it is a pressing issue intricately linked to these global challenges. The overuse and inefficient use of nitrogen fertilizer for food production, among other human actions, has led to a cascade of long-lasting negative impacts on the planet, humans, and ecosystems. Consequently, nitrogen has become one of the most complex and urgent problems for environmental science and governance today. To tackle these challenges, the project will support international cooperation across research and policy in three critical areas for nitrogen science and policy: data, governance, and climate.

San Mart铆n will oversee the governance area of the project and lead an international, interdisciplinary working group dedicated to addressing governance challenges globally. This group will identify important knowledge gaps, social barriers, and policy challenges. The goal is to develop research-action agendas to aid UN Member States and research communities in promoting sustainable nitrogen management practices while keeping close attention to disparities in current research capacities and governance tools, as well as the distinct needs and agendas across the Global North and South.

WPI Presented with Award from NAFSA: Association of International Educators

dfarmer — Wed, 29 May 2024 12:00:00 +0000

From L to R: Fanta Aw, NAFSA Executive Director and CEO, Krista Miller, Assistant Director Global Experience Office, Mimi Sheller, Dean of the Global School, and LaNitra Berger, NAFSA President and Chair of the Board of Directors

Today in New Orleans, WPI formally accepted a distinguished award that honors the university for its efforts to expand access to global experiential learning through the Global Projects Program.

Since 2002, NAFSA, the world鈥檚 largest nonprofit association dedicated to international education and exchange, has presented the Senator Paul Simon Award for Campus Internationalization annually to American colleges and universities that demonstrate outstanding commitment to and accomplishment in campus internationalization. Named after the late Senator Paul Simon of Illinois, the Simon Spotlight Award recognizes an innovative program or initiative that contributes to internationalization on campus.

On hand to accept the award at the NAFSA Awards Banquet in New Orleans during the NAFSA 2024 Annual Conference & Expo were Dean of The Global School Mimi Sheller and Global Experience Office Assistant Director Krista Miller. A video message from President Grace J. Wang accepting the award was played during the awards luncheon.

鈥淲e are extremely proud for WPI to receive this prestigious award. It recognizes the opportunity we have created for every WPI undergraduate to participate in our Global Projects Program,鈥?says Sheller. 鈥淭he Global School embodies WPI鈥檚 commitment to internationalization.鈥?lt;/span>

The Global Projects Program is a central pillar of WPI and The Global School, combining a STEM-centered education with the promotion of global learning at the intersection of science, technology, and society. The program gives every WPI student the opportunity to work in teams to address issues, challenges, and opportunities that connect not only to technical knowledge but to greater societal impact. Through the Global Projects Program, WPI students can complete required projects off-campus at more than 50 WPI project centers worldwide. The Global Projects Program is administered by The Global School鈥檚 Global Experience Office.

NAFSA selected WPI for the award in recognition of WPI鈥檚 supports for the Global Projects Program, including the Global Scholarship. Every full-time undergraduate student at WPI receives a one-time institutional scholarship of up to $5,000 to defray some of the costs of an off-campus project experience through the Global Projects Program.

More information about WPI鈥檚 Senator Paul Simon Spotlight Award from NAFSA is available here.

Watch part of President Wang鈥檚 Simon Award acceptance video:

Global School Professor Grant Burrier and IQP student Sarah Saeed 鈥?5 publish article on Panamanian Heritage Buses Research

dfarmer — Thu, 18 Apr 2024 12:00:00 +0000

Dr. Grant Burrier, associate professor of teaching in The Global School, and Sarah Saeed 鈥?5, a civil engineering major, are the authors of a new published article titled 鈥?lt;/span>Beyond Transportation, Panama's Diablos Rojos Are Treasured Rolling Artwork.鈥?Their article, published on NACLA.org, discusses the cultural significance of Panama City鈥檚 iconic heritage bus system, the Diablos Rojos, and the threat they face as the country pushes towards modernity. Diablos Rojos are old American school buses that individual drivers purchase, intricately decorate, and convert into private transportation for Panamanian communities.

