Meyer was on the show to talk about his book, The Environmental Advantages of Cities, published in March by MIT Press. The podcast episode is called “The Environmental Advantages of Cities – Countering Commonsense Antiurbanism”.

Listen to the conversation here.

Some highlights of the 17-minute conversation:

• Urbanization reduces population growth.
• Life expectancy is higher in cities.
• The exceptions are third world cities, which are the worst living places in the whole world.
• Cities are much more efficient in the consumption of resources.
• Map total energy use and you’ll see a big peak in the urban core.
• Map energy use per capita, and you’ll you see a big crater in the urban core.

Your turn – what do you think of the argument?

Recipients of ENY Fund awards work on developing their small businesses with the assistance of Colgate entrepreneur mentorship, shared workspace, and incubator funding. (Photo by Andy Daddio)

The nearly nonstop activity behind the window of 20 Utica Street in the village of Hamilton might give the impression that something exciting is afoot at the former Parry’s Hardware store. That impression would be correct.

Thanks to the Entrepreneurs of New York Fund (ENY), six fledgling small businesses launched by Colgate students and alumni are now taking advantage of shared office space at the downtown incubator, receiving invaluable mentorship from Colgate’s Thought Into Action Institute and utilizing $15,000 each in development funding.

For Yuni Sameshima ’13, and Joey Petracca ’13, ENY funding and guidance has meant their business, Recipe into Reality, has gone from concept and prototype to a fully featured product launching this month. Residents of Hamilton will be able to use Recipe into Reality to order ingredients from recipes found online, and have them delivered the same day.

“I think the biggest thing is that by winning the ENY fund we got exposure and were able to secure another $15,000 in angel funding,” said Petracca, whose company was able to hire a marketing intern and computer programmer for the duration of the six-week program, which ends June 28.

ENY Fund Recipients

• ProtoExchange
• Real Abroad
• Shindig
• Good Nature Brewing
• GateSwap
• Recipe into Reality

For Harry Raymond ‘11, ENY has helped propel his iPhone app, Shindig-Drink Explorers Club, onto a list of top 300 food and drink apps on the iTunes store.

“It wasn’t about the money for us. The reason we were so excited to come up here is because of the mentorship and the access to alumni. They’ve been invaluable in giving us advice and steering us in the right direction,” Raymond said.

Wills Hapworth ’07, TIA co-founder and founder of DarkHorse Investors, said the work being done by ENY winners encourages development in Hamilton, and brings together innovative and energetic entrepreneurs to share ideas in a shared space.

“These were not just good pitches that impressed the judges … these are teams that have already stumbled and learned what being an entrepreneur is really about,” Hapworth said. “By the time they came to pitch for the fund, they already had clear ideas about their capital needs, resource needs, and business strategies, so it was explicitly clear what the funding was going toward.”

Having teams of hungry start-up companies huddled together for long hours of work in a shared location also leads to innovation and collaboration, said Gateswap co-founders Rob Carroll ‘15 and Gabe Zetter ‘15.

“It’s a cool environment they’ve created, and it’s helped us carry out our vision,” Zetter said. “We’ve been able to talk and bounce ideas off each other.”

The ENY Fund was started with financial assistance from Dan Rosensweig P’15, ’17, who helped conceive and initially seed the fund.

The tents. 2013 Reunion (photo by Tim Mansfield, who will swim in Taylor Lake)

Minimum number of alumni at Reunion 2013: 1,620

2,003: when guests are counted

Number of class years represented under the tents: 62

96: number of the 50th Reunion Class of ‘63

Minimum number from the Class of ‘08: 312

1: Rank in class attendance.

According to Instagram, estimated number of people playing that game in the ‘03 / ‘08 tent: 80

Minimum number of photos tags ‘gatereunion‘ on Instagram: 71

Minimum number of  events for alums and their families: 113

$16,478,003: total raised for Colgate by Reunion classes this fiscal year

40: number of years celebrated by Women athletes

53: number of current students who worked at Reunion

Minimum number of people from Boston who visited the Reunion live website: 36

1: number of from Pakistan who visited the Reunion live website

15: minimum length in characters a password should be according to Peter Setlak in the privacy and security session

Sequence of the film shown by Joe Berlinger ‘88 in his Paradise Lost series during Reunion: 3

Number of students who pitched in IT assistance during the 113 events around campus: 7

