Application Process

We welcome applications from all disciplines for the 2024 cohort of Coastal Climate Solutions Leaders (CCSL)

CCSL is a new transdisciplinary NSERC CREATE (Collaborative Research And Training Experience Program) that provides UVic graduate students and post-doctoral fellows from across campus with the knowledge and skills they need to be tomorrow’s climate solutions leaders. Trainees carry out their research in their home department, with CCSL as value-added technical, experiential, and professional development training to prepare them for the climate action workforce. CCSL graduate trainees receive topup stipends to their regular funding (2 years for Masters students; 3 years for PhD students).

2024-2025 Academic Year Application

Applicants who meet the following criteria will be considered for admission:

Deadline: June 1, 2024

Applicants must already be in, or be accepted to, a Masters, PhD or postdoctoral program at the University of Victoria; Postdoctoral fellows will also be eligible to participate in the program, but are not required to complete the coursework.

Applicant’s research, or proposed research, aligns with the program, being focused on a component of climate change (science, impacts, adaptation or mitigation) that is relevant to coastal communities or ecosystems. Interdisciplinarity is encouraged;

Applicant demonstrates awareness of, and motivation to learn more, about climate change solutions, to work in an interdisciplinary environment, and to commit to the required program elements (see “Program Requirements” below);

Preference will be given to students who are supervised (or co-supervised) by faculty members who are on the Core CCSL Faculty Team. At minimum, applicants must state (1) preferred Committee Member from the the Core Faculty team. Overall, interdisciplinary committees are highly encouraged.

 

Applicant submits a completed application and, along with a 2-page CV, and arranges to have two reference letters (one from their UVic Supervisor), by the application deadline to: ccsl.coordinator@uvic.ca

Program Requirements

Successful applicants must demonstrate awareness of, and motivation to learn more, about climate change solutions, to work in an interdisciplinary environment, and to commit to the required program elements.

Note that in Year 1, this includes:

  • Mandatory two-day Program Orientation (scheduled for September 3rd and 4th, 2024);

  • One course in the Fall 2024 semester (Climate Solutions Foundations);

  • One course in the Spring 2025 semester (BC Coastal Climate Challenge);

  • Attending a climate change seminar once per month, and;

  • Presenting at our annual symposium at the end of the academic year (Spring 2024)

  • Trainees remain in the program for the duration of their graduate degrees to ensure continued development of cohorts and skills, but with lower time commitments in subsequent years

Funding

CCSL trainees will receive top-up stipends to their regular funding (2 years for Masters students; 3 years for PhD students) and will be required to fully participate in all organized program activities.

Click “Apply Now” to download a PDF of the application.

  • “The Coastal Climate Solutions Leaders program is a remarkable example of what transdisciplinary climate education looks like in practice. When students from diverse disciplines converge in collective learning –supported by faculties across the university in partnership with communities – we see the academic silos breakdown and the opportunity to holistically reimagine the world emerge.”

    – Ian Mauro

    Executive Director, Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions

  • "Throughout this semester, I was continually reminded of the importance of collective leadership. By fostering open communication, embracing diverse perspectives, and working towards a shared vision, we were able to co-create solutions that reflected the complexity of the problem at hand"

    – Tessa Rehill

    MSc Biology, 2023 cohort

  • "I would like to thank the entire CCSL team for all your work on the program and the Climate Solutions Foundations course. I can see it has been a vast effort to imagine, create, coordinate, and bring it to life. I am so grateful for the opportunity to be involved and appreciative of your efforts. I wish to say a special thank you to Julia, Isabella and Jenn, as well as the core faculty, for being at the heart of creating this first-of-its-kind training program, and for providing me with an abundance of remarkable opportunities"

    – Rowan Hargreaves

    Masters of Public Administration (MPA), 2023 cohort

  • "The GS501 course [BC Coastal Climate Challenge] has been a transformative journey that has prepared me to me an effective part of the next generation of climate leaders. The skills, knowledge and experiences gained here will ubdoubtedly influence my future work and collaborations in the field of climate mitigation-adaptation solutions"

    – Niloofar Gilani Larimi

    PhD candidate, Business, 2023 cohort

  • "In the BC Coastal Climate Challenge, we cultivated systems thinking by recognizing and respecting different–and sometimes conflicting–views from peers, faculty, and other stakeholders, encouraging open discussion, and negotiating appropriate solutions. Our collective leadership approach of co-developing solutions that reflected a shared vision not only strengthened the project outcomes but also cultivated essential skills for effective collaboration and leadership in future endeavors."

    – Luke Seybold

    MASc Engineering, 2023 cohort