Dr. Burrier and Saeed, along with a team of four other third-year students [Leah Kolb (architectural engineering), Anna Callaghan (biomedical engineering), Sam Ollari (computer science), and Micah Vargas (computer science and interactive media and game design)] traveled to Panama last fall to complete their Interactive Qualifying Project (IQP) 鈥?lt;/span>Diablos Rojos: A Window into Panamanian Identity.鈥?lt;/span>

They collected stories, photographs, video, and ethnographic notes from the communities surrounding Diablos Rojos. They also interviewed Dr. Peter Szok, author of Wolf Tracks: Popular Art and Re-Africanization in Twentieth-Century Panama and Dr. Aarti Madan, Associate Professor of Spanish & International Studies in the Department of Humanities & Arts. The primary mode of research involved speaking to bus drivers, artists, mechanics, and passengers to understand how these buses grew out of a subaltern population of non-mestizo Panamanians: largely Afro-Panamanians and the working class.

The research conducted for this project prioritized cultural sensitivity, as the team tried to focus on amplifying Panamanian stories rather than projecting assumptions and biases onto their work. This project would not have been possible without the amazing Diablo community members who were willing to share their stories.

After completing the IQP and returning from Panama, Dr. Burrier and Saeed continued to explore the relevance of Diablos Rojos as upcoming elections further threaten the existence of these buses. As bus artist Piri put it, Panama without Diablos Rojos would be 鈥渓ike a garden without roses. A sky without stars.鈥?lt;/span>

Photo by Grant Burrier

Community Climate Adaptation students work on projects in the USVI

dfarmer — Wed, 10 Apr 2024 12:00:00 +0000

Social Science Surveys Supply New Information on Climate Change Effects

For several years, researchers at the University of the Virgin Islands have explored the effects of climate change on the environment. This year, those studies added a new perspective thanks to a team of visiting students from Massachusetts.

Since January, two graduate students from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) have applied what they鈥檝e learned in the social sciences to measure how climate change affects Virgin Islanders. What they learn from interviews carried out as part of their field studies will help explain how well their subjects are coping with changing climate conditions.

Climate Adaptation students and their UVI hosts, from left, Janet Turnbull-Krigger, Gregory Guannel, Sol Geisso and Jonathan Chang. (Virgin Islands Source photo by Judi Shimel)

The Global School Dean Mimi Sheller Appears on the N猫g Mawon Podcast

dfarmer — Fri, 01 Mar 2024 12:00:00 +0000

Mimi Sheller, dean of The Global School, was recently a guest on the N猫g Mawon Podcast for an episode entitled, 鈥淭he Struggle for Soil: Haitian Peasantry and the Seeds of Rebellion."

The conversation with host Patrick Jean-Baptiste explores Haitian history, resistance, revolution, and the importance of small farmers in the struggle for democracy. The episode focuses deeply on the everyday lives of Haitians in the 19th century and the fights against slavery and power structures, based on Sheller鈥檚 doctoral research and subsequent publications such as Democracy After Slavery: Black Publics and Peasant Radicalism in Haiti and Jamaica (2001).

Sheller also discusses her articles such as 鈥?lt;/span>The Army of Sufferers: Peasant Democracy in the Early Republic of Haiti鈥?(New West Indian Guide, 2000) and 鈥?amp;nbsp;鈥榊ou signed my name, but not my feet鈥? Paradoxes of Peasant Resistance and State Control in Post-Revolutionary Haiti鈥?(Journal of Haitian Studies, 2004), which also informed her book Citizenship from Below: Erotic Agency and Caribbean Freedom (Duke University Press, 2012).

The N猫g Mawon Podcast is a series of conversations that seeks to highlight Haitian history, culture, and contemporary challenges.

Listen to the episode at this link.

And find Sheller鈥檚 other podcasts on Haiti on the N猫g Mawon Podcast contributor page here

Chronicle of Higher Education virtual forum on Innovative Interdisciplinary Programs

dfarmer — Wed, 28 Feb 2024 12:00:00 +0000

Dean of The Global School, Mimi Sheller will participate in the upcoming Chronicle of Higher Education virtual forum on Innovative Interdisciplinary Programs on March 20, 2024 at 2pm EST.

Researchers from different fields, including social sciences, engineering, and natural sciences, must work together to explore resilience and response to earthquakes, tsunamis, wildfires, and other earth hazards.

Experts in related fields will discuss how universities have adapted interdisciplinary programs over the past decade to learn how to deal with natural disasters. Panelists will share insights from the response to COVID-19 and what remains to be improved.

