alumni – Page 20

Wesleyan alumnus Abdul Latif '97 served as the choreographer for The Black History Museum According to the United States of America, which opened the weekend of March 24. Done in collaboration with HERE Arts Center’s Culturemart Festival 2017, the show examined “a number of struggles pertinent to the people of color community and the “modern millennial identity in response to incarceration and the #BlackLivesMatter movement.” Latif, along with the rest of the production team, attempts to explore and explain the relationship between black Americans and the criminal justice system drawing from sentiments expressed after the fatal shootings of Black Americans.…

Each year, as part of the series “Grist50,” the acclaimed environmental publication Grist honors 50 of the world’s most impactful innovators who are working to solve humanity’s biggest challenges with fresh, forward-thinking solutions. This year, Wesleyan alumnus Evan Weber ’13, co-founder and executive director of U.S. Climate Plan, has been recognized as an “emerging green leader.” Connecting this year’s 50 green leaders is the theme “The Fixer.” Described by Grist magazine as, “bold problem solvers working toward a planet that doesn’t burn and a future that doesn’t suck,” the list includes entrepreneurs, politicians, scientists and activists. Not only do Weber and his…

This month, two Wesleyan alumnae writers, Kaitlyn Greenidge ’04 and Simone White '93 received the prestigious Whiting Award. Given annually to only 10 emerging writers in fiction, nonfiction, drama and poetry, the award provides recipients with a $50,000 grant and is the largest of its kind. Previous winners have gone on to receive the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, and MacArthur and Guggenheim Fellowships. Some Whiting Award winners include Jeffery Eugenides, Colson Whitehead, Tracy Smith and David Foster Wallace. Greenidge’s 2016 novel We Love You, Charlie Freeman is her most recent work and was published by Algonquin Books. The unconventional story…

“Wait, turn that up! What is that song?” If you've ever watched a commercial that became more significant the second you heard a song you just had to hear again, chances are Jonathan Hecht ’04—founder of Venn Arts—was behind its discovery. His interest in pairing music with picture was inspired by the Paul Thomas Anderson film Boogie Nights: "I realized how different some of the musical selections were, but how they all fit together to create a sound and musical character for the film.” He began to wonder if he could create a career out of this observation—which became Venn Arts,…

Architects Newspaper praised Nathan Rich ’02 and his firm, Peterson Rich Office (PRO) for the design of a new gallery-residential building at 282 Grand Street in New York City. The building, which is located in the Lower East Side, covers 20,000 square feet and will house 20 condos, climbing to 80 feet. Aside from the two penthouses at the top level, the rest of the dwellings are 550 square-foot one-bedroom condos. The gallery space is larger than most galleries in the area, spanning 45 feet wide. Each space is highly efficient and the building features an innovative perforated aluminum rain-screen…

"Walking Elephants Home," a Mahouts Elephant Foundation (MEF) project launched and run by Becca Winkler ’16, has been nominated for the European Outdoor Conservation Association (EOCA) grant—and voting is open until March 23. "From many conversations with elephant owners struggling to make ends meet and who were unhappy with the conditions their elephants live in at elephant camps, I could see that we needed a new model,” Winkler said. "The forests of Thailand have been home to the Asian elephant for thousands of years; it is their birthright. 'Walking Elephants Home' is on a mission to to prove that tourists should…

Eiko Otake stands on the top of a breakwater in a dark gray kimono. To her right, the ocean crashes into piles of concrete cubes–their shapes, stacked together, seem almost too clean, like abstractions of stone. She clutches a large but frayed scarlet cloth that catches the wind and encircles her, hovering just inches from her skin. Following the breakwater into the distance, a large cubic structure is visible along the water’s edge. It is the Fukushima Daini Nuclear Plant, 12 miles from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant. She is standing at the midpoint between the infamous two, in the…

(more…)

On Feb. 24, three recent Wesleyan alumnae returned to campus for a panel conversation on “Finding a Career Path in Publishing.” The event, held in Downey House, was co-sponsored by the Department of English, Writing Programs and the Shapiro Center for Creative Writing. Caitlin O’Shaughnessy ’08, Anabel Pasarow ’16, and Danielle Springer ’13 traced their career history and offered encouragement and tips to undergraduate audience. O’Shaughnessy, marketing manager at Penguin Press, a division of Penguin Random House, had previously worked as an editor at Viking, and in publicity at InStyle magazine. Currently, she is also part-time student in the MBA…

Kenneth Lonergan '84 won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for Manchester by the Sea at last night's Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awards ceremony, while Casey Affleck took home the Actor in a Leading Role award for his part in the film. Lonergan wrote and directed Manchester by the Sea, which also received nominations in the film, director (Lonergan), actress in a supporting role and actor in a supporting role categories. Jennifer Lame ’04 served as film editor for Manchester by the Sea. Other Wesleyan alumni receiving nominations this year included Lin-Manuel Miranda '02, Hon. '15., for Best Original Song for…

On Feb. 23, Peter Shumlin ’79, who served as Governor of Vermont from 2011-2017, spoke to members of the Wesleyan community about climate change. Shumlin has been a pioneer in developing state-level policies to combat climate change, including the 2011 Comprehensive Energy Plan with a goal of achieving 90 percent renewable energy in Vermont by 2050. Under his watch, 15,000 jobs were created in clean energy, solar panels increased by 1000 percent while the cost of solar fell 60 percent, and wind generation increased 400 percent. During his talk in Shanklin Laboratory, Shumlin said Vermont is far better prepared for the next major storm,…

A new CNN original series, Believer with Reza Aslan, premieres Sunday, March 5, at 10 p.m. ET. Billed as a “spiritual adventure series,” in which Aslan, acclaimed author and religious scholar, will “immerse himself in the world’s most fascinating faith-based groups to experience life as a true believer.” The show employs the talents of two alumni who majored in film at Wesleyan: executive producer and show runner Liz Bronstein ’89 and director Ben Selkow ’96. Additionally, Professor of Religion Liza McAlister provided both academic scholarship and on-the-ground connections when the crew traveled to Haiti for the segment on Vodou, which…

Latif ’97 Showcases Work in 2017 Culturemart Festival

Weber ’13 Named ‘Emerging Green Leader’ by Grist Magazine

White ‘93, Greenidge ‘04 Win Whiting Awards for Writing

Hecht ’04 Finds the Irresistible Music for Commercial Clients

Architecture Firm, Owned by Rich ’02, Praised for Innovative Design

‘Walking Elephants Home’ Project by Winkler ’16 Nominated for Conservation Grant

Otake, Johnston ‘Fukushima’ Project Culminating Events in NYC on March 11

LGBT Writers Boylan ’80, Chee ’89 Speak on Queer Lives, Storytelling

O’Shaughnessy ’08, Springer ’13, Pasarow ’13 Offer Career Advice in Publishing

Lonergan ’84 Wins Oscar for Manchester by the Sea

Shumlin ’79 Speaks to Wesleyan Community about Climate Change

Bronstein ’89, Selkow ’96 join Reza Aslan for CNN Documentary Series ‘Believer’