1: Number of remote controlled aerial helicopters taking video of Reunion

4,909: minimum number of photos taken by Colgate University photographer Andy Daddio

40,031: estimated number of images taken by attendees

90: degrees, hottest temperature noted during reunion

1, 2: rank of Friday and Saturday in hottest days of 2013 in Hamilton

Minimum number of confirmed marriage proposals during Reunion: 1

Estimated number of torches lit during Trochlight. 750

Number of pictures uploaded to Facebook during reunion: 527

16: number of Maroon Citations awarded: 13 alumni, 3 staff

June 3rd, 2013: the day we began working on 2014 Reunion

Here is the list from 2012.

What numbers would you add?

David Adjaye met with community members for the first time last August.

One year ago, Adjaye Associates was hired to develop preliminary architectural plans for the proposed Colgate Center for Art and Culture. On Thursday, June 27, at the Colgate Inn, the firm’s principal, David Adjaye, will be back in Hamilton to share the firm’s designs.

The meeting is scheduled for 5:30–6:30 p.m. at the Colgate Inn.

Adjaye will present the plans and a 30×30 model of the cultural space, slated to be built at 18-20 Utica Street. The site, now owned by the Hamilton Initiative, is the former location of Parry’s Hardware. This summer it is serving as a business incubator for nine alumni and students of Colgate who received grants from the university’s Entrepreneurs of New York Fund (ENY).

June 27 will be the public’s third opportunity to meet with Adjaye Associates, an internationally acclaimed practice with extensive experience in creating unique cultural spaces around the world. With offices in London, Berlin, and New York, Adjaye Associates has been commissioned for prestigious residential, commercial, and educational projects in Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and elsewhere in the world. Presently, Adjaye is lead architect of the Freelon Adjaye Bond team for the new Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, which is scheduled to open in 2015 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

(From left to right) Vildana Hajric ’11, Mike Newberg ’11, Paul Toscano ’07, Natalie Sportelli ’15, and Josh Lipton ’97 stand in the CNBC newsroom. (Photo by Adam Jeffrey)

Colgate students, interning this summer at companies such as NBCUniversal, Hukkster, Nike, and Facebook, are sharing their experiences. Natalie Sportelli ’15 is working at CNBC.com.

With the help of the Center for Career Services, Colgate students have taken notice of how internships are vital for preparing to enter the real world. They are applying for summer positions at organizations of their choice — in America’s most influential and exciting industries.

Last summer, as a rising sophomore, I got a head start on gaining work experience when I was fortunate enough to be hired as an intern in the Colgate communications office. I stayed on as an intern this past academic year and will continue to intern for and contribute to the Colgate Scene and colgate.edu in the fall.

Now a rising junior, I am excited to be an intern with NBCUniversal this summer, working at CNBC as part of the CNBC.com editorial news team. Some of my responsibilities include updating the website with new market information and templating wire stories in CNBC format and style. I attend news meetings every day to learn about the story lineup. Additionally, I am part of the team that monitors news wires, finding and breaking major business news stories. In the coming weeks, I will also be assigned articles to write for CNBC.com.

CNBC’s global headquarters is located in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., but I am living in the Upper East Side of Manhattan with my roommate, Alex Petrini ’14, who is working as a marketing intern at OneWire, a financial headhunting company.

Talking with CNBC producer Paul Toscano ’07 about anything from working in news to shuttle schedules, as well as working alongside three other Colgate alumni and one current student (also an intern in the newsroom), has made my transition to New York and the work environment remarkably smooth as well as incredibly fun.

I hope to enter the realm of news and journalism after graduation. Gaining experience writing news and working in a newsroom have been instrumental to developing the skills I will need when I apply for a job after graduation.

My summer at CNBC has been and will surely continue to contribute to my growth as a young professional and help me prepare for the — increasingly less scary — Real World.

With the help of the university’s remarkable alumni network, Colgate’s Center for Career Services helps hundreds of undergraduates find invaluable internships each summer. For more information on the center and its efforts on behalf of Colgate students, visit colgate.edu/careerservices.

