The Climate Change Research Initiative (CCRI) program is an interdisciplinary, collaborative, year-long STEM engagement and experiential learning opportunity. It is designed for educators and graduate students to work directly with NASA scientists and lead research teams in a NASA research project hosted at either NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, Columbia University's Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory, CUNY City College of Technology in New York City, NY, or NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD. The summer component of each CCRI project also includes undergraduate and high school interns. During the fall and spring terms, research teams, led by NASA Scientists, include in-service high school STEM educators and graduate student research assistants who become immersed in a NASA science research area related to climate change. During the summer session, each research team expands to include an undergraduate intern and a high school intern. The entire team collaborates full-time to complete the research project, deliver presentations, create a scientific poster, and produce a publishable research paper, culminating in a CCRI symposium at the end of the summer. High school STEM educators become associate researchers, education ambassadors, and STEM education experts. They integrate NASA education resources, platforms, data, and content into their classrooms, improving STEM education within their communities. Educators contribute to the research project, assist in developing research questions, and guide the research team. They also develop an Applied Research STEM Curriculum portfolio, which includes program deliverables and a unit plan integrating their research project components, NASA education content, resources, and platforms into classroom instruction, aligning with Next Generation Science Standards. This curriculum is then incorporated into their classrooms, and community STEM engagement events related to their NASA research study are provided to their professional learning communities. The fall and spring terms are designed not to conflict with educators' primary schedules. Graduate Research Assistants contribute to the research project, assist in developing research questions, and help guide the research team to complete all program deliverables, including a publishable research paper, comprehensive PowerPoint presentation, and scientific poster. This opportunity is considered a part-time position that supports the graduate student's major area of study and does not conflict with class schedules during the fall and spring. Undergraduate and high school students work on real NASA projects under the guidance of a NASA CCRI mentor and a research scientist, gaining practical work experience. All participants and teams are required to submit a final PowerPoint, Scientific Poster, and Research Paper report upon completion of the program. Applicants must be US citizens, and those whose locality is regional to NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York City, NY, or NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD, are encouraged to apply. Housing, relocation, and travel expenses are not provided.