GLRC Student Resources

$500 GLRC Travel Awards are available for graduate and undergraduate students whose advisors are GLRC faculty members, or they are supported on a research project affiliated with the GLRC.  The funds are intended for travel costs to a professional conference where the student will be presenting a poster or paper.

Students are required to provide a return on the GLRC investment.  Options include:
    a. presenting a poster at World Water Day in March
    b. assisting with preparations for World Water Day
    c. assisting with GLRC-sponsored outreach activities

GLRC Travel Grant Application:  accepted anytime for review on the last Friday of each month.  Applications must be submitted at least 2 weeks in advance of travel.

$750 GLRC Research Grants are available for graduate and undergraduate students whose advisors are affiliated with the GLRC. The grants are intended to provide graduate and undergraduate students an opportunity to gain experience in writing competitive grants and to perform research they would not be able to attempt due to funding limitations. Allowable expenditures may include supplies, services, equipment, travel, and personnel.   

Funded students are expected to participate/volunteer for at least one GLRC activity during the grant period.  A final research report is due within 30 days of grant end date.   Please read the GLRC Student Research Grants Guide for further information about grant terms, proposal instructions, and evaluation criteria.

GLRC Research Grant Application: Accepted 3 times each year - November 1, March 1, and July 1.     

Sustainable Water Resources Systems
Contact: Noel Urban (nurban@mtu.edu) or Jackie Gebhardt (glrcadmin-l@mtu.edu)

This Certificate formally recognizes students will have a set of core competencies in understanding current water resource issues and develop an advanced understanding of the problems and new technology development in their field of expertise. This certificate will be useful to students in such fields as natural resource management, business and policy, environmental and civil engineering, geology and geological engineering, and environmental policy. Students who complete this certificate will be able to demonstrate that they understand water resource management from an interdisciplinary perspective that includes policy, natural sciences, and applied sciences.

Requirements:

• UN5100 Water and Society (1 cr) or SS5325 Water Policy, History, and Governance (3 cr)
• Other Water Related Courses (11 cr) - minimum of one course from each of the following categories (course lists are provided in the Degree Schedule):
  • Hydrology
  • Natural Systems
  • Policy and Societal Systems & Economics
  • Physical Hydrology and Engineered Water Resource Systems

Degree Schedule: When students have completed the required courses, or are enrolled in the last ones, the certificate degree schedule should be submitted to Nancy Byers Sprague (nspr@mtu.edu) in the Graduate School.

UN5100 Water and Society (1 credit)
Contact: Noel Urban, nurban@mtu.edu

Offered each Spring Semester, each week, participants will read a journal paper or scientific report in preparation of discussion sessions on Tuesdays. Select films from the Green Film series (held Thursday evenings) will be used in lieu of the paper/Tuesday discussions. Students not registered for the course and faculty are encouraged to participate.

Discussion sessions will be led by a group of students and faculty. This group will prepare a few questions or comments the week preceding the discussion and send these to the class as a way to begin focusing the discussion. The group will begin the discussion session with a 10-minute summary of the major issues covered by the preceding week’s reading and repeat the discussion questions.

Students will be expected either to:

1. produce and present a poster on a relevant topic for the GLRC World Water Day poster session, or
2. write and submit a 5-page reflection paper due at the end of the semester
3. commit to read papers, lead discussions at least once during the semester, and participate in all discussions.

This 1-credit colloquium course is a required component of the GLRC Graduate Certificate in Sustainable Water Resources Systems.

World Water Day is celebrated at Michigan Tech in March of each year.  The theme is set by the United Nations, and the following events bring faculty, students, and staff together in recognition of water-related issues.

• Keynote Lecture:  Invited speaker with expertise in the theme topic
• World Water Day Poster Competition: open to grads and undergrads with cash awards in 2 categories (Original Research, presentation of thesis or project research and Coursework/Informational, presentation of coursework or literature based research related to WWD theme).
  Faculty are encouraged to include WWD posters in their course assignments.
• Panel Discussion: Panelists are invited to present on the WWD theme, chosen from a variety of backgrounds - government, industry, academia, tribal, etc.
• Green Film presentation: the Green Film committee chooses a documentary pertaining to the WWD theme
• Art Show: water-themed art show on display in the Great Lakes Research Center from March -June.
• Other theme-related activities: Other events based on ideas of students, staff and faculty

 2020 World Water Day Theme - Water and Climate Change
 Please contact Jackie Gebhardt (glrcadmin-l@mtu.edu) with ideas for speakers, panelists, and events.

Seminar Speaker Request Form
Great Lakes Research Center faculty members can apply for assistance ($500) in bringing seminar speakers to Michigan Tech. Lecture topics should be of interest to the GLRC, and the visit should correspond with GLRC goals. The above form should be emailed to Jackie Gebhardt at glrcadmin-l@mtu.edu.

Michigan Tech Water Newsletter

 A short version of the newsletter is periodically emailed to the GLRC Student Community (glrc-student-community-l@mtu.edu) and GLRC Information (glrc-info-l@mtu.edu) email lists.  The email includes a link to the full newsletter available on the GLRC web site.

Things to look for in the newsletter:

• Highlights:  announcements of new funding and other highlights about GLRC members
• On-Campus Seminars:  announcements of seminars and graduate defenses with water and climate related topics
• New Funding Opportunities:  New announcements of research RFPs (Requests For Proposals)
• Request Contribution numbers for GLRC Publications: reminder of including a GLRC contribution number in the acknowledgement section of publications
• Reports and Action Plans: Federal, State, regional reports on water issues. Also includes calls for public comments
• Conferences & Webinars:  announcements of conferences and webinars on water-related topics
• Open RFPs of ongoing interest: Open RFPs, includes listing of NSF calls, and current NASA ROSES opportunities
• Graduate Certificate in Sustainable Water Resources Systems: info and links
• Student Research Grants and Travel Grants: info, links, and current deadlines
• Colloquium Course – UN5100 Water and Society: info
• Seminar Speaker Support Program: info and links
• Job Opportunities:  current announcements in water and environmental fields
• Student Opportunities: student internships, fellowships, summer jobs, etc.