2026 Sustainability Summer Fellowships for Graduate Research Partnerships

The Nature Conservancy: Forests

Reducing the risks of catastrophic wildfires requires scaling up forest resilience initiatives, including prescribed and managed fire and tree thinning. Public perceptions as well as the potential for trade-offs (e.g., smoke generation from prescribed burns) make it important to understand the roles of different actors and the relationships between them, how they access and share information, and effective ways of engaging in a fireshed area. Working with TNC’s Human Dimensions Science team and Planetary and Human Health Initiative, this project will help to shape effective messages and identify trusted messengers in landscapes prioritized under The Nature Conservancy’s 11-state Western Dry Forests Program. Depending on the stage of research and the Fellow’s interests, the Fellow will help to design, implement, and/or analyze qualitative research that helps address some of the following research questions: where do people and groups access information and what are points of agreement or conflict, what messages are effective, and who are the trusted messengers?

Tasks:
Depending on the Fellow’s interests, specific tasks could include: Literature review; qualitative data collection or analysis (for example, interviews, transcription, and/or coding), media analysis, or social network analysis; presentation and write up of findings in scientific article and blog/multi-media story.

Skills:
Experience with qualitative/social science research methods (e.g. participatory research, focus groups, key informant interviews), media analysis, and/or social network analysis is essential. Familiarity with health equity research, storytelling, and/or working with Indigenous communities would also be an asset.

Mentor: Dr. Kimberly Ordonez, PhD, TNC’s Forest Social Scientist, will serve as the primary supervisor. Dr. Phil Loring, PhD, Global Director, Human Dimensions Science and Dr. Catherine Machalaba, PhD MPH, Planetary Health Scientist will provide additional mentorship.

Potential outcomes include:

Potential outputs could include: co-authorship on a paper; presentation of findings at a scientific conference and/or project workshop; multi-media summary or StoryMap for public dissemination; and/or guidance or tool that could be utilized to support fire-informed organizational or community planning.

Handshake Job #10721021, click here to apply

PWCS: Indoor Air Quality 

PWCS’ Energy & Sustainability Team provides strategic leadership and operational excellence in advancing environmental and fiscal stewardship across the school division. Through a comprehensive approach that integrates energy infrastructure, building performance, waste reduction, and resilient operations, the team strives for healthier learning environments, long-term cost savings, and the development of future-ready students and facilities. Ultimately, the Energy & Sustainability Team works to ensure that every school is well-positioned to become a green school.
PWCS recently announced the division’s Elevate 2030 Strategic Plan that includes several goals for which the Energy & Sustainability team is responsible. These goals include reaching a 40% waste diversion rate and monitoring Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) at all 100 PWCS schools. The PWCS Energy & Sustainability Team will host two GMU ISE Fellows to support establishing the foundation for achieving these goals. IAQ is increasingly recognized as a critical factor influencing student learning, staff and student attendance, and overall well-being. PWCS is in the early stages of implementing real-time IAQ monitoring across its schools and seeks to establish a robust, empirically sound framework for analyzing how IAQ conditions affect educational outcomes once sufficient longitudinal data is available.
The fellow will play a pivotal role in laying the foundation for this work by leveraging research, data strategy, and practical tools that enable PWCS to operationalize IAQ analytics at scale. This project combines environmental health science, data engineering, and educational research to ensure that future analyses are credible, actionable, and aligned with best practices.
Tasks:
• Conduct a focused literature review on the relationship between IAQ (CO₂, temperature, humidity) and student performance, attendance, and well-being, identifying key thresholds and best practices for K–12 settings.
• Develop a data framework that documents current and planned IAQ sensor data streams and maps IAQ variables to educational datasets.
• Design an empirical analysis plan outlining statistical approaches, confounder controls, and minimum data requirements for future IAQ impact studies.
• Create reusable tools and guidance, including visualization, analysis templates, and SOPs to support monitoring, interpretation, and response to IAQ conditions.
• Engage stakeholders and transfer knowledge through collaborative sessions, a final briefing, and a roadmap for scaling IAQ analytics across the division.

