This proposal is for doctoral and post-doctoral training in an interdisciplinary program in environmental sciences for the students and fellows participating in the biomedical and non-biomedical research projects and core laboratories of the Superfund Basic Research Program. The purpose of this Core is to brain the trainees together in a series of educational enrichment activities so that they can learn about each other's disciplines as well as about environmental problem solving. The educational enrichment activities will consist of: (1) an interdisciplinary training seminar series; (2) case-study team projects; (3) rotations outside the university; and (4) selected short course. The interdisciplinary training seminar series will meet monthly and will draw on the program faculty additional Columbia faculty and outside speakers to cover a wide range of topics relevant to environmental professionals. For the case-study team projects the trainees will work together as a multi-disciplinary group on specific environmental projects over the course of a semester that allows them to analyze an environmental problem from various perspectives and submit a written report with their conclusions and recommendations. Through contacts of the program outside the university with governmental and non-governmental organizations, international agencies, corporations, and community and public interest groups, trainees will be expected to select a rotation of up to one month per year where they can gain exposure to environmental problem solving in applied, real-world settings. Additional course work will cover: ethical conduct of research, workshops on Geographic Information Systems, Online Information Resources Management, and Risk Assessment, Communication and Management; additional electives on topics relevant to environmental sciences. Through this Core, we will produce a new type of doctoral-level environmental professional who can address environmental issues with a multi-dimensional perspective and who can pursue traditional, academic as well as non-traditional, non-academic careers in environmental sciences.
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