ATLANTA (Oct. 10, 2024) — The Georgia Institute of Technology today announced the recipients of fellowships in which students will collaborate with The Carter Center during the fall 2024 academic semester. 

Delaney Gomen received the second Governance and Technology Fellowship to work with the Carter Center’s Democracy Program. Muzna Raheel was awarded the first Peace Tech Fellowship and will partner with the Center’s Conflict Resolution Program. 

Gomen’s research interests include democracy and technology, election administration, surveillance, censorship, and digital security education. She is pursuing a Master of Science in computer science at Georgia Tech. Gomen is also serving as a researcher for Assistant Professor Michael Specter, who has a joint appointment in computer science and cybersecurity and privacy. Gomen’s fellowship is funded jointly by the Carter Center’s Democracy Program and Georgia Tech’s Institute for People and Technology. 

Raheel’s research interests focus on Middle East conflicts, specifically major causes, players, and conflict dynamics and utilizing data analysis and geographic information systems (GIS) to map conflict zones, humanitarian interventions, and peacekeeping operations. She is pursuing a Master of Science in global development at Georgia Tech. Her fellowship is funded jointly by the Center’s Conflict Resolution Program and Georgia Tech’s Sam Nunn School of International Affairs.

These research fellowships build on the long-term and ongoing collaboration between Georgia Tech and The Carter Center. 

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Contact: In Atlanta, Maria Cartaya, maria.cartaya@cartercenter.org

The Carter Center
Waging Peace. Fighting Disease. Building Hope.

A not-for-profit, nongovernmental organization, The Carter Center has helped to improve life for people in over 80 countries by resolving conflicts; advancing democracy, human rights, and economic opportunity; preventing diseases; and improving mental health care. The Carter Center was founded in 1982 by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, in partnership with Emory University, to advance peace and health worldwide.

Visit our website CarterCenter.org | Follow us on X @CarterCenter | Follow us on Instagram @thecartercenter | Like us on Facebook Facebook.com/CarterCenter | Watch us on YouTube YouTube.com/CarterCenter

About the Georgia Institute of Technology
The Georgia Institute of Technology, or Georgia Tech, is one of the top public research universities in the U.S., developing leaders who advance technology and improve the human condition. The Institute offers business, computing, design, engineering, liberal arts, and sciences degrees. Its more than 47,000 undergraduate and graduate students, representing 50 states and more than 148 countries, study at the main campus in Atlanta, at campuses in Europe and Asia, and through distance and online learning. As a leading technological university, Georgia Tech is an engine of economic development for Georgia, the Southeast, and the nation, conducting more than $1.2 billion in research annually for government, industry, and society. 

Contact: Walter Rich, walter.rich@research.gatech.edu

The latest Sustainability Next Research Seed grants have been awarded. The seed grant program is administered by BBISS in collaboration with the Renewable Bioproducts Institute (RBI), the Strategic Energy Institute (SEI), and the Institute for People and Technology (IPaT). The program nurtures promising areas for future large-scale collaborative sustainability research, research translation, and high-impact outreach; provides mid-career faculty with leadership and community-building opportunities; and broadens and strengthens the Georgia Tech sustainability community as a whole.

The call for proposals was modeled after the Office of the Executive Vice President for Research’s (EVPR) “Moving Teams Forward” and “Forming Teams” programs. All told, the work of 49 researchers — from 19 Schools in five Colleges, the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI), and external partners and research professionals from several of Georgia Tech’s Interdisciplinary Research Institutes (IRIs) — will benefit from these grants.

Moving Teams Forward

• Toward a Center on Inclusive (and Effective) Climate Communication; Bruce Walker (Psych), Susan Lozier (EAS), Claire Arthur (Music), Jessica Roberts (IC), Carrie Bruce (IC), Amy Bower (Woods Hole Oceanographic Inst).
• Moving Teams Forward to Building a Path Toward Community-Owned Resilience Hubs for Equitable Climate Adaptation and Mitigation: An Interdisciplinary and Community-Engaged Approach; Sofia Perez-Guzman (CEE), Allen Hyde (Hist&Soc), Danielle Willkens (Arch), Alexander Robel (EAS), Jennifer Hirsch (SCoRE), Valerie Thomas (ISYE), Joe Bozeman (CEE), Nicole Kennard (BBISS), Jung-Ho Lewe (AE).
• A Digital Twin for Atlanta: Toward a Building Energy Demand/Mobility Nexus; Patrick Kastner (Arch).
• Sustainable Development in Africa: Cropland Expansion, Fire, Climate Change, and Economic Solutions; Yuhang Wang (EAS), Olga Shemyakina (Econ), Kexin Rong (CS).
• Interdisciplinary Program in Transportation; Adjo Amekudzi-Kennedy (CEE), Alexander Robel (EAS), Christopher Wiese (Psych), Kurt Wiesenfeld (Physics), Nimisha Roy (Comp Inst).
• Enabling Disadvantaged Communities to Baseline the Performance of Residential Energy Systems; Jung-Ho Lewe (AE), Scott Duncan (AE), David Solano (AE).

