Annual Environmental Brunch

Environmental organizations at Tufts celebrate the start of a new academic year

Students, fellows, faculty and staff gathered outside Miller Hall on a Wednesday in late September to eat, network, and learn about environmental engagement at Tufts. Representatives from a variety of Tufts institutes and groups spoke briefly about the myriad of ways that students can participate in environmental efforts throughout the university, from Grafton to Medford. Speakers included:

Dr. Linda Abriola, Director, Tufts Institute of the Environment

Nitsan Shakked, Associate Director, Tufts Institute of the Environment

Coco Gomez, Assistant Director/Program Administrator, Environmental Studies Program

Shoshana Blank, Education & Outreach Program Administrator, Office of Sustainability

Dr. Alison Robbins, Assistant Director, Center for Conservation Medicine

Janet Forrester, Associate Professor, Master and Doctorate Programs in Public Health and Community Medicine

Dr. Michael Reed, Professor, Biology

Charles Van Rees, Doctoral Student working with Dr. Reed, spoke regarding TIE flex-space for graduate study

Dr. Ann Rappaport, Senior Lecturer, Urban & Environmental Policy & Planning, and director of Water: Systems, Science and Society (WSSS) graduate certificate program

Mieke van der Wansem, Associate Director, Center for International Environment and Resource Policy (CIERP)

Stefan Koester, Masters Candidate, Co-Chair of the Tufts Energy Conference (TEC)

Erin Coutts, Communications Specialist, Global Development and Environment Institute (GDAE)

Eric Kemp-Benedict, Senior Scientist, Stockholm Environment Institute

Marga Varea, DC Environmental Film Festival

Dr. Ninian Stein, Lecturer, Environmental Studies Program and organizer for Medford Conversations program

Assistant Director of Programs at TIE, Jill Parlee, also highlighted the many student groups at Tufts surrounding environmental issues, including Eco-Reps, the Sustainability Collective, and more. She further discussed the variety of programs offered by TIE, including the opportunity to travel to COP23 in Bonn, Germany with a Tufts delegation of faculty, staff and students.

From Tufts residence halls to the globe, the Tufts community truly engages with environmental challenges at all levels, something special commemorated each year at the TIE brunch.

Carolyn Meklenburg, Graduate Intern