The Global Appalachia Learning Alliance (GALA) expands and reframes the study of Appalachia by situating the region within global contexts and conversations. Appalachia, formally defined in the 1960s as a 13-state region from southern New York to northern Mississippi, has often been approached through an inward-looking lens focused on poverty and cultural isolation. GALA challenges this view by highlighting how Appalachia is both shaped by and deeply connected to broader global forces.
Global economic restructuring, energy transitions, climate change, labor migration, and shifting trade patterns have profoundly impacted the region, transforming its industries, communities, and environment. At the same time, Appalachia’s histories of resource extraction, grassroots activism, labor organizing, and cultural production resonate far beyond its borders, offering insights into struggles for justice and sustainability worldwide.
Through its consortium model, GALA brings together universities, community colleges, Minority Serving Institutions, and regional partners to share resources, foster research, and expand access to international education. Its mission is carried out in two keyways:
- Supporting Education and Training – advancing faculty research and course development, creating career toolkits for students, and offering K–12 teacher training in global studies for regional schools.
- Promoting Interdisciplinary Research and Collaboration – supporting scholarship that situates Appalachia in global contexts, builds lasting scholarly communities, and connects local dynamics—such as migration, labor, and environmental change—with transnational and world-historical processes.
By foregrounding both how global forces shape Appalachia and how Appalachia contributes to global debates, GALA underscores that the region is not peripheral or isolated but rather a vital site for understanding globalization, inequality, resilience, and cultural exchange in the modern world.