Skills:
• Proficiency in data analysis and modeling, including statistical software
• Strong understanding of statistical methods for time-series and panel data analysis, including confounder controls.
• Experience with sensor data management, including QA/QC practices and metadata standards.
• Ability to design data frameworks and workflows for scalable, reproducible analysis.
• Familiarity with data visualization and associated tools for communicating IAQ trends and insights.
Mentor:
Bryan Conrad and Jesse Gubert

Potential outcomes include:
• Literature Review summarizing IAQ impacts on performance, attendance, and well-being in a K-12 education environment.
• Data Framework with architecture, QA/QC protocols, and governance guidelines.
• Analysis Plan detailing methods, confounder controls, and data requirements.
• Reusable Tools, including visualizations, templates, and SOPs for IAQ monitoring.
• Final Briefing with recommendations and roadmap for scaling IAQ analytics.

Handshake Job #9651700, click here to apply

PWCS: Waste Diversion Review

PWCS’ Energy & Sustainability Team provides strategic leadership and operational excellence in advancing environmental and fiscal stewardship across the school division. Through a comprehensive approach that integrates energy infrastructure, building performance, waste reduction, and resilient operations, the team strives for healthier learning environments, long-term cost savings, and the development of future-ready students and facilities. Ultimately, the Energy & Sustainability Team works to ensure that every school is well-positioned to become a green school.
PWCS recently announced the division’s Elevate 2030 Strategic Plan that includes several goals for which the Energy & Sustainability team is responsible. These goals include reaching a 40% waste diversion rate and monitoring Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) at all 100 PWCS schools. The PWCS Energy & Sustainability Team will host two GMU ISE Fellows to support establishing the foundation for achieving these goals. PWCS is committed to reducing landfill-bound waste by 40% by 2030 through a divisionwide waste reduction strategy focused on infrastructure, education, and accountability. To support this goal, the graduate fellow will engage in applied research to inform data-driven decision-making and strategic planning. The fellow will conduct a deep-dive literature review on best practices in K-12 waste reduction, smart bin technology, composting models, and behavioral change strategies. Additionally, the fellow will analyze baseline data and assess the impact and cost-effectiveness of various interventions, such as expanded recycling, composting programs, and smart bin implementation. This work will help PWCS identify high-impact, scalable solutions and create actionable recommendations for achieving its waste diversion targets.
Tasks:
• Conduct literature review on waste reduction strategies, smart bin technology, and composting in schools.
• Analyze existing data and/or benchmarks to model diversion scenarios.
• Estimate costs and savings for implementing on-site composting, smart bins, and expanding existing compost hauling services, including potential offsets through reduced trash pickups.
• Conduct Cost-Benefit Analysis of a division-run, internal compost program.
• Develop a summary report with findings that can be analyzed for suitability to PWCS.

Skills:
• Strong research and analytical skills.
• Familiarity with sustainability, waste management, or environmental science.
• Ability to perform data analysis and interpret findings.
• Experience with predictive modeling or cost analysis (preferred).
• Excellent written communication for reporting.

Mentor:
Aleta Deans and Jesse Gubert

Potential outcomes include:
• Comprehensive literature review report.
• Roadmap for implementing new or expanding current waste reduction strategies.
• Cost-benefit analysis of waste reduction methods.

Handshake Job #9651700, click here to apply

Future Earth: Remote Sensing - Land Use Data

This project examines how the rapid expansion of niche commodities is reshaping rural landscapes, using agave-based spirits as a focal case. Specifically, we analyze how the recent tequila and mezcal booms are transforming land systems across Mexico, with particular attention to regions of Denomination of Origen. As global demand for premium agave spirits continues to grow, agave cultivation has expanded at unprecedented rates, generating ecological, social, and governance impacts that remain underrepresented in global land-use and sustainability debates.
The project will integrate spatial analysis, ecological evidence, and socio-economic insights to characterize the scale, geography, and drivers of agave expansion. For this, we will develop high-resolution land-use maps to identify the distribution of agave monocultures, quantify their temporal expansion, and determine which land covers have been displaced.
By framing agave expansion as a telecoupled land-system process driven by global markets for niche luxury commodities, the project highlights a central paradox: agave-based spirits derive their value from biocultural landscapes that are increasingly simplified and degraded by industrial production models. Our interdisciplinary team of land systems scientists from multiple countries aims to generate integrative evidence to inform land-use sustainability and governance.

