The WVU Climate Initiative

Climate change affects all aspects of our society and represents one of the greatest challenges to all species on the planet. In an effort to respond to it in a coordinated way which brings to bear the many talents of the WVU community and its land grant mission within the state, the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences proposes an initiative that aims to make tangible breakthroughs in climate change research and outreach efforts. The initiative would provide an organized framework that fosters cross-disciplinary research with faculty and students and organizes events that build capacity within and beyond the WVU community. Since Fall 2019, a diverse group of Eberly faculty have been meeting to discuss these issues.

Currently, they seek to form a collaborative that includes:

● A web presence listing faculty affiliates as well as resources and opportunities for support.

● Seed funding to stimulate competitive proposals that will lead to externally-funded projects which are ideally, but not necessarily, interdisciplinary in nature.

● Funding for small events, e.g. visits to the WV Capitol or public education events.

● Support to enable public speakers and campus conversations that are framed around justice and climate change.

● Development of resources that faculty can use for outreach events and broader impacts aspects of research proposals.

● Support for student engagement and leadership in environmental issues.

● Support from the Eberly Office of Development to grow financial resources for these efforts.

They would like to have a faculty open house event on campus before the end of the Spring semester to broadly announce the effort and, in the intervening time, seek buy-in from Eberly departments. It is their intention that the Climate Initiative could grow into something more substantial over time. One particular model is the Climate and Global Change Center in Pittsburgh. 

An important aspect of the collaboration is that it recognizes all forms of faculty contributions to it as documented contributions to their Research, Teaching and/or Service files. They wish to provide an environment where every member of WVU can contribute. Despite the serious threats of climate change, a coordinated effort from WVU can make decisive breakthroughs in adaptation and mitigation as well as bring enhanced research funding and recognition for the University.

Anyone interested in the Climate Initiative and/or who would like to share thoughts about the effort and how their respective unit/department can be involved should contact Duncan Lorimer.