Mimi will focus her talk on hazards and disaster recovery, including student research at our project centers, and the Community Climate Adaptation program at WPI.

Registration: https://connect.chronicle.com/che-ci-wbn-2024-03-20-hazards-smu_01-Event-LP---Guided.html?

Institute on PBL Alumni Share their Success Stories

mlumsden — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 12:00:00 +0000

The 10th anniversary of the Institute on Project-Based Learning gives us an opportunity to reflect on the impact this program has had on educators鈥攁nd, by extension, on students and communities鈥攁cross the United States and around the globe. But don鈥檛 just take our word for it. Hear what our past participants are saying.

鈥淲e are of the mind that the sage-from-the-stage model of teaching feels outdated, and that our students engage more when they鈥檙e working either individually or collectively on a project. Once they graduate, many of our students will have to devise projects of their own since the pathway for musicians is so variable. Therefore, this approach is also very practical career training.

鈥淔or the faculty who participated [in the Institute], revelatory is not too strong a word. Many are already down the road of project-based teaching, but the Institute provided them specific tools, metrics, assessment mechanisms, and confidence to be more systematic and thorough in their approach.鈥?lt;/p>

鈥擝enjamin Sosland, Provost and Dean of the Faculty, New England Conservatory
Enrollment: 750
Location: Boston, Massachusetts
Type: Private, specialized program

鈥淎s a community-serving and community-facing campus, we want to help our students gain the knowledge and the skills to engage fully with their own experiences and their own communities. PBL is one particularly effective way to help students bridge potential gaps between their university education and their lives beyond campus.

鈥淢any faculty already were incorporating PBL elements into their courses and others were hoping to add PBL. The Institute was particularly helpful for our cross-campus team to have a common conversation about PBL, [which allowed us] to more clearly identify how PBL was happening on our campus and how we could guide our administration to provide support for PBL on campus.鈥?amp;nbsp;

鈥擡mily Luxon, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Michigan Dearborn
Enrollment: 8,000
Location: Dearborn, Michigan
Type: Public, regional commuter

鈥淭he main reason College of the Canyons is attracted to project-based learning is because of its emphasis on solving 鈥榳icked鈥?problems, while making an impact on the campus and/or in the community. Project-based learning also approaches people, places, and problems using an asset-based approach rather than a deficit model.

鈥淥ur college has participated in the Institute four times. What drove all four teams was the need to learn how to infuse a problem-solving, design-thinking, and action-based teaching and learning style to complement curricular and co-curricular settings, as well as transfer and career education fields of study.鈥?lt;/p>

鈥擯atty Robinson, Faculty Director of Civic and Community Engagement Initiatives, College of the Canyons
Enrollment: 33,905
Location: Santa Clarita, California
Type: Community college

鈥淧roject-based learning has been proven to cultivate student learning as well as provide students with a sense of agency and identity. As a small college primarily centered around the student experience, we believe that this practice fits well with our mission and goals.

鈥淲e attended the Institute so that we could be trained in best practices in PBL and use that knowledge to implement our program most effectively. [We learned] the importance of communicating to students the reasoning for using PBL as an instructional method; how to effectively form project student teams and help them discover how to utilize each other鈥檚 strengths to collectively solve problems; [and] the importance of scaffolding students鈥?experiences in PBL.鈥?lt;/p>

鈥擝rian McFarland, Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs, Morningside University
Enrollment: 1,300
Location: Sioux City, Iowa
Type: Private, four-year liberal arts

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announces new award to The Global School for the Caribbean Climate Adaptation Network, a NOAA Climate Adaptation Partnership.

dfarmer — Thu, 28 Sep 2023 12:00:00 +0000

The Global School WPI members of CCAN, a NOAA Climate Adaptation Partnership (back row: Professors Seth Tuler and John-Michael Davis; front row left to right: Professors Scott Jiusto, Mimi Sheller, Sarah Strauss and Fulbright Scholar and master鈥檚 student in Community Climate Adaptation Solange Uwera

The Global School is proud to be part of the Caribbean Climate Adaptation Network (CCAN), which was initially awarded $6 million in federal funding in 2022. CCAN, a NOAA Climate Adaptation Partnership (CAP) seeks to address climate change issues by bringing together a multidisciplinary team of universities, agencies, and non-governmental organizations serving the United States territories of Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands (St. Thomas, St. Croix, and St. John).

