Institute at Brown for Environment and Society

Goal 1: Educating Tomorrow's Leaders

Strategic Plan PDF

Goal 1: Educating Tomorrow's Leaders

Educating Tomorrow's Leaders

Equip the leaders of tomorrow with rigorous inter- and transdisciplinary training to advance solutions to the most pressing climate, sustainability and environmental challenges of the 21st century.

We understand that tomorrow's environmental leaders and innovators are shaped today, and come from a broad range of communities and backgrounds. IBES is a center of excellence in environmental thinking and research for the entire Brown community, serving as a touchpoint for students across concentrations to gain crucial environmental literacy and problem-solving skills. Students in our undergraduate concentration, undergraduates in other fields and students in our affiliated graduate programs benefit from rigorous interdisciplinary training, direct contact with IBES faculty and research, and sustained IBES community connections that extend beyond graduation. Recognizing the value of co-curricular engagement for solving complex environmental problems, we connect students with communities in Providence, across the region and around the world through collaborative learning to address pressing climate and sustainability issues that challenge communities now, and into the future.

 

OBJECTIVES

Click "+" to read more about each objective area. 

  1. Facilitate co-development and co-teaching courses with non-IBES faculty.
  2. Expand opportunities for undergraduate research and internships in climate and sustainability for non-IBES students.
  3. Increase student exposure to climate, sustainability and environmental content in their first years at Brown.
  4. Create one or more certificate programs to serve a broad cross-section of Brown students.
  5. Curate a set of instructional resources to support cross-campus education in climate, sustainability and the environment.
  1. Revise our environmental studies (ENVS) curriculum to better align with rapidly evolving societal needs and professional opportunities.
  2. Create formal offerings for interdisciplinary graduate-level and professional training.
  3. Expand curricular offerings that foster graduate and undergraduate student engagement in transdisciplinary research projects.
  1. Foster student engagement with a diverse range of climate, sustainability and environmental professionals, leveraging the Brown alumni network.
  2. Promote IBES as a clearinghouse for job opportunities in multiple sectors.
  3. Expand opportunities for students to work alongside city, state and federal policymakers.
  4. Leverage IBES research centers for technical skills development and professional training.
  5. Expand curricular and co-curricular opportunities and faculty expertise related to sustainable finance; environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing; carbon finance and accounting; etc.
  1. Leverage opportunities for IBES faculty and staff to support new and existing K-12 educational programming.
  2. Create opportunities for K-12 students to engage with IBES research.
  1. Leverage campus as a “living learning lab” for climate and sustainability coursework, internships and student research.
  2. Enhance support for student entrepreneurial activities to accelerate progress on climate and sustainability goals.
  3. Create opportunities for students to learn from experts in climate and sustainability communication, advocacy and leadership.
  4. Coordinate with campus student groups to advance shared priorities for institutional climate action.

Strategic Plan PDF