1.  Sixteen members of the Class of 1895 take a break during their 20th Reunion in 1915.

2. One of the highlights of Reunion is the parade in the village. In 1987, the class of 1962 celebrated 25 years.

3. In 1989, the Class of 1939 celebrated 50 years at torchlight, another highlight of Reunion.

4. The Class of 1944 proudly walks in the parade during their 50th Reunion in 1994.

5. Whitnall Field houses tents and station wagons. The banner says “Welcome 1970 Reuners.”

6. The Colgate Inn – still  a meeting place for people at Reunion.

7. The Class of 1926 leads the 1996 parade in style.

8. Alumni continue to bring their families to Reunion. The Class of 1905 posed with family members in 1930.

9. It isn’t always 5 and 10 year reunions. Each year many classes come to Reunion. In 1929, the Class of 1887 gathered. From left to right are Edgar Allen Shepard, William Edward Cooper, Homer Child Lyman, William Henry Crawshaw (Colgate professor of English), Irving Burgess Lewis, Oscar Reed McKay, Frederick William Rowe, and William Andrus St. John.

10. This photo is undated. Still, we wonder if anyone is interested in reviving how some signified their class year.

11. The Class of 1942 (and family) wait patiently for dinner in the gym in 1982.

12. The Class of 1905 meets at Reunion in this photo believed to be taken in 1930. Nice jackets.

13. Of course No. 13 is the 2013 Reunion. Torchlight 2013 gets added to the archive.

Your turn: What do you remember about your last Reunion?

You are urged to sign up to read the title story of George Saunders’s latest book, Tenth of December. The collection of short stories has won wide acclaim for the author, with The New York Times calling it “the best book you’ll read this year.”

A new university initiative, called Colgate Reads, is using the short story as a way to foster a collaborative literary discussion and to provide participants with an opportunity to interact with the author when he visits campus this fall.

Anyone interested in joining Colgate Reads should sign up and be counted. You will receive an invitation to an online book forum, a link to a live Q&A session with the author on September 9, and information on how to be in the audience either online or in person when Saunders reads at Colgate’s Memorial Chapel on September 10.

Saunders was recently named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine. He is a bestselling writer of short stories, novellas, essays, and children’s books.  His writing has appeared in Harper’s, The New Yorker, and GQ. He was named a MacArthur fellow in 2006.

“We encourage people to read this wonderful story, first and foremost, but also to consider taking part in the conversation about ‘Tenth of December’ and to take advantage of this opportunity to engage with the author himself, ” said English professor Jane Pinchin, who is leading the initiative with colleague Jennifer Brice.

The reading initiative has a goal of 2,013 participants, a number purposely chosen because the year 2013 is special at Colgate due to the university’s quirky connection with the No. 13.

Pinchin and Brice hope that regional bookstores and public libraries — as well as high school English teachers, book groups, the campus community, and others — will encourage visitors and members to take part in Colgate Reads.

“Sharing and discussing great books is what we do here at Colgate,” said Brice. “We’re excited by the idea of using technology to broaden the conversation and make it available to anyone who chooses to take part.”

Colgate professors Jennifer Brice (left) and Jane Pinchin discuss Colgate Reads during a recent event on campus. (Photo by Andy Daddio)

Jesse Smith ’03 lettered four years for the Colgate golf team. (Photo courtesy of USGA)

Colgate’s connection to this year’s U.S. Open makes his major championship debut Thursday afternoon.

Jesse Smith ’03 tied for medalist honors last week at Century Country Club & Old Oaks Country Club in Purchase, N.Y., earning automatic qualification into his first U.S. Open. That event begins Thursday at Merion Golf Club outside Philadelphia.

Smith, 33, begins his Thursday round at 2:42 p.m. as the elder statesman in his group. Joining the Barrington, N.H., native are a pair of fellow American golfers — 30-year-old Brandon Brown and 19-year-old Grayson Murray. Like Smith, those two also earned their tickets via qualifying.

The group tees off Friday at 9:12 a.m. (Follow the action here.)

Smith shot 70-67–137 to grab one of four spots available at his qualifying site. He opened with a 1-under-par 70 at Century, posting back-to-back birdies on holes 7 and 8 to offset his lone morning bogey at the par-3 17th. In the afternoon round at Old Oaks, Smith had three bogeys but overcame those with four birdies and a sparkling eagle-2 at the par-4 11th hole.

After his qualification, Golfweek magazine ran this excellent piece on Smith about how he came to play at Colgate for head coach Braden Houston and how he made it through his qualifying round.

