About

Exponential human population growth has altered ecosystem and planetary processes, straining natural resources and the oceans, forests, grasslands, and freshwaters that are critical to a prosperous society. For example, climate change, habitat loss/degradation, invasive species, pollution, and emerging infectious diseases are among the challenges that alter these ecosystems, decimate biodiversity, and adversely affect our water, air, food, and energy systems.  A more interdisciplinary understanding of these human-induced changes is urgently needed to inform public policy, minimize further environmental degradation in the face of a rapidly growing society, and to promote sustainable solutions to the greatest environmental challenges of the 21st century.

Because interdisciplinary research and student training are essential to tackle the new frontier of global socio-environmental challenges, the Global Change Center at Virginia Tech was founded in 2015 within the Fralin Life Sciences Institute. The center brings together experts from diverse disciplines to solve these complex global challenges and train the next generation of leaders.

You can review our full charter, most recently revised in December of 2023, here.