Preparing Ph.D. Graduates for Climate Change Careers

DISCCRS (pronounced "discourse") is built on the premise that successful interdisciplinary scholarship begins with a core area of expertise and grows with the development of broader knowledge and through a network of collegial connections across disciplines. The aim of DISCCRS is to foster such interdisciplinary work by connecting new researchers who are striving to create and integrate knowledge across multiple disciplines and to develop creative solutions to problems relating to climate change.

DISCCRS offers:

  • A searchable database of Ph.D. dissertation abstracts submitted through this website
  • Career-development resources developed through the symposia
  • A weekly newsletter with timely information on climate-change news and jobs (either register your dissertation or simply click here to be added to our mailing list)
  • Annual symposia for selected early career scientists interested in working across traditional disciplinary boundaries. The goal is to develop international, interdisciplinary collegial networks among scholars likely to become leaders in their chosen fields. Participation at the symposia is limited to 30 early career scholars identified by an interdisciplinary committee of research scientists based on review of submitted applications. Use the tabs on the left to learn about past symposium scholars and to view reports from previous symposia.

 


DISCCRS Webpage Highlights

  • Career Resources: This link provides an annotated list of resources developed for and by the symposium participants. It includes practical advice for establishing interdisciplinary careers, finding jobs, navigating promotion and tenure, developing research proposals and other aspects of early-career development.
  • Search Dissertations: The international compilation highlights the accomplishments of registered graduates and provides a concise overview of emerging climate change research. More than 1500 dissertations from nearly 70 countries are currently registered. You can search the full text of all abstracts, or search abstracts by year.
  • Register Dissertation: PhD graduates are invited to register a one-page abstract of their PhD dissertation using this interactive form. Only those who have completed their PhD may register. Once registered, your dissertation abstract wil become publicly available in the abstract database within a week or two.
  • Symposium Application Instructions: DISCCRS includes annual symposia designed to foster interdisciplinary understanding, communication, career-development and networking. Participation is by application with review by a committee of established professionals. Travel subsidies are available for the selected applicants.
  • Program Reports: Demographic information is collected as part of the registration process and is used to characterize the graduate population. This link archives the program reports.
  • Symposium Reports: Considering applying to the next DISCCRS Symposium? Check out the descriptions, participant lists, mentors and other details about past symposia here.
  • Symposium Scholars: are highlighted on this page. There is a separate list for each symposium.
  • Published Papers: This page provides a bibliography of papers relating to, or resulting from, DISCCRS. It includes papers published by the DISCCRS PIs, or by teams of scholars who participated in a DISCCRS symposium.
  • News and Links: This page provides links to the DISCCRS Team’s favorite climate-change resources. It is not a comprehensive list, but a good starting place for those looking for climate information.

DISCCRS Funding

U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF)

BIO Directorate for Biological Sciences 
GEO Directorate for Geosciences 
OPP Office of Polar Programs 
SBE Directorate for Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences

Collaborative Grant #s: SES-0931402 to the University of Oregon, Ronald B. Mitchell, PI, and SES-0932916 to Whitman College, Paul H. Yancey, Substitute PI. C. Susan Weiler is supported on this project through her current position at the National Science Foundation. Any opinions, finding, and conclusions or recommendations expressed by her through this project do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Earth Science Program

Grant #: NNX10AJ53G to Whitman College

NSF logo NASA logo


DISCCRS Sponsoring Societies

  • AAG Association of American Geographers
  • AERE Association of Environmental and Resource Economists
  • AGU American Geophysical Union
  • AMS American Meteorological Society
  • ASLO American Society of Limnology and Oceanography
  • ESA Ecological Society of America
  • ESS-ISA Environmental Studies Section of the International Studies Association
  • STEP-APSA Science, Technology and Environmental Politics (STEP) section of the American Political Science Association
  • TOS The Oceanography Society
  • USSEE U.S. Society for Ecological Economics

DISCCRS Program Co-Directors

  • Dr. Ronald B. Mitchell, Department of Political Science and Program in Environmental Studies, University of Oregon
  • Dr. C. Susan Weiler, Office for Earth System Studies, Whitman College

email: info(AT)disccrs.org  phone: 509-527-4986