Tasks:
The fellow would work with the supervisor/s towards identifying and classifying land-cover units in high-resolution satellites, with particular emphasis on distinguishing agave monocultures from other agricultural systems (i.e., milpa), forests, and natural vegetation.
Analyze multi-temporal remote sensing datasets to map changes in agave cultivation over time and quantify rates, spatial patterns, and trajectories of land-use and land-cover change replaced by agave cultivation.

Skills:
Familiar with remote sensing and spatial analysis, including experience working with high-resolution imagery and land-cover classification methods.

Knowledge in GIS software.

Fluency in Spanish is not required but would be a plus.

Mentor: Dr. Martha Bonilla, Dr. Ivan Ortiz Rodriguez, and Dr. Ariane de Bremond Global Land Programme

Potential outcomes include:

High-resolution maps of agave cultivation, detailing the spatial distribution and extent of agave monocultures across tequila- and mezcal-producing regions.
Multi-temporal maps of land-use and land-cover change, documenting the expansion of agave cultivation over time and identifying the types of land covers
Academic paper addressing land-system change driven agave expansion and its ecological and social consequences.
Handshake Job #9684618, Click here to apply

Future Earth: Ocean Science Communication

The 3rd decadal science plan of the Surface Ocean – Lower Atmosphere Study (SOLAS 3.0) will be launched in 2026, which incorporates a dedicated strategy to disseminate knowledge through tailored content for different audiences. This project will produce a series of science communication videos aligned with the SOLAS 3.0 framework that demonstrate the nexus between the science of SOLAS and recent extreme events of significant societal impact — such as marine heatwaves, hypoxia and acidification, deposition from dust storms and wildfires, or intense storms and cyclones.

Designed for non-experts and the general public, the series aims to make complex science both accessible and compelling. Ultimately, these videos will elevate the visibility of SOLAS research and reinforce its critical role in addressing pressing global challenges.

Tasks:
The fellow will transform SOLAS research on extreme events into compelling narratives through the development of detailed storyboards and scripts, culminating in the editing and production of short, visually-driven explainer videos.

Skills:
• Current enrolment in a Ph.D. program in Oceanography, Atmospheric Science, Climate Science, or a closely related field.
• Proficiency in video editing, graphic design and image-editing software for creating animations and visual assets.
• Experience in science communication/public outreach is an asset.

Mentor: Dr. Christa Marandino, SOLAS Scientific Steering Committee Co-Chair

Potential outcomes include:
This project will produce a series of short science communication videos (minimum of two videos, approximately 2-3 minutes each), each focusing on a specific extreme event. The videos will elucidate the underlying SOLAS science, detail the events' impacts, and underscore their societal relevance.

Handshake Job #9684671, click here to apply

Future Earth: Urban Traffic Modelling

The project, entitled “Enhancing resilience of emerging hybrid energy infrastructure in urban systems”, examines the resilience of interconnected urban transportation and power systems under disruption scenarios, such as extreme weather events or infrastructure failures in three regions in the U.S., New York Metropolitan area, NY, Phoenix Metropolitan Area, AZ, and Atlanta Metropolitan area, GA. As cities increasingly electrify transportation systems and rely on complex, spatially distributed infrastructure, disruptions in power networks can cascade into transportation systems, affecting mobility, access, and emergency response. Understanding these interdependencies is critical for improving infrastructure resilience and planning adaptive responses. The project integrates real-world and synthetic spatial datasets, including road networks, public transit systems, electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure, and power distribution networks, to simulate how disruptions propagate across systems. A key component of the research involves dynamic transportation modeling, where multimodal traffic flows (e.g., private vehicles, public transit, and EVs) are updated in response to distribution events such as power outages or network failures.
The fellow will contribute to the development and analysis of geospatially explicit models that couple transportation networks with power infrastructure. The fellow will work closely with the project lead and research team to process spatial datasets, develop Python-based modeling workflows, and analyze scenario-based outcomes. The project offers hands-on experience at the intersection of geospatial analysis, transportation modeling, and infrastructure resilience research, contributing to ongoing efforts to support data-driven urban resilience planning.

