Global Change
Established by the Arizona Board of Regents: PhD minor 1994
The Graduate Interdisciplinary Program in Global Change (GC GIDP) offers a Ph.D. minor for students whose major and scholarly pursuits intersect with cross-cutting themes of global environmental change. The program, with more than 70 participating faculty representing natural sciences, engineering, social sciences, and health sciences, provides students with the interdisciplinary, integrative skills needed to understand the physical, biological, chemical, and human dynamics of global change. Students taking a Global Change minor must be pursuing a Ph.D. at the University of Arizona in an established major program in some field of science, engineering, public health, or social science, and have an interest in acquiring a broader environmental perspective in their coursework and research pursuits. The program is governed by a small interdisciplinary executive committee.
Global Change GIDP PhD minor requirements:
The GC GIDP includes three core classes, including a comprehensive course in the physical and biological aspects of global change, a seminar that focuses on the inter- and transdisciplinary nature of global change research, and 1 credit online toolkit course. In addition, two classes are chosen from a diverse list of elective courses.
Three core courses (7 units total)
GC 578 - Global Change (3 units)
GC 597A - Global Change Research, Application, and Decision-Making (3 units)
GC 695G - Global Change Toolkit (1 unit)
Two elective courses (6 units total)
Electives should be chosen to increase the student’s exposure to disciplines beyond the major program and research specialty. Students in a social or human dimensions major will focus their electives on quantitative, natural sciences, or engineering coursework. Students in a quantitative, natural sciences, or engineering major will focus their electives on social or human dimensions courses.
A list of current GC electives can be found HERE where the University of Arizona Course Catalog “Course Affiliates” has been sorted by the tag “GIDP: Global Change.” Contact the GC Chair with requests to add courses to the GC electives list.
Formally enroll by submitting a PhD Plan of Study to the Graduate College that includes your plan to meet GC GIDP requirements.
Learning Objectives for the GC GIDP
Students will gain an integrated, interdisciplinary understanding of the natural and social dynamics of global change, including physical, chemical, biological, social, and human dimensions.
Students will learn state-of-the-art quantitative and qualitative techniques and apply them across a range of timescales, geographic extents, and discipline-specific data types and formats.
Students will broaden their exposure to disciplines relevant to global change beyond their major programs and research specialties. Students in a social or human dimensions major will focus their Global Change minor electives on quantitative, natural sciences, or engineering coursework while students in a quantitative, natural sciences, or engineering major will focus their Global Change minor electives on social or human dimensions courses.
Benefits of joining the GC GIDP
Develop the interdisciplinary, integrative skills needed to understand the physical, biological, chemical, and human dynamics of global change
Expand your network across an interdisciplinary team of faculty and students representing natural sciences, health sciences, engineering, and social sciences, outside your department and college.
Participate in the GIDP annual research showcase to practice presenting your research before a diverse audience and learn about state-of-the-art interdisciplinary graduate research at the University of Arzona.
Access to GIDP awards, including the Carter Travel Award and Gruener Research Travel Award
Access the GIDP GC Travel Award to assist in conference and research travel expenses
New! The GC GIDP travel award!
The GC GIDP will provide up to $500 to support travel-related expenses for students enrolled in the GC GIDP minor. Funds may be used to help attend a conference or to support fieldwork and could include airfare, car rental, hotel, registration, poster printing, or per diem. Students may apply for one award per academic year. We anticipate three to four awards per year.
A committee of GC GIDP faculty members will review applications. Partial or full funding will be awarded at the discretion of the committee. Review criteria will include the strength of the proposal (e.g. impact on the scholars’ career, advancement of research, on scholarship in general), relation to the GC GIDP program, and financial need.
Program Contacts
Bryan Black, Ph.D.
