Sustainability science fellowships at Harvard available

Scholars are invited to apply for resident fellowships in sustainability science for the academic year beginning in September 2012 through the Sustainability Science Program at Harvard University.

Fellowships are open to advanced doctoral and post-doctoral students and to mid-career professionals engaged in research or practice to facilitate the design, implementation and evaluation of effective interventions that promote sustainable development. Some of the most serious constraints to sustainable development lie in the interconnections among sectors: energy’s growing need for water; the impacts of water use on human health; the competition for land among food, energy and conservation initiatives; and the cumulative impact of all sectoral initiatives on climate and other key environmental services. A central challenge moving forward is to develop an integrated understanding of how sectoral initiatives for sustainability can compete with and complement one another in particular regional contexts.

The 2012-13 fellowship competition focuses on regional initiatives pursing an integrated perspective on sustainable development in India, China and Brazil. It will also include a cross-cutting research initiative to integrate work focused on innovation for sustainable development.

Preference in this year’s competition will be given to applicants whose proposals complement one or more of these four initiatives.

The initiatives are led by William Clark, Michael Kremer, Henry Lee, Rohini Pande and Paul Moorcroft.
The program also is open to strong proposals in any area of sustainability science.

In addition to general funds available to support this fellowship, special funding for the Giorgio Ruffolo Fellowships in Sustainability Science is available to support citizens of Italy, China, Brazil, India or developing countries who are especially encouraged to apply.

Applications are due January 15, 2012 and decisions will be announced by March 2012.

For more information, visit the Fellowships in Sustainability Science web page.