Earlier this season, Smith joined a select group when he fired an opening-round 59 at an Orlando professional tournament. He posted his 11-under-par score March 20 at Dubsdread Golf Course during the opening day of a 36-hole Fore the Players Tour event. The 33-year-old former Colgate Raider had five birdies on the front nine that day and six on the back. Smith then cracked his driver on the opening shot of Round 2 and played the rest of that day without it, shooting 74 to finish second by one stroke.

Smith lettered four years for the Raiders, from 2000-03. He twice made All-Patriot League as a top-10 finisher at the conference championship tournament, tying for ninth in 2000 and placing fourth in 2002. In addition, Smith was chosen as Colgate’s most improved player in 2001 and most valuable player for the 2002 and 2003 seasons.

See a few examples of how Raider Nation is following Smith via Twitter:

@jesse_smith1 playing with Tiger & making him laugh. Love seeing the fam doing big things! #hwd #usopen @colgateuniv http://t.co/9OTQi8skP8

— Justin C. Polk (@JustPolk) June 12, 2013

All those rounds at Seven Oaks @colgateuniv were nice prep for Merion @jesse_smith1 #2003 #USOpen pic.twitter.com/FIvVsPTVsp

— ian karczewski (@iankarch) June 11, 2013

Jacob Mundy, author of Western Sahara: War, Nationalism and Conflict Irresolution

Colgate professor Jacob Mundy was called upon by the USA Today to add his expertise to an article on north Africa called “Forgotten Western Sahara pines for autonomy.”

The article talks about how the Arab Spring revolutions seemed to ignore the Moroccan royal regime. Mundy, author of Western Sahara: War, Nationalism and Conflict Irresolution, suggests some of the reasons in the article. 

He says that Morocco is a very close ally of France and the United States, and those countries want to maintain a relationship with the Moroccan government.

“It’s not going to be resolved until there is a crisis. Something major has to happen to shake things up,” Mundy says. Read the entire article here.

An assistant professor of Peace and Conflict studies, Mundy focusses on armed conflicts and humanitarian interventions in northern Africa. During the conflict in Libya, he discussed militia politics in Libya.

Students examine data in Spencer Kelly’s cognitive neuroscience lab.

For an article titled “The Evolution of Hand Gestures: Why Do Some Die Out and Others Endure?”, The Atlantic magazine contacted Spencer Kelly, associate professor of psychology, for his expertise on hand gestures.

The article examined two kinds of hand gestures. The first are “co-speech gestures”, unconscious ways we move our hands as we talk. Professor Kelly talked about the use of these kinds of hand gestures in Scientific American Magazine

“Emblematic gestures”, the second kind of hand gestures, are culturally codified motions we use to supplement or substitute speech—the peace sign, the thumbs-up, the raised middle finger, etc.

Kelly studies the role gestures play in language. “I focus primarily on hand gestures that spontaneously accompany speech. These gestures are interesting because they occur simultaneously with speech but reflect meaning in a distinct way from words.”

Working from the position that language is an embodied ability that evolved from bodily communication systems (gestures, facial expressions, eye gaze, etc.) in our evolutionary past, his work investigates how language interacts with the body in present-day communication. For more, visit his profile.

Chase Jackson ’13 transforms the Locavaux bus into a mobile home and video editing studio (Photo by Andy Daddio)

“Not all who wander are lost,” according to J.R.R. Tolkien. This summer, Colgate alumni will prove the point as they roam across America, driven by wanderlust and a higher purpose.

Chase Jackson, Hallie Kohler, and Katie Scribner — all members of the Class of 2013 — are touring the country on a converted school bus, shooting a documentary film about local music scenes from Vermont to California. Their Locavaux Project will explore the symbiotic relationship that exists between small-town bands and their communities.

“At first we were worried that people would think we were just trying to hit the road in a bus,” said Scribner, a sociology major and the group’s lead interviewer. But as she talked to faculty and gained insights from their suggestions, her fears subsided. “They said, ‘you really are trying to do something serious, to research and discover something.’”

Jackson, a sculptor with an art degree, is in charge of converting the school bus into a home, and Kohler, also an art major, is lending her own touches to the interior.

Colgate alumni and friends, who discovered Locavaux through word of mouth and via a successful $6,000 Kickstarter campaign, have helped provide gas money, camera equipment funds, and destination suggestions. “They always say that, when you graduate from Colgate, you’re in a tight-knit group,” said Scribner. “I’ve seen the truth of that — we can’t say thank you enough to the Colgate network.”

