2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

The Growing Intercultural Global Energy Leaders (GIGEL), a 7-week summer certificate program, was developed to create a virtual learning opportunity for graduate students working at energy centers in the U.S. and in Brazil. The overarching goal was to grow their global engineering and energy justice skills, resulting in more enjoyable and productive collaborations and interactions with their international colleagues. In keeping with research on intercultural competency, the program was designed to build intercultural awareness and skills, forge international personal and professional connections, and encourage thinking about the global energy landscape, but with a special focus on Brazil and the U.S.

The design of the course included asynchronous learning of online modules on Brightspace—an online learning platform, along with five LIVE Zoom sessions, as well as assignments on Country Navigator—an online intercultural learning program. Twenty-three graduate students (12 from the U.S. and 11 from Brazil) completed all GIGEL program requirements in Summer 2022. Survey results showed strong participant agreement with the four program goals: 1. Provided an opportunity to work on one’s intercultural awareness and skills, 2. Helped me think about being a future intercultural global energy leader, 3. Will help me have more enjoyable and productive future international research collaborations/interactions, and 4. Allowed me to make some initial personal and professional connections. Participants also rated good or excellent the quality of the program content, speakers, intercultural mentors, and breakout room conversations.

Consensual themes captured by program participant comments, and actions taken to improve the program next to be held in Summer 2025, will be shared. As future leaders in the field of energy, the U.S. and Brazilian graduate students were challenged to think about how they can help to achieve more equitable energy solutions and environmental justice for all people as we focus on how to transition to cleaner energy future. The GIGEL certificate program was a good beginning to a intercultural exchange between energy research centers in the U.S. and Brazil, but we also hope a good beginning of a satisfying, lifelong intercultural journey for the GIGEL participants.