Chair
bryanblack@arizona.edu
GIDP Administration
gidp@arizona.edu
Program Address
Global Change GIDP
The University of Arizon
1064 E Lowell Street
Environment and Natural Res 2, Rm S514
P O Box 210137
Tucson, AZ 85721-0137
Phone: (520) 626-5430
Kevin Anchukaitis
School of Geography & Development
Diane Austin
Bureau of Applied Research in Anthropology
Victor R. Baker
Hydrology & Atmospheric Sciences
Elizabeth Baldwin
School of Government & Public Policy
Greg Barron-Gafford
School of Geography and Development
Carl Bauer
School of Geography and Development
Richard A. Bennett
Geosciences
Bryan Black, Chair (July.1.2025-June.30.2028)
Tree Ring Laboratory
Paul Blowers
Chemical & Environmental Engineering
Kevin Bonine, Executive Committee (Nov.1.2025-Oct.31.2028)
Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Jonathan D. Chorover
Environmental Science
Andrew Cohen
Geosciences
Andrew Comrie
School of Geography and Development
Michael A. Crimmins
Environmental Science
Courtney Crosson
School of Architecture
Kacey C. Ernst, Executive Committee (Nov.1.2025-Oct.31.2028)
Public Health
Margaret E. Evans
Laboratory of Tree Ring Research
Donald A. Falk
School of Natural Resources and the Environment
Dan Ferguson, Executive Committee (July.1.2025-June.30.2028)
Environmental Science
David Frank
Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research
George Frisvold
Agricultural & Resource Economics
Rachel Gallery
Natural Resources
Andrea Gerlak
School of Geography and Development
Mark S. Giampapa
Lunar and Planetary Lab
Hoshin Gupta
Hydrology & Atmospheric Sciences
Christopher Harig
Geosciences
Ladd Keith
College of Architecture, Planning & Landscape Architecture
Steven Leavitt, Executive Committee (Nov.1.2025-Oct.31.2028)
Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research
Derek Lemoine
Economics
Chris Lim, Executive Committee (July.1.2025-June.30.2028)
Southwest Environmental Health Sciences Center
Laura López-Hoffman
Natural Resources and the Environment
Mitchel McClaran
Natural Resources and the Environment
Laura Meredith
Natural Resource & Environment
David J.P. Moore
Natural Resources and the Environment
Katherine G. Morrissey
History
Charlotte Pearson
Laboratory of Tree Ring Research
Mónica Ramírez-Andreotta
Soil, Water, and Environmental Science
Joellen L. Russell
Geosciences
Scott Saleska
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Edella Schlager
School of Government & Public Policy
Jeffrey C. Silvertooth
Environmental Science
William Smith
Natural Resources and the Environment
Armin Sorooshian
Chemical & Environmental Engineering
Kaustubh Thirumalai
Geosciences
Diane Thompson
Geosciences
Jessica Tierney
Geosciences
Valerie Trouet
Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research
Jianjun Yin
Geosciences
Xubin Zeng
Hydrology & Atmospheric Sciences
COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE AND LIFE SCIENCES
COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE, PLANNING AND LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
- Geosciences
- Hydrology & Atmospheric Sciences
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
- Physics
- Tree Ring Laboratory
COLLEGE OF SOCIAL & BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES
JAMES E. ROGERS COLLEGE OF LAW
MEL AND ENID ZUCKERMAN COLLEGE OF PUBLIC HEALTH
Global Change Program Bylaws
Bylaws
Graduate Interdisciplinary Program in Global Change
Adopted: January 17, 1995 Amended: June 29, 1999; April 5, 2004
Updated: August 4, 2009; December13, 2010; January 13, 2014; Novemeber 13, 2019
The Graduate Interdisciplinary Program in Global Change offers a Ph.D. minor for students whose major and scholarly pursuits intersect with cross-cutting themes of global environmental change. The program prepares graduate students with a broad understanding of critical concepts and state-of-the-art skills needed for an integrated interdisciplinary understanding of the natural and social dynamics of global change.
The program's Executive Committee (a subset of the entire Faculty of the Global Change Program), is appointed by and is responsible to the Dean of the Graduate College through the Faculty Director of the Graduate Interdisciplinary Programs. The Committee serves as the executive, administrative and policy-making board for the Global Change Program. The organization and structure of the Global Change GIDP shall conform to the guidelines for Interdisciplinary Programs (http://gidp.arizona.edu).
It is the responsibility of the Global Change Program to provide an interdisciplinary Ph.D. minor. This includes responsibility for recruiting students for the Ph.D. minor, setting appropriate course requirements, maintaining a faculty membership to serve on Ph.D. committees and keeping the necessary records. The Global Change GIDP will also work with the Institute of the Environment (IE) to promote a vigorous program of global change research and educational activities on campus. IE will provide administrative support for the Global Change GIDP.
Creative planning and leadership are essential to the success of the program. This is the function of the executive committee, with the input of all members of the program. In the following sections, the Bylaws that govern the policies and operating procedures are stated.
Article I. Chair and Executive Committee of the Global Change GIDP
Articles of the Global Change Graduate Interdisciplinary Program are administered by the Executive Committee. The Chair of the Executive Committee will be chair of the entire Global Change Program. The Executive Committee reports to the Dean of the Graduate College through the Faculty Director.
