We take on humanity's grand challenges.
Our education, research, scholarship and creative activities, and service are designed to accelerate solutions to humanity’s grand challenges—within our communities and around the globe.
Goal 1
Invest in faculty, student, staff, alum, and partner capacity to take on grand challenges through multidisciplinary and engaged research and curricular innovations.
- Inspire multidisciplinary collaboration to address grand challenges such as climate change, social injustice, global health, education disparities, poverty, and threats to our democracy.
- Place interdisciplinary grand challenges at the center of our curriculum, further integrating our education and research missions.
- Prepare and energize the next generation of critical thinkers and change agents through integrated, experiential, and high-impact learning experiences focused on grand challenges in and outside the classroom.
Goal 2
Leverage our location near the state and nation’s capitals to advance and support evidence-based policy that addresses grand challenges at community, state, national, and global levels.
- Expand partnerships with government agencies, policymakers, and community leaders that allow our faculty, staff, and students to contribute meaningfully to our democracy and society.
- Provide internships, fellows programs, and other place-based experiential learning opportunities for students to directly engage in local, state, national, and global grand challenges.
Goal 3
Amplify impactful research, scholarship, creative activities, teaching, and service work through communication, visibility, and translation.
- Recognize and reward activities that are visionary, translational, and powerful.
- Communicate the real-world impact of our research, scholarship, and creative activities.
- Highlight the accomplishments of our graduates.
- Strengthen the integration of Intercollegiate Athletics into the fabric of the university and leverage its reach and visibility to share research and academic accomplishments.
Strategic Programs and Initiatives
The university’s plan accelerates development and implementation of the Climate Action Plan 2.0 that will ensure UMD meets its goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2025.
The university is fast becoming the capital of quantum, a hub for an expansive quantum enterprise that features world-class research institutes, global collaborations and growing government and industry connections.
Research Media Training program
Spearheaded by the Office of Marketing and Communications, this program helps faculty members become more comfortable and confident in communicating about the impact of their research and expertise.
This bold new program will provide funding and support for programs, initiatives and projects that will impact enduring and emerging societal challenges, such as climate change, social injustice, global health, education disparities, poverty, and threats to our democracy.