The NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA-GSFC), a leading national lab, and the University of Maryland (UMD), a top-tier research university, have collaborated for more than thirty years on scientific studies of the Earth. This work has been highly successful and has won international recognition. Building on this history, the two institutions are now partnering to develop a world-leading center for the studies of the global carbon cycle. Carbon is the basis of life, has large and changing reservoirs, and carbon compounds exert a strong influence on climate. The Joint Global Carbon Cycle Center combines the strengths of NASA-GSFC and UMD to advance science and education on studies of carbon beyond what either institution could achieve alone.