While Jackson, Kohler, and Scribner ride the northern interstates, Ben Rich ’99 will guide his electric motorcycle along a southerly route between Charleston, S.C., and Mountain View, Calif.

Rich is part of Ride the Future, a trip that will set world records for distance traveled in electric vehicles — his own Zero S ZF9 will caravan with a Nissan Leaf, a Xenon scooter, and several electric bikes. The crew will stop in 44 cities from coast to coast to recharge their batteries and raise awareness of zero-emission transportation. Rich is hoping to see Colgate friends at any and all of his waypoints.

The high school science teacher and sustainability coordinator already has experience with large-scale team rides. Last month, he was the first to bring a whisper-silent electric motorcycle to Rolling Thunder in the nation’s capital. The reception among Harley Davidson afficionados was more than cordial.

“They know their stuff, and they were interested,” said Rich. “Motorcycle riders want to be in touch with the elements. When you don’t have a wall of sound surrounding you, you can experience even more — people are beginning to understand that now.”

Jennifer Schwartz ’97 is also broadening perspectives, but she’s focusing on photography rather than electricity. She has been on sabbatical from her Atlanta, Ga., art gallery this spring, cruising around the country and hosting impromptu art exhibitions out of her 1977 Volkswagen van, a.k.a. Lady Blue.

The Crusade for Collecting was founded on the notion that “art should not just be talked about – it should be experienced,” says Schwartz in her mission statement.

Rather than selling photographs, Schwartz puts local work on display, hoping that her pop-up events will inspire passers-by to become collectors. Her tour has taken her from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C. by way of Seattle, Chicago, and other cities.

Schwartz wrapped things up in Richmond, Va., last weekend after logging 10,000 miles since April 6. Her final stop, though, will be in the Summer edition of the Colgate Scene — watch for her Tableau essay in print and online this August.

Is the road rising up to meet you this summer? Tell your Colgate friends about it here, on Twitter, or on Colgate’s Facebook page. Safe travels.

The Colgate Class of 2017 breaks several admission records.

Final admission figures for the Class of 2017 show a record-breaking year for Colgate, both in terms of academic strength and overall diversity of enrolled students.

While achieving continued growth of a diverse and intellectually vibrant student body is an annual goal for the university, this class also broadens the socioeconomic makeup of campus. Thanks to the success of the Passion for the Climb campaign, 42 percent of incoming students will receive financial aid, and the average aid award is $42,575.

“In line with our goal of making Colgate more accessible to the world’s best students, increased financial aid availability will have a profound impact on our campus,” said Karen Giannino, senior associate dean of admission.

The average GPA of accepted students is 3.77, an all-time high, and an average combined SAT of 1403, tied with the highest on record. The average ACT is 32, an SAT equivalent of 1420. Eighty-four percent of applicants were in the top 10 percent of their class, and 95 percent were within the top 20 percent.

The Class of 2017 also has the distinction of being Colgate’s most diverse. A total of 28.7 percent of enrolled students identify as multicultural, with 8 percent self-identified as black or African American, another all-time high. Once these students arrive on campus, 28.1 percent of the overall student population will identify as nonwhite.

“Having a class that has both a record profile and great diversity is a tremendous accomplishment by our colleagues in the admission office,” said President Jeffrey Herbst.

The Class of 2017 also has the largest population of students from outside the traditional Northeast area of enrollment, at 44.2 percent. Overall applications increased by 7.4 percent over 2012, and the acceptance rate decreased from 28.8 percent in 2012 to 26 percent this year.

“I think our team in admission does a really great job in identifying students who would be a terrific match for Colgate,” said Vice President and Dean of Admission Gary Ross. “We could not be successful if it were not for the efforts of so many members of the student body, faculty, and staff who make themselves available in a variety of different ways for newly admitted students.”

International students, from 24 countries, will make up 11 percent of the incoming class. Dual citizens represent an additional 17 countries.

“We must offer all of our students the opportunity to live and work with people who come from different backgrounds,” said Giannino. “There’s no substitute for the exchange of ideas that happens face to face.”

When prospective students visit campus and have positive interactions with the Colgate community, they immediately understand the difference of attending school here, Ross said.

