Professional Development
InTERFEWS will equip students with 21st century professional skills and networks to solve complex FEWS issues through professional development activities. Activities will include participation in transdisciplinary problem solving and communications training and research seminars as described below.
Communications Training
Communications training will include participation in a 2-day communications workshop to improve written and oral communication skills. InTERFEWS trainees will be required to practice the learned skills in formats that includes assessment by peers and mentors. Practice experiences will include both written and oral presentation requirements. Trainees will each write an article for one of CSUs major FEW-related centers/institutes – the Colorado Water Center, Energy Institute, or School of Global Environmental Sustainability.
For oral presentation practice experiences, trainees will select at least one of the following activities:
- Special FEWs Session at CSU Hydrology Days: InTERFEWS will host a special FEWs session at Hydrology Days where trainees will invite relevant stakeholders to evaluate their presentations.
- 3MT Competition: InTERFEWS will host three-minute thesis (3MT) competitions in collaboration with the graduate school. Legislators, industry partners, and interdisciplinary researchers will be invited to judge these competitions.
- School of Global Environmental Sustainability Public Panels: Trainees will be provided the opportunity to organize and present at one of the regularly held SoGES panels for the public.
- Presentation to Community Groups or Industry/Utility Partners: Presentations could also be made to public groups or industry, government agency, or NGO partners on research that aligns with their interest.
Workshops
Students will also attend transdisciplinary problem solving workshops, a 5-day gathering focused on local FEWS issues, including a field trip with stakeholder interactions. The Employing Model-Based Reasoning in Socio-Environmental Synthesis (EMBeRS; DGE-1545404) intensive student workshop is a training experience to develop capacity for leading interdisciplinary synthesis efforts in the future by bringing together students from different disciplines around local resource allocation related to water scarcity, and the issues surrounding the management of each.
