garden fest in bloom: a celebration of community & creativity

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Garden Fest is more than just an event—it’s a colorful, collaborative celebration where art meets activism, where music fills the air, and where the greater Wesleyan community comes together to celebrate spring!

Now in its third year, Garden Fest started as a senior thesis by environmental studies and English major Talia Zitner ’23 who dreamed up a non-traditional Earth Day honoring the many intersecting aspects of environmentalism. Since then, the tradition has been carried on by the Environmental Solidarity Network (ESN) and the student music collective The Shed, with co-sponsorship from the Bailey College of the Environment and others.

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A Watershed Moment: The Second Annual Connecticut Enviro Summit 

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On Saturday, April 5, Wesleyan’s Beckham Hall became a hub of energy, inquiry, and collaboration as the Bailey College of the Environment co-hosted the second annual Connecticut River Valley Environmental Summit. The event, organized by the Connecticut River Museum and cosponsored by the Bailey COE, brought together a broad coalition of local voices—scientists, policymakers, academics, nonprofit leaders, and cultural institutions—all united by one shared goal: protecting the health of the region’s waterways for generations to come.

Between a series of insightful presentations, attendees mingled and spoke with the poster presenters lining the walls, which included Wesleyan students, professors, and marine science educators. The room buzzed with multi-disciplinary energy.

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middletown gov guide hopes to increase public participation

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This year, I’ve had the opportunity to work in the Wesleyan Sustainability Office as a part of the Sustainable Middletown program, a small but energetic team composed of our Sustainability Director Jen Kleindienst, Professor Emeritus Krishna Winston, co-intern Tamira Le, and myself. Our team has spent the last year revising the Middletown Government Participation Guide, a publicly available document meant to remove barriers to civic engagement by providing residents with clear information about how the City government works, how to participate in public meetings, and how to sustain long-term involvement. By removing those barriers, we hope to empower Middletown residents to make their voices heard in local government.

Two weeks ago, I had the honor of hosting the launch of the newly updated Middletown Government Participation Guide alongside the Sustainable Middletown team and Mayor Ben Florsheim.

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pierre Gerard ’16: on a path to Sustainable Commuting

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Pierre Gerard ’16 graduated from Wesleyan with a degree in environmental studies and earth and environmental science. He is currently the transportation planner at the City of Oakland Bicycle and Pedestrian Program in Oakland, California. We recently spoke with Pierre about his time at Wes and his post-Wes experience!

Can you walk me through how you got from Wesleyan graduation to where you are now?
My first job out of college was an internship with the US Forest Service in Portland, Oregon. I worked out of their regional office for the Pacific Northwest, mostly performing GIS map work, making maps online. I did that for about six months, and eventually found my way over to a contract with Apple, working on Apple Maps––I did not like that. I moved over to another contract job doing more GIS work, decided that I didn’t like that either, and ended up quitting that job to work at a bike shop. And so my story, I think, is essentially me attempting to understand what it’s like to be a technical worker post college, and realizing that I didn’t like it and needed something else. 

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how to land a green gig: wes students share their stories

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Earlier this semester, the Student Sustainability Internship Advice Panel in Boger Hall brought together students passionate about the planet…and about landing internship and fellowship opportunities that help protect it! Hosted by the Sustainability Office and the Gordon Career Center and moderated by B Frankenstein ’25 and Natalie Sweet ’25, the event featured three insightful panelists: Isadora Leviton ’25, Emma Hotchkiss ’25, and Jonah Yas ’25, who shared their unique paths to landing sustainability- and enviro-focused summer internships!

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Spinning the Wheel of Change: the Global Language of enviro justice

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During this year’s Power of Language Week, Usdan was buzzing with conversation—not just about syntax or semantics, but about environmental justice.

As part of Wesleyan’s Student Sustainability Plan (SSP), a team of SSP interns hosted an interactive tabling event titled The Global Language of Environmental Justice. The goal? To spark dialogue about how environmental justice is understood and experienced around the world—and help students see how deeply language and justice are intertwined. We recently spoke with SSP intern Aishlinn Parrinello ’27 (ENVS/PSYC) about this year’s event!

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COE summer fellows find themselves while exploring the world

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Last year, the Bailey COE awarded almost 40 fellowships to Wes students to pursue research opportunities on campus, across the country, and abroad. Learn more about the summer experiences of (from top left): Zoe Todd ’27, Kallan Tripician ’27, Ronan Costello ’25 (AMST, ENVS), Sadie Woodruff ’26 (BIOL, E&ES), Constance Hirwa (NS&B, PSYC), Ava Yuanshun Guralnick ’25 (AMST, ENGL), Jasmine Fridman ’25 (E&ES, STS), & Jeet Patel ’25 (E&ES), below!

Applications for summer 2025, fall 2025 and spring 2026 Bailey COE fellowships are open now! Apply by February 24!

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