“In addition to the superb academic opportunities that Colgate offers its students, the wide variety of activities and overall busyness of this campus creates a level of excitement that often attracts students who previously may have thought they would only be happy at a larger institution,” Ross said.

The pilot project will support faculty from the six member campuses to develop hybrid learning in new or existing courses, in which face-to-face engagement will be combined with technology-based elements, such as online tutorials or modules, online journals, blogs, webinars, videos, and group chats.

“This pilot project represents an excellent starting point for liberal arts institutions such a ours that wish to build their curricula and incorporate cutting edge technologies into the educational model without compromising their core values, ” said Douglas A. Hicks, provost and dean of the faculty at Colgate.

The blended-learning courses will be offered to students during the 2014-15 academic year. The goal is to enhance and improve student-learning outcomes while also examining the impact of blended learning on the experience of both students and faculty.

The New York Six Liberal Arts Consortium is a cooperative venture of six upstate New York liberal arts institutions: Colgate, Hamilton College, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, St. Lawrence University, Skidmore College, and Union College.  The consortium enhances opportunities for students, faculty, and staff, while reducing colleges’ individual and collective operating and capital costs.

“The grant will enable Colgate faculty to collaborate with colleagues on other member campuses in determining the most effective ways to integrate technology into an already strong liberal arts foundation,” said Amy Doonan Cronin, executive director of the New York Six.

To see some examples of how Colgate already has used technology in the classroom, visit the Instructional Technology webpage.

This is an 11,000-year-old log in an underground research tunnel near Fairbanks, Alaska. (Photo by Michael Loranty)

Professor Michael Loranty and Kira Yasuda ’15 are currently in Healy, Alaska, examining the effects of permafrost thaw on ecosystem water and nutrient cycling.

The study is in conjunction with St. Olaf College, Woods Hole Research Center, and the University of Florida. The Healy sites, run by the University of Florida and the Woods Hole Research Center, include places where permafrost thaw is occurring naturally as well as an experimental manipulation to artificially thaw the permafrost.

A portion of the research occurs in an underground permafrost tunnel near Fairbanks, AK. The tunnel was constructed and is administered by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory. The image above, taken in the tunnel by Loranty, is an 11,000 year old log frozen in the ground. According to Loranty, the implications of this are important: “If this log thaws, it will decompose and contribute to further climate warming.”

Loranty’s recent work on how the thawing of vegetation like this log could impact climate change was featured earlier this year in a Scientific American article titled: “Vegetation May Speed Warming of Arctic.”

While in Alaska, the research team will also collect samples of methane gas, which will be analyzed later at St. Olaf.

Kira Yasuda ’15 collects methane gas in Healy, Alaska. (Photo by Michael Loranty)

Colgate students will have many opportunities to work directly with professors on important research over the summer. Enter your e-mail address on the right where it says “subscribe” to get continuing news on summer research – and all other Colgate news – sent to your inbox.

Your turn: did you spend a summer researching at Colgate? Tell us about it in comments.

The FDD academic fellows program sponsors a 10-day learning experience for U.S. professors and research professionals to provide them with the latest knowledge about strategies for dealing with terrorism.

The 2013 program will be conducted June 15-26 at Tel Aviv University.  It features lectures by academic specialists, military and intelligence officials, as well as diplomats from Israel, Jordan, India, and the United States.

It also includes “hands-on experience” through visits to police, customs, and immigration facilities, military bases, and border zones to learn the practical challenges of deterring and defeating terrorism.

Kraynak has taught courses in political theory and American government for more than 30 years at Colgate and directs the Center for Freedom and Western Civilization. He recently led the Colgate Washington D.C. Study Group.

“I am excited about this unique opportunity to participate in courses and field excursions in Israel and to learn lessons about the challenges that all democracies face in dealing with international terrorism,” said Kraynak. “Certainly, we have been reminded of the importance of these subjects by recent events in the United States and around the world, and we need to learn the special challenges that democratic societies face in dealing with threats to their security.

“I hope to share the knowledge I gain with my students and colleagues when I return home and when I plan courses and events at Colgate.  It will be an invaluable learning experience.”

For more information on the academic fellows program, contact Kraynak at rkraynak@colgate.edu or Dana Murphy, of the FDD, at 202-207-0190.

“Remember when…?” Reminiscing at Reunion 2013

It will be a century before Colgate has another reunion in the Year of ’13.

