lfranklin – coexist

senior spotlight: meera nemali ’24

What are your majors?
I am an environmental studies and anthropology major.

Tell us about your capstone project!
I did my capstone paper last semester through an anthropology class called From Metropolis to Megalopolis (ANTH249). I wrote my capstone about how urban planning and city infrastructure can worsen environmental disasters and the ways in which we can sustainably plan our cities in the future. I don’t really know if there’s a way to prevent these disasters, but there are ways to prevent further damage in cities.

senior spotlight: sloane dzhitenov ’24

by lfranklin

Hi, Sloane! What are your majors and where are you from?
I’m a triple major, which is crazy. I’m a film and environmental studies major and also an economic major. And I’m from Massachusetts.

Outside of academics, what else are you involved in on campus?
Film takes up most of my free time. I try to make as many movies as I can. I also run Intercut, which is the film and TV magazine on campus. Those are honestly my main extracurriculars at the end of the day

senior spotlight: serena levingston ’24

by lfranklin

Hi, Serena! What are your majors here at Wes?
My majors are environmental studies and feminist, gender, and sexuality studies.

What sort of intersection have you found between those two majors?
I think there’s the ecofeminism aspect, looking at how the ways people treat earth seem to mirror the ways people treat women and marginalized people. I’ve taken a lot of classes that focus on the effects of colonialism and western imperial thought on the earth and people.

What are you doing for your senior project?
I wrote a capstone essay last semester in the FGSS Department that was focused on endocrine disruptors, which are a class of chemical compounds that includes things like BPA and parabens. I wrote about how such things are talked about in mainstream media narratives, what that shows about cultural fears, and how that can be applied to broader rhetoric around environmental effects. So, for example, there’s a lot of panic around the effects of endocrine disruptors on reproduction. So I looked at things like who is panicking and who does it actually affect? And I found that the people who are panicking are not necessarily the ones who are affected by it.

senior spotlight: alberto lopez ’24

by lfranklin

Our 33 class of 2024 ENVS linked majors have primary majors in 15 different departments, from film to government to feminist, gender and sexuality to chemistry. This diversity reflects the deep and widespread interest in environmental issues on the Wesleyan campus and our incredibly fertile coexist community! Alberto Lopez ’24 is a government and environmental studies major from Texas. Learn more about Alberto, below!

haddad book focuses on enviro politics in east asia

by lfranklin

John E. Andrus Professor of Government Mary Alice Haddad, a Bailey COE faculty member, recently published her latest book: Environmental Politics in East Asia. In it, she focuses her research on environmental politics in East Asia, with comparisons between China, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan, looking at the importance of prof-business solutions in creating environmental change in these countries and the common factors of success. Haddad also has a deep interest in the power of local governments and their ability to create tangible progress. I was able to sit down with Professor Haddad to talk about her book and her work.

bailey coe hosts talk on political ecology in ancient china

by lfranklin

The Bailey College of the Environment was delighted to welcome Brian Lander, assistant professor of history and environment & society, Brown University, for “The Political Ecology of China’s First Empire,” on February 29, 2024. Lander is the author of The King’s Harvest: A Political Ecology of China from the First Farmers to the First Empire. As an environmental historian who studies China, Lander focuses on how human societies came to dominate a number of regions, a process beginning with the domestication of plants and animals and continuing with the growth of states and empires. Lander’s current research follows the ecological history of the Qin Dynasty.

senior spotlight: lia franklin ’24

by lfranklin

Hi, lovely coexist blog readers! My name is Lia Franklin and I have been an intern for the Bailey COE for the past two years. I have been so lucky to work with the wonderful Laurie Kenney to write some great blog posts, create content, and help with events. I have been so grateful for the opportunity to get to know the Bailey COE community more; from students to professors to outside speakers. So, now it’s time for you all to get to know me a little better!

I was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, but have always had a love for the outdoors. This dual love, which many think is somewhat contradictory, has driven my interest in climate change and environmental issues.

Here at Wesleyan, I am a second semester senior and a government and environmental studies major. I am currently writing a thesis about environmental constitutionalism using New York State as a case study. Through this project, I have been able to combine my two passions: political science and climate work. After graduation, I hope to continue pursuing this combination and am interested in one day working in environmental public policy. I’m specifically interested in urban policy and the intersection between environmental justice movements, public policy, and environmental law in urban areas.