1. Chair of the Global Change GIDP
(a) The Dean of the Graduate College through the Faculty Director of Graduate Interdisciplinary Programs will appoint a member of the Executive Committee, elected by its membership, to serve as Chair of The Global Change GIDP. The Chair will serve a three-year term, which may be renewed twice through the process of election noted in these bylaws. At the end of a Chair’s term, the Chair will recuse him/herself from the process of nominating and electing a new Chair. If requested by the GIDP, nominations may be forwarded to the GIDP Administration and GIDP Administration will conduct the election of the new Chair.
(b) The duties of the Chair of the Global Change GIDP are to:
i. call and preside at meetings of the Executive Committee as needed,but not less than once per semester
ii. call and preside at meetings of the entire Global Change GIDP as needed
iii. manage administrative matters according to University regulations, including approval of graduate college forms for students in the program;
iv. be a primary contact for student inquires;
v. respond to calls to document GIDP contributions of participating faculty for P&T in their home units, as appropriate, according to University policies and procedures;
vi. prepare and submit information on program activities to the Dean of the Graduate College through the Faculty Director of the Graduate Interdisciplinary Programs when requested;
vii. serve as GIDPAC representative, or designate an Executive Committee member to serve in his/her place;
viii. serve as an ex officio member of the Institute of the Environment’s Faculty Advisory Committee, or designate an ex officio member from the Executive Committee to serve in his/her place as needed.
2. Executive Committee
(a) The Executive Committee will consist of at least five faculty members of the Global Change GIDP appointed by the Dean of the Graduate College through the Faculty Director of Graduate Interdisciplinary Programs. Executive Committee members are appointed for staggered three-year terms, renewable twice, from a slate proposed by the Executive Committee and based on nominations solicited from the entire Global Change GIDP. Membership on the Executive Committee should reflect the breadth of backgrounds and units represented by the membership of the Global Change GIDP. A student representative may participate on the Executive Committee, as appropriate.
(b) The Executive Committee is responsible for administering the Ph.D. minor, including:
i. establishing requirements for the Ph.D. minor;
ii. evaluating and approving case-by-case requests for waivers to the requirements;
iii. arranging for the offering of any core courses required for the minor program;
iv. preparing and making available current information to students regarding program requirements and faculty involved;
v. facilitating communication within the Global Change GIDP, with its supporting academic unit heads and deans, and with the Institute of the Environment;
vi. helping to match students with appropriate faculty members to serve as the minor advisor and as members of graduate student committees;
vii. recruiting faculty to serve as members of the Global Change GIDP;
viii. establishing any ad hoc committee needed to ensure operation of the program;
ix. carrying out appropriate reviews of the program and its bylaws; and
x. carrying out appropriate reviews of the faculty membership of the program to ensure an active faculty membership.
Article II. Membership in the Global Change GIDP
The Global Change GIDP consists of faculty at the University of Arizona who are eligible to serve as minor representatives on Ph.D. committees.
1. Membership Criteria
(a) Faculty shall be nominated for membership in the Global Change GIDP by submitting a request for membership and a current curriculum vita to the Executive Committee. A majority of positive votes of the Executive Committee shall be required for nomination to the Dean of the Graduate College through the Faculty Director of the Graduate Interdisciplinary Programs, who shall confer membership. Important criteria for membership shall include participation in interdisciplinary global change activities at the University of Arizona and/or demonstrated current scholarly activity in the general area of global change.
2. Responsibilities
(a) Members of the Global Change GIDP may serve as minor representatives on Ph.D. committees for students taking the Ph.D. minor in Global Change. Representatives should become familiar with the requirements of the Ph.D. minor, and offer an appropriate perspective when serving on Ph.D. committees.
(b) Members of the Global Change GIDP shall serve when asked to participate on ad hoc committees of the program or as conduits of information about the Ph.D. minor to their respective academic units.
(c) Each member of the Global Change GIDP shall have one vote on matters brought to the entire membership by the Executive Committee. A quorum shall constitute of one-third of the membership.
(d) Members of the Global Change GIDP may be asked periodically to provide information on their GIDP-related activities, according to University policies and procedures. Additional responsibilities and opportunities for Global Change Faculty will be communicated as appropriate.
Article III. Amendments
The Bylaws shall be amended or revised by movement of the Executive Committee and a two-thirds vote of its membership.