Enabling the Next Generation of Hazard Researchers: An Education and Training Proposal

University Of North Carolina At Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill NC

Investigators

Abstract

Time period: September 1, 2002-August 31, 2004 The initiation and eventual institutionalization of fields of inquiry is heavily dependent upon generational cohorts of scholars who not only produce new knowledge but also produce new generations of scholars who will continue to develop the field. The project responds to a serious issue in the field of research on societal aspects of extreme events: the lack of an adequate cohort of junior faculty to sustain scholarship into future generations. This education and training initiative addresses this issue by developing a comprehensive, creative program of mentoring for recently appointed junior faculty at research universities. The objectives of the program are to: (1) identify and recruit another cohort of well-trained social scientists for undertaking relevant research about societal aspects of extreme events; (2) engage this cohort of researchers in discussions about social science scholarship as it relates to research about extreme events; (3) enable this cohort of faculty members to undertake sustained research on these topics; and (4) foster an expanded network of social scientists undertaking research on extreme events. To accomplish these objectives the project will bring bright, newly appointed faculty in sustained contact over a one-year period with seasoned researchers from the fields of decision sciences, economics, geography, political science, psychology, public health, sociology, and urban planning. They will engage in an intense period of mentoring with 16 junior faculty members who will be competitively selected to participate as fellows. Mentoring activities include two workshops, one-on-one mentoring by the faculty panel, and research and writing activities by the faculty fellows. The field of research on societal aspects of extreme events is at a critical juncture. This project is arguably important to its future development and fulfills a central mission of the National Science Foundation in enabling individuals to contribute to solving the nation's problems through new scholarship.