Georgia Institute of Technology
ER-14: Incentives for Developing Sustainability Courses

To stimulate cooperation in emerging areas of education and research, Georgia Tech has established a network of more than 100 centers that cut across traditional academic disciplines. Drawing upon human and technical resources throughout the university, the centers provide an interdisciplinary setting for addressing basic and applied problems of interest to government and private enterprise. They also provide a mechanism for interdisciplinary thrusts in graduate and undergraduate education. Tech's centers involve faculty from academic colleges and from the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI). GTRI provides additional flexibility to research at Georgia Tech and compliments academic programs. All of Tech's interdisciplinary centers perform sponsored research on a contractual basis. Industry affiliate memberships are also available through several of the centers. A brief description of the majority of Georgia Tech's centers can be found through the Georgia Tech web site at http://www.gatech.edu/research/centers.html

"Grant Will Establish One of Nation's 1st Cross-Disciplinary Energy PhD Programs" The project will establish at Georgia Tech, one of the nation’s first truly interdisciplinary PhD program in energy science, technology, and policy. The program will serve a critical need for the development of new, more efficient materials to address energy challenges during the next several decades. Specifically, it will examine Nanostructured Materials for Energy Storage and Conversion. "Georgia Tech Fund for Innovation in Research and Education (GT FIRE)Sparks Innovation Among Faculty"… to facilitate planning for a …, multidiscipline, multi-institution, Tech-led Department of Energy Integrated Research Project research proposal … includes research and education. www.stewardship.gatech.edu/

Incentives for developing sustainability Courses at Georgia Tech take many forms. Georgia Tech's reputation for academic and research excellence help facilitate opportunities for grants, contracts, and consulting opportunities. An example is the grant recently received to Establish One of Nation's 1st Cross-Disciplinary Energy PhD Programs. Georgia Tech's interdisciplinary centers, basic science expertise, expert engineering faculty, collaborative atmosphere, and cutting edge industry partnerships provide a solid foundation to build and innovate upon. Funding is also offered as incentives. Examples include the GT FIRE funding which developed around the Strategic Planning Initiatives and stipends associated with the ThinkBIG program in Housing.