We are thrilled to announce the selection of five Global Challenges Research Teams—a program dedicated to tackling complex sustainability issues while fostering cross-campus collaboration. These innovative, interdisciplinary projects address pressing global challenges related to sustainability and climate change. Led by faculty and researchers from seven CSU colleges, these teams will receive in-kind support from SoGES over the next two years and play an active role in our vibrant community of sustainability and climate change experts.

The Global Challenges Research Teams (GCRT): 

Building for Tomorrow: Creating a Marketable Metric for Circularity in Construction

Principal Investigators:

• Zachary Schaller, Assistant Professor, Economics
• John Killingsworth, Associate Professor, Construction Management
• Steve Conrad, Associate Professor, Systems Engineering

This project tackles one of the biggest challenges facing the construction industry: how to make sustainability not just good for the planet but also irresistible to developers. By creating a simple, marketable measure for the circularity of buildings, the team aims to transform long-term environmental benefits into immediate financial assets, aligning private incentives with public interests. Combining expertise in economics, systems engineering, and construction management, this interdisciplinary research addresses both the technical and institutional barriers to circularity, paving the way for a more sustainable built environment.

Climate-Smart Micro-farming: Upskilling Women Farmers to Enhance Diet Diversity and Food Security in Rural Kafue, Zambia

Principal Investigators:

• Brittney Sly, Assistant Professor, Food Science and Human Nutrition
• Tiffany Weir, Professor, Food Science and Human Nutrition
• John Mizia, Research Associate and Lab Director, Energy Institute

The project focuses on using traditional food practices to improve food system sustainability and health, especially for vulnerable populations. In Zambia, mushrooms, a culturally important wild-harvested protein source, are in short supply during the dry season, contributing to decreased diet diversity and food access. Mushroom farming is seen as a climate-smart solution with minimal land and energy requirements, offering significant benefits for women and children at risk of malnutrition. However, challenges such as water access and availability of clean mushroom spawn need to be addressed for long-term success. In partnership with MIGHTi, a local nonprofit, the project will involve field research, gender-sensitive interventions, and training rural Zambian women in mushroom farming and food preservation techniques. This will empower women, improve household food security, and create a replicable micro-farming model for similar communities.

Forest and Water Challenges in the Western U.S.

Principal Investigators:

• Anping Chen, Research Scientist, Biology
• Haonan Chen, Assistant Professor, Electrical & Computer Engineering
• Lixin Lu, Research Scientist, Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere
• Danica Lombardozzi, Assistant Professor, Ecosystem Science & Sustainability
• Troy Ocheltree, Associate Professor, Forest & Rangeland Stewardship
• Sarah Hart, Assistant Professor, Forest & Rangeland Stewardship
• Ryan Bailey, Associate Professor, Civil & Environmental Engineering

The "Forest and Water Challenges in the Western U.S." GCRT aims to investigate how changes in forest landscapes of the Rocky Mountains impact water resources across the Colorado River Basin under climate change. Through coupled land-atmosphere modeling and analysis of ground and remote sensing data, this project is expected to uncover the cascading effects of forest changes induced by large disturbances (e.g., wildfire, insect outbreak, and drought) on snowpack, runoff, and water availability. The team’s findings

will inform adaptive strategies to enhance water sustainability, forest management, and community resilience across the western United States.

MARCHIN - Migratory Animal Research and Conservation Hub Initiative

Principal Investigators:

• Eduardo Gallo-Cajiao, Assistant Professor, Human Dimensions of Natural Resources
• Joel Berger, Professor, Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology
• Ken Shockley, Professor and Chair, Philosophy
• John Ritter, Professor, Agricultural and Resource Economics

Animal migration is spectacular and globally important, yet it is vanishing. Reversing this trend requires collaboration across geographies and jurisdictions since animals cross vast distances. Studying the way people collaborate along these movements is essential to inform conservation, and this GCRT proposal, focusing on migratory land mammals, is a step to

that end. Specifically, MARCHIN will: record what has been researched up to now, establish a research agenda, and roll out a study in Wyoming. This proposal is strategically structured to launch a long-term interdisciplinary research program on this important sustainability challenge.

PRISME - Planned Response to Improve Smoke Monitoring in Emergencies

Principal Investigators:

• Christian L'Orange, Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering
• Bonnie Young, Research Scientist, Environmental & Radiological Health Sciences
• Ashley Anderson, Associate Professor, Journalism & Media Communication
• Kayleigh Keller, Associate Professor, Statistics

Natural disasters such as forest fires are increasing worldwide, exposing millions of people to air pollution hazards; however, research on how disasters affect personal exposure to air pollution remains limited. This shortage of reliable data is partly due to the challenges of quickly deploying scientifically rigorous studies in the rapidly evolving conditions of natural disasters. The Planned Response to Improve Smoke Monitoring in Emergencies (PRISME)

project aims to address this critical gap by fostering interdisciplinary teams and developing integrated approaches that combine technology, community engagement, and exposure monitoring. The team is developing innovative approaches and forging collaborations to enable flexible yet systematic monitoring during crisis events, enabling knowledge sharing of best practices and training young researchers in critical skills to tackle the complex challenge of monitoring during these events.