Forming Teams

• Identifying and Amplifying Georgia Tech’s Research Strengths in Conserving Georgia’s Biodiversity in the Face of Rapid Global Change; Jenny McGuire (Biol/EAS), James Stroud (Biol), Emily Weigel (Biol), Lauren Speare (Biol), Saad Bhamla (ChBE), Matthew Swarts (GTRI), Allen Hyde (Hist&Soc), Jennifer Hirsch (SCoRE).
• UrbAdapt CA4: Urban Climate Adaptation for Indigenous Households in Guatemala Alberto Fuentes (INTA), Gregory Randolph (City Planning), Joshua Ayers (City Planning),Erick Calderón  (World Vision Intl), Sara Sywulka (World Vision Intl).
• Mitigating the Risk of Life-Threatening Power Outages During Extreme Weather; Constance Crozier (ISYE), (Brian) Yeokwang An (Pub Policy), Hiba Baroud (Vanderbilt).
• A Sustainability Data Dashboard for the GT Library Media Bridge, Yanni Loukissas (LMC), Emily Weigel (Biol), Alison Valk (Library), Jason Wright (Library), Charles Bennett (Library), Atlas Coltrain (LMC) (Co-funded by IPaT & BBISS).

Joint Initiative

• Modeling the Dispersal and Connectivity of Marine Larvae With GenAI Agents; Annalisa Bracco (EAS), Jacob Abernethy (CS), Xing Zhou (EAS), Renzhi Wu (CS), Guanghui Wang (CS) (Co-funded by IDeAS & BBISS).

Recently, a team from Georgia Tech and the University of Minnesota conducted a youth disaster resilience program at the Cape Flats YMCA in Cape Town, South Africa. This initiative, known as Youth Advocacy for Resilience to Disasters (YARDs), aims to educate young people about environmental justice, civic engagement, and community resilience. 

Originally funded by the National Science Foundation’s Civic Innovation Challenge grant, this particular trip was supported by internal funds from both universities. The program's core objective is to help youth understand and address disasters and climate resilience through the lens of environmental justice. 

Participants learn about their community's assets and vulnerabilities, engage in virtual mapmaking, and develop green and gray infrastructure solutions to present to local leaders. 

Research support from the University of Minnesota was provided by Nisha Botchwey, dean of the Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs. She was a co-principal investigator in the original NSF grant and previously worked at Georgia Tech. Katie O’Connell, research scientist at the University of Minnesota, also participated in the project and teaches at both universities.

Allen Hyde, associate professor in the School of History and Sociology in Georgia Tech’s Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts, is the principal investigator for the YARDs project. He is also a research initiative lead for responsible and ethical technologies with Georgia Tech’s Institute for People and Technology.

“When we were invited to participate in the Sixth World Congress for Social and Racial Inequality in Cape Town, we wanted to leverage some existing connections with the project team and youth organizations in South Africa,” said Hyde. “While the goal was to provide educational opportunities for the youth in Cape Flats, the trip was a deep education on the social and historical conditions of Cape Town and South Africa, and lived experiences of Cape Flats youth for the research team.”

Cape Town was chosen for its unique challenges and existing personal connections among some research team members. Mustafa Shabazz, the YARDs project manager and lecturer for Georgia Tech Professional Education, leveraged his ties with the Cape Flats YMCA to facilitate the program. Ricardo De Reuck, director at the Cape Flats YMCA, welcomed the team’s project to engage the children. The team was also invited to present at the Sixth World Conference on Remedies to Racial and Social Inequality at the University of the Western Cape, further solidifying the team’s decision to conduct a program in South Africa. 

Cape Town's coastal location and climate makes it susceptible to both flooding and wildfires, particularly in densely populated areas like Cape Flats. However, upon engaging with the local youth, the team discovered that natural disasters were not their primary concern. Instead, issues like gang activity and crime dominated their daily lives. This insight led to a shift in focus, allowing the youth to develop action plans addressing social issues alongside natural disasters. 

The program, condensed into two days, involved 25 youth aged 12 to 16. Despite logistical challenges, such as limited electrical outlets and Wi-Fi connectivity, the participants actively engaged in drawing meaningful maps and creating action plans. The experience highlighted the importance of flexibility, understanding the community's needs, and pivoting when conducting a YARDs program. 

The team also explored potential collaborations with the YDentity Museum with the Cape Flats YMCA, which delves into the social and ethnic history of the area. This museum could play a significant role in future projects, amplifying the program's impact. 

Overall, the YARDs program in Cape Town was a learning experience for both the participants and the organizers. It underscored the necessity of adapting to the community's needs and the potential for continued collaboration with the Cape Flats YMCA. 

“While Savannah, Georgia and Cape Town, South Africa have many differences in their social and economic contexts, both the youth participants and the research team saw many overlaps,” said Hyde. “Our communities in both countries are often unequal. Not only in terms of infrastructure, access to jobs, and educational opportunities, but also access to parks, green space, safety and exposure to violence, and youth programs.” 

“YARDs helps youth imagine more resilient and thriving communities, whether that be due to exposure to acute climate disasters like hurricanes and flooding or simmering social disasters like a lack of economic and social opportunity and exposure to violence and gangs that becomes normalized due to everyday exposure. Youth are our future. We must ensure that their voices are heard as we plan, imagine, and design our communities. If ignored, then future generations will likely pay the price.”