Today, NOAA announced it will provide a new award of nearly $500,000 to WPI for the related project 鈥淚mproving Engagement Methods for Coastal Resilience and Reducing Climate Risk: Bridging Learning Networks From the Urban Northeast (CCRUN) to the US Caribbean (CCAN)鈥?(Principal Investigator: Dr. Mimi Sheller). This award will support a partnership between CCAN and the Consortium for Climate Risk in the Urban Northeast (CCRUN), with partners at Drexel University, University of the Virgin Islands, and Foundation for Puerto Rico. This collaboration with long-established NOAA CAP/Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessment (RISA) program CCRUN will allow for important knowledge transfer and collaborative research concerned with improving community engagement methods for coastal resilience and climate risk reduction.

One goal of the new project is to improve alignment and coordination on climate risk and response between scientists, communities, and emergency management agencies. The project will collaborate with residents, non-profits, and government leaders to co-design flood resilience plans in four coastal communities (two in Puerto Rico, two in the United States Virgin Islands)

Five WPI researchers who are involved in the CCAN project visited Puerto Rico in the Spring of 2023 to initiate our work there: Dean of The Global School Mimi Sheller, Professor Sarah Strauss, Associate Professor Seth Tuler, Assistant Professor of Teaching John-Michael Davis, and Professor Emeritus Scott Jiusto. The project also involved IQP teams at the Puerto Rico Project Center, graduate students in the Master鈥檚 in Community Climate Adaptation program, and a new Postdoctoral Fellow Dr. Sarah Molinari, who joined WPI鈥橲 Global School in August 2023. The new NOAA award will fund additional WPI master鈥檚 students to conduct fieldwork with partners at University of the Virgin Islands in Spring 2024.

CCAN aims to form a regional knowledge-action network of researchers and stakeholders to evaluate needs, provide technical-scientific expertise, facilitate communication, and build cross-regional connections and capacity in the US Caribbean. As an important step in creating a network that promotes the development of public policy that goes toward creating more resilient communities in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands, CCAN has also begun the process to join the United Nations Local2030 Islands Network. The Local2030 Islands Network is a collaboration of leaders and experts from island nations, states, and communities that seeks to take on the climate crisis by advancing local, culturally informed solutions.

CCAN Principal Investigator Pablo Mendez Lazaro (University of Puerto Rico (UPR) Medical Sciences Campus) has met with various partners including NOAA Pacific RISA and Local2030 co-chair, Kate Brown, Sea Grant Puerto Rico, Fundaci贸n Comunitaria de Puerto Rico, the United Nations Association of the USA, the Department of Economic Development and Commerce of Puerto Rico, and other stakeholders from the government, non-profit organizations, and community-based organizations. As a result, CCAN is currently working on the development of internship programs, webinars, and other activities aimed at expanding knowledge and promoting its exchange between partners at all levels.

WPI Global School faculty and students are key participants in these activities, building our reputation in the new field of Climate Change Adaptation, as we continue to develop our innovative graduate programs and research enterprise.

Caribbean Climate Adaptation Network

WPI Scholars Receive Research Award from Open Education Global

cdemetry — Thu, 21 Sep 2023 12:00:00 +0000

Professors Marja Bakermans, Geoff Pfeifer, and William San Mart铆n from the Department of Integrative and Global Studies and Dr. Kimberly LeChasseur from the Morgan Teaching and Learning Center and Center for Project-Based Learning are among recipients of the 2023 Open Education Awards for Excellence from Open Education Global (OEG), a non-profit that supports the development and use of open education worldwide.

The WPI group is among the authors of nine articles in a special issue of the Journal for Multicultural Education on Intersections of Open Educational Practices and Equity Pedagogy. That special issue received the award in the Open Research category. One of the nominators noted that 鈥?lt;/span>Most of the scholarly literature around open and social justice has centered on theories and perspectives; however, this special issue focuses on practical elements and research on implementing Open Educational Practices (OEP) for social justice and equity.鈥?amp;nbsp;

OEG defines Open Practices as 鈥渃ollective behaviors and techniques that open up access to educational opportunities. These practices promote and support the use of open educational resources, technologies, and social networks to facilitate collaborative and flexible teaching and learning.鈥?lt;/span>

The article by Bakermans and co-authors entitled 鈥淲ho writes and who responds? Gender and race-based differences in open annotations鈥?has been downloaded more than 600 times since its release in December 2022. Read more about their study and ongoing collaboration.

