Four Key Areas for Training the Next-Generation of Global Change Researchers Authors:

Anthropogenic activities are changing the global environment in numerous ways, including increasing concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide, alteration of biogeochemical cycles and changing land cover types (Vitousek et al., 1997; Steffen et al., 2006; IPCC, 2013). These changes are increasing stresses on ecosystem goods and services (Assessment, 2005), driving climate change and thus creating a few grand challenges for sustainability of the human society (ICSU, 2010). Improving our understanding of these profound changes and grand challenges will help us in developing better predictive capabilities for the future. As these changes are expected to be long-lasting and we still do not have a complete understanding of their causes and consequences, the next generation of scientists needs to be properly trained in knowledge, methods and techniques in order to meet the research needs to tackle future challenges in global change ecology research. Here we discuss the challenges and opportunities in preparing the next-generation global change researchers according to four key aspects of training. First, this next generation of scientists must be trained in existing and new scientific approaches and methods from a multitude of disciplines (e.g., natural sciences, engineering, and social sciences) and across a range of observational, analytical and computational techniques. Th