The Institute for Society, Culture and Environment (ISCE) is tasked with strengthening the university’s competitive position in the social sciences, arts, and humanities. With a presence in both Blacksburg and the National Capital Region, ISCE provides organizational and financial support for targeted creative, interactive, multi-and interdisciplinary research endeavors.

The programmatic focus for ISCE is the area of Social and Individual Transformation, one of Virginia Tech’s four discovery scholarship domains. For more information about Virginia Tech’s focus on social and individual transformation, please refer to the Discovery Scholarship Section of the University’s strategic plan:
http://www.president.vt.edu/strategicplan/discovery.php#social

Addressing issues of social and individual transformation, ISCE’s targeted research and scholarship areas are:

• Global Issues Initiative (GII) (e.g., global trade and economic integration, global security, public policy, counter-terrorism, public health and science policy)
• Human development and behavioral health (e.g., life span issues, aging issues, children, adolescents, adulthood, family, community, child and adult health behavior)
• Rhetoric, representation, and public humanities (e.g., transformative effects of technology on society; new media and communication technologies; language and symbolic systems; human creativity & technology)
• Social complexity and individual risk (e.g., ethics; risk analysis; disaster management; ecosystem impact)
• Community arts, built environments, and urban formations (e.g., symbolic thinking and practical environments)