Opportunities

Postdoctoral Fellowships

Deadline: December 1, 2026

The Center for Climate and Environmental Health at Rice University invites applications for a Postdoctoral Fellow in Climate Change, Environment, and Health. This program operates in association with FORECAST — an interdisciplinary project with Baylor College of Medicine and UT Health funded by the Burroughs Wellcome Foundation — that investigates how climate change alters human-environment interactions and impacts community health.

This call is open to anyone working on issues related to climate and environmental health across disciplines. Through interdisciplinary teams of faculty, postdocs, graduate students, and undergraduate students, we aim to build new research, education, and communication initiatives that are collaborative and multidisciplinary. We encourage applications from the natural sciences, engineering, humanities, arts, architecture, and social sciences whose research, teaching, and/or outreach aligns with CCEH research areas.

While a range of approaches are of interest, we may prioritize:

• Climate & Environmental Impact Science
• Environmental Epidemiology
• Environmental Storytelling & Communication
• Climate & Health Education and Pedagogy
• Sociological & Cultural Impact Assessments
• Community Health Monitoring

Candidate Qualifications

• A terminal degree in any relevant field across the natural sciences and engineering, humanities, social sciences, arts, architecture, public health, or computational sciences.
• A demonstrated research and/or teaching focus on how climate or environmental shifts impact human health, societal structures, or public health literacy.
• Strong collaborative agility and a commitment to working alongside scholars from disparate fields (e.g., partnering medical virologists with writers and artists).

How to Apply

For the initial phase of the search, please submit the following via the application portal:

• Letter of Interest — detailing relevant background and how the program will advance the candidate's career goals. Leadership, research, teaching, and experience working on interdisciplinary climate-health problems will all be considered. Applicants should address at least one CCEH research area in their statement, along with any faculty members or units the candidate might be in conversation with and/or mentored by over the course of the postdoc.
• Curriculum Vitae

Candidates who advance in the search will be asked to provide work samples, letters of recommendation, and other materials.

Graduate Student Fellowships

Deadline: November 15, 2026

Applications are now open for the inaugural graduate fellowships in Climate and Environmental Health offered in conversation with FORECAST, a multi-institutional research and education project linking Rice University to Baylor University and UT Health, funded with generous support of the Burroughs Wellcome Foundation.

This program creates student cohorts from traditionally siloed fields — ranging from Earth sciences and epidemiology to sociology, history, English, arts, communication, and beyond — to enhance communication and collaboration across disciplines and build climate-health literacy.

Students from all disciplines and departments are eligible for support, provided their interests and skillsets align with the mission of the Center for Climate and Environmental Health.

The program is designed to develop collaborative interdisciplinary teams working as groups of postdocs, graduate students, and undergraduates on common research, communication, and outreach to advance our understanding of the nexus of climate, environment, and health while imagining meaningful climate-health solutions for Texas, the Gulf Coast, and beyond.

Fellowship Structure & Financial Support

• Fully Funded Fellowship Year: Stipends cover one full academic year. Fellows are not responsible for providing matching funds, but CCEH may reach out to mentors, departments, or schools to seek additional funds to increase the number of fellows.
• Continued Support & Cohort: Fellows may be eligible for renewal depending on performance and available funding. Alumni are encouraged to continue participation in CCEH activities to develop professionally in research, teaching, and leadership in climate and environmental health.
• Shared Seminar Series: Fellows actively engage in an ongoing multidisciplinary seminar with cross-institutional participation by registering for EEPS 697.
• Cross-disciplinary, Collaborative Action Teams: Fellows will work together in multi-disciplinary teams potentially composed of undergraduates, graduate fellows, postdocs, faculty, and community partners. Projects may yield peer-reviewed publications, public-facing writing, courses or curricular projects, literacy and awareness campaigns, policy briefs, and community health solutions.
• Additional Opportunities: CCEH will endeavor to create internship opportunities, teaching and mentoring opportunities, and other support through participation in FORECAST, EcoStudio, and partnerships with civic and community organizations.

Application Process

All applications should submit the following as a single PDF:

• Contact information
• Statement of Interest (500 words) — including relevant research and teaching background, how the student's skillset will grow through the program, career goals, leadership experience, experience with interdisciplinary work, and exposure to environmental health research. Statements should indicate interest in one or more research areas of the CCEH.
• Curriculum Vitae
• DGS Confirmation — A statement signed by the student's advisor and their Director of Graduate Studies supporting the application, describing how fellowship funds will be integrated with the student's degree plan, and confirming that the student can work full time on the project for the academic year.
• Recommendation Letter — A brief recommendation letter from the advisor.

Undergraduate Internships

Seed Grants