The research fellow will support multiple components of the project, with responsibilities spanning data processing, model development, and analysis. Core tasks include:
Geospatial data processing and integration: The fellow will clean, process, and harmonize spatial datasets related to transportation and power systems, including road networks, transit routes and stops, EV charging stations, and power infrastructure. This will involve working with vector and raster data using GIS and Python-based geospatial libraries.
Transportation network modeling: The fellow will assist in developing and extending a dynamic transportation model that simulates multimodal traffic flows. The model updates travel demand and routing behavior in response to disruption events, such as power outages affecting transit operations or EV charging availability. The model is being developed in Python.
Scenario-based analysis: The fellow will help run disruption scenarios, analyzing how failures in power networks impact transportation system performance (e.g., congestion, travel times, accessibility). Results will be summarized through maps, figures, and basic statistical outputs.
Documentation and research outputs: The fellow will document code, data workflows, and modeling assumptions, contributing to reproducible research practices. They may also assist in preparing figures or technical summaries that support reports, presentations, or academic manuscripts.
Throughout the 10-week period, the fellow will receive mentorship in geospatial analytics, infrastructure modeling, and interdisciplinary urban systems research.

Skills:
The ideal applicant should have:
Python programming skills, including experience with data analysis and scripting.
Experience with geospatial data processing, using tools such as GeoPandas, Shapely, rasterio, or GIS software (QGIS/ArcGIS)
Experience with scientific computing libraries (e.g., NumPy, Pandas, NetworkX, Matplotlib)
Basic understanding of network analysis or modeling concepts
Interest in urban systems, infrastructure resilience, or transportation planning

Mentor: Dr. Ahmed Mustafa, New York University - URBAN Knowledge Action Network

Potential outcomes include:
Processed and curated geospatial datasets linking transportation and power infrastructure
Python-based modeling scripts for dynamic, multimodal transportation simulations
Scenario-based analyses illustrating cascading impacts of power disruptions on mobility
Maps, figures, and technical summaries supporting resilience assessments
Contributions to internal project reports, academic manuscripts, and conference presentations
Reproducible workflows that can be extended in future research phases

Handshake Job #9684688, click here to apply

The GMBA Mountain Inventory v2.0, released in 2022, has become a widely used spatial reference for global mountain research. It has informed more than 100 scientific publications across ecology, geology, hydrology, biogeography, and the social sciences. The inventory provides a hierarchical and globally consistent set of named mountain ranges and a dichotomous classification of mountain versus non-mountain terrain.
Although v2.0 integrated information from an extensive range of authoritative sources, it remains incomplete. Newly documented mountain ranges continue to appear in digital gazetteers and knowledge graphs, notably Wikidata. Furthermore, while the Inventory delineates mountain extent, it does not yet characterise internal mountain structure. Mountain systems are shaped by topography at multiple scales, influencing ecological dynamics, human land use, dispersal pathways, and socio-environmental processes. In particular, the spatial configuration of ridges and valleys plays a critical role in connectivity and fragmentation.
This project will expand and refine the GMBA Inventory by integrating new mountain range names and developing a global, geomorphometric map of ridges and valleys based on a modern digital elevation model. The Fellow will contribute to data acquisition, algorithm development, validation, and exploratory analyses using the enhanced layers.

Task 1. Identification of missing mountain ranges
Develop and implement an automated workflow combining spatial interrogation and text-based matching (e.g. Wikidata queries, string similarity, geographic filtering) to identify named mountain ranges absent from the GMBA Inventory. Visually validate and curate the results.

Task 2. Digitization of candidate range outlines (optional)
For newly identified ranges, digitize approximate polygonal outlines on the GMBA base map in QGIS to support future integration and topology checks.

Task 3. Development and application of a geomorphometric ridge–valley algorithm
Review the current GMBA ridge–valley workflow and evaluate alternative geomorphometric approaches. Test and refine the algorithm on a representative mountain system (e.g. the Pyrenees), ensuring scalability, robustness, and consistency across different terrain types. Apply the final algorithm globally across all GMBA mountain areas.