New Assistant Professor in the Global School, Tsitsi Masvawure provides analysis for the best and worst states for women's equality

dfarmer — Thu, 31 Aug 2023 12:00:00 +0000

Global health professor Tsitsi B. Masvawure provided analysis for this WalletHub article on uneven and lagging efforts in the U.S. to address gender inequality. She points out reasons why the country ranks poorly on many health metrics used to measure gender gaps.

NSF Grant awarded to DIGS professors Bakermans and Stoddard

dfarmer — Thu, 31 Aug 2023 12:00:00 +0000

The National Science Foundation has awarded Marja Bakermans and Lisa Stoddard, along with their colleagues from NC Central University, funds for "Broadening Participation Research Project: Investigating the Efficacy of Data Science for Environmental Justice based PBL Modules for Improving Diversity in Environmental Science"

Environmental science is the least diverse STEM field in the US. Lack of representation harms the science, practice, impact, outcomes, and those interested in joining the field. Research shows that environmental science courses that engage with real-world issues of social inequity and justice can better represent the experiences and issues faced by a diverse US and student population. A more inclusive environmental science curriculum benefits the science, field, and education of all and can help draw and retain historically underrepresented and underserved student populations. Working with colleagues from NC Central University, Stoddard and Bakermans will develop project-based learning modules in environmental science that integrate issues of social inequity and injustice through data sets and data science. The goals are to make environmental science curriculum more representative and inclusive and to prepare and empower underrepresented and underserved students to utilize data to understand complex human-environment problems and to address environmental justice issues as environmental science professionals.

Bakermans is a trained conservation biologist, and Stoddard's degree is in human-environment geography. They both teach and conduct research through the Global School and School of Arts and Sciences. This includes project-based learning courses in biology (Bakermans) and environmental and sustainability studies (Bakermans and Stoddard). They both teach in the Great Problem Seminar program, including first-year project courses in global extinctions, food sustainability, water, global health, urbanization, and climate change. They will draw on their experiences and expertise in project-based learning, environmental studies, and sciences and their dedication to and continued education in inclusive pedagogies to develop, pilot, and revise these modules.

Where in the World Are WPI Students in A-Term?

jaquinnszcesuil — Fri, 25 Aug 2023 12:00:00 +0000

The start of A-Term brings the goats back to their home on the hill, but it also means the beginning of new opportunities to work at project centers around the world. WPI鈥檚 distinctive Global Projects Program brings students and faculty into communities to work on projects that are meaningful to local partners and organizations, making a transformative impact on the lives of students and alumni.

Past projects are as varied as one that researched toxicity and anti-tumor effects of chemotherapy drugs and another that created a device that would integrate universal automobile safety features with minimal consumer cost. Other students have collaborated on projects that included the development and presentation of stories involving the gastronomy and culture of rural Albanian villages and another that looked at the effects of sustainable fishing on the local economies and the lifestyles of the people in some Costa Rican communities.

Students are working on Interactive Qualifying Projects in

Boston, MA with advisor Paul Mathisen (CEE)
Glacier National Park, Montana with advisors Leslie Dodson (DIGS) and Beth Eddy (Adjunct)
Panama City, Panama with advisors Grant Burrier (DIGS) and Curt Davis (Adjunct)
Reykjavik, Iceland with advisors Herman and Brigitte Servatius (Math)
White Mountains, NH with advisors Corey Dehner (DIGS) and Seth Tuler (DIGS)
Zurich, Switzerland with advisors Uma Kumar (Ch/BCh) and Len Polizzotto (BME)

Students are working on Major Qualifying Projects in

Switzerland with advisors Nancy Burnham (PH), Vadim Yakovlev (MA), Dave Medich (PH) and David DiBiasio (ChE)
Kyoto, Japan, in collaboration with Ritsumeikan University, with advisor Jennifer deWinter (Adjunct)
Stockholm, Sweden in collaboration with Kungliga Tekniska h枚gskolan (KTH) Royal Institute of Technology, with advisor Holly Ault (Adjunct)

And WPI has an exchange student in France at NEOMA Business School.

During the 2022-23 academic year, 1,114 students traveled to 54 project centers in 30 countries on 6 continents. Learn more about project centers at WPI.