Task 4. Exploratory analysis (if time allows)
Conduct a brief demonstration analysis using the new ridge–valley layer, such as:
• comparison of human population density between ridges and valleys
• patterns of biodiversity observations (e.g. GBIF records)
• simple regional case studies

Skills:

• Strong skills in geospatial analysis and geoprocessing (R, Python, QGIS, ArcGIS, PostGIS or similar) – essential
• Experience with raster-based terrain analysis and geomorphometry – essential
• Knowledge of mountain environments, biodiversity, or ecology – highly desirable
• Familiarity with text mining and automated information extraction – desirable
• Experience with AI-assisted data processing, database development (e.g. PostgreSQL), and open research data infrastructure – desirable
Mentor: Dr. Davnah Urbach (GMBA executive director), - [email protected]
in collaboration with Mark Snethlage

Potential products or outputs:
Task 1: Curated list of additional named mountain ranges for inclusion in GMBA Inventory v2.1
Task 2: Vector dataset containing preliminary digitized outlines of newly identified ranges
Task 3: Global ridge–valley raster or vector layer aligned with GMBA mountain units
Task 4: Brief applied analysis illustrating the utility of the new ridge–valley classification
All products will be openly shared in accordance with open science principles, with clear attribution to the Fellow and other contributors.

Handshake Job #10717686, click here to apply

Climate psychology survey

There is a pressing demand for resources on the social-emotional dimensions of climate change (climate psychology) across health professionals, educators, researchers, journalists, and the general public, but it remains difficult to understand, scattered among sources, locked behind paywalls, and challenging to stay up-to-date. Its absence has undermined education, policy engagement, public advocacy, and the adequate care of people experiencing climate distress. Climate Junction is a new initiative that functions as an entry point to climate and health awareness, community-building, and activation by weaving together three storytelling and educational projects. This fellowship will involve designing and disseminating an online survey(s) to explore the relevance and usability of climate psychology resources and the needs of audiences using/seeking such resources. First, the fellow will conduct a review and critical appraisal of an open-access encyclopedia on climate psychology and identify gaps. Second, along with the project team, the fellow will design and plan the dissemination of the survey(s). In tandem, the fellow will develop an interview guide, and, if time permits, carry out interviews, to inform the survey and probe its results. The survey and interviews will address questions such as: Who are actors seeking climate psychology resources and action opportunities? What are their needs? How are they using existing resources? What barriers to finding/using resources do they experience? The outcome of this inquiry will inform the improvement of existing resources and direct the development of new knowledge mobilization and storytelling content, responsive to the needs of identified audiences.
Tasks:
The fellow will work closely with the project team to design a survey(s) to identify audiences or actors using/seeking information on the health and social aspects of climate change and understand their needs. The aim of this inquiry is to improve and tailor existing resources and direct the development of new resources. Specific tasks include:
● Conduct a review and critical appraisal of an open-access encyclopedia on climate psychology and mental health to assess the reliability and rigor of its entries, identify knowledge gaps or outdated information, and suggest newer sources where relevant.
● Design and disseminate an online survey(s) to explore the relevance and usability of specific climate psychology resources for mental health professionals, educators, climate and environmental justice workers, and others, leveraging Climate Psychiatry Alliance’s networks and partners.
● Develop an interview protocol, and if time, carry out interviews with survey respondents or others to identify needs, priorities, gaps, and opportunities.
● Analyze and summarize findings towards practical applications.
● Provide mentorship, supervision, or guidance to undergraduate and Masters students from other universities completing summer internship projects in the same field.
Skills:
The applicant should feel confident to independently carry out a critical appraisal of literature, with some guidance from supervisors/mentors. They should have knowledge on the intersections between climate change and health, including mental health, but they do not need specialized expertise, although this would be considered an asset. They should have some experience with either qualitative methods, such as interviews or survey design, or participatory action research, and should feel confident to independently conduct outreach and interviews.
Mentor:
Colleen Rollins, PhD, will serve as the primary supervisor and Robin Cooper, MD as secondary supervisor.

Potential outcomes include:
The results of this inquiry will directly inform the improvement of existing resources and shape the development of new resources. Specific products or outcomes include:
● A short report summarizing results of the review and critical appraisal
● One or two online surveys evaluating: (1) the relevance and usability of existing resources on climate psychology; (2) the needs and priorities of audiences seeking information and action opportunities on climate psychology
● An interview protocol for exploring the needs, gaps, and opportunities of audiences using/seeking information on climate psychology. If time, a short summary of interview outcomes.
● A final presentation summarizing methodology, key findings, and implementation recommendations to the project team

Handshake Job #10721035 click here to apply