Seizing their place in university history, more than 2,000 alumni and friends made Reunion 2013 a weekend to remember last Thursday through Sunday. Tents on Whitnall Field were filled to capacity, and the village of Hamilton buzzed with activity.

“I am grateful for the loyalty that our alumni show to Colgate and each other,” said associate vice president and alumni director Tim Mansfield. “At Reunion this weekend, that loyalty felt more like love — which was celebrated for three straight days!”

Traditional events headlined the schedule. Colgate’s Alumni Corporation held its annual awards ceremony in Memorial Chapel on Friday night, followed by a torchlight procession down the hill to a bonfire on Whitnall Field.

Throughout the weekend, Reunion College presenters offered classes on topics ranging from steroid use in professional baseball to healthy aging. Professor Tony Aveni walked alumni through ancient Chinese and Central American cities, showing how the cosmos impacted urban planning, and 48 Hours producer Alec Sirken ’78 reflected on his career covering real-life murder mysteries.

Reunion 2013 also featured a number of stand-out anniversaries, including the 40th year of women’s sports at Colgate. Before a special dinner in their honor on Saturday, veteran female Raiders gathered in Love Auditorium for a program hosted by Field Hockey Head Coach Cathy Foto and Women’s Soccer Head Coach Kathy Brawn. Together, they told a story that began with the university’s first coed class — 132 women who arrived at Colgate in 1970.

The administration originally thought that intramural sports would suffice and that the women would simply engage in recreation. But, year after year, Colgate’s female athletes asked for more variety, more competition, Division I classification, and varsity status. With each step, their determination grew. “Today, there’s a breadth and depth because of what everyone put in,” Brawn said.

Seeking to add breadth and depth to Living Writers, another longstanding Colgate program, professors Jane Pinchin and Jennifer Brice kicked off Colgate Reads. This initiative aims to bring 2,013 community members together around a single short story, “The Tenth of December,” by George Saunders. Those who attended the Colgate Reads launch party in Little Hall were introduced to the story’s main characters and began a wide-ranging conversation that will continue online in September, when Saunders will read on campus.

Also in Little Hall, the university mounted an exhibition of Noongar art — one of the final shows before the collection is transferred to Curtin University in Australia. The Art of the Gift: The Journey Home of the Australian Aboriginal Children’s Art Collection featured works created by children, ages 10–14 years, at Australia’s Carrolup Native Settlement between 1945 and 1951. Colgate first displayed the paintings six years ago, and this spring it made news across the globe when it announced that it would send the paintings home, honoring the heritage and beauty of the works.

Elsewhere on campus, members of the Thought into Action program pitched their projects, and the classes of 1963 and 1953 held reminiscing sessions. Anticipating the university’s bicentennial in 2019, the alumni office began archiving stories and memories through Colgate Voices, recording interviews with a score of participants, including Everett Hanke ’38 — just three years shy of his 100th birthday.

With all of this activity and reconnection, it was inevitable: nostalgia on Thursday evolved into anticipation by Sunday. “Before reunion was even over, a group of us were plotting our next get-together,” said Katie Castino Reynolds ’08. “The only question is which dorms we’ll stay in next time!”

This 1949 painting by Reynold Hart is called “A Native Corroboree.” It is one of the 119 indigenous artworks going from Colgate to Curtin University in Western Australia. 

In April, Colgate announced that it is giving 119 indigenous artworks to Curtin University in Western Australia.

Prior to the artwork being transported to Australia, there will be two showings in the Clifford Gallery, which is on the first floor of Colgate’s Little Hall.

The special exhibition, “The Art of the Gift: The Journey Home of the Australian Aboriginal Children’s Art Collection,” is free and open to the public. The exhibition times are:

• Saturday, June 1, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
• Tuesday, June 4, 2 p.m. – 5 p.m.

The works, a significant part of the heritage and history of the region, were created by Noongar children who were part of Australia’s “Stolen Generation.”

Read more about Colgate’s cultural collaboration with Curtin University:

• New York Times article:  Aboriginal Artworks to Return to Australia
• Today Show report
• Photos of the indigenous artwork
• Remarks by Douglas Hicks at transfer ceremony

Months of work, weeks of anticipation, days of construction, and hours of last-minute-detailing have paid off: Reunion 2013 is officially under way.

More than 2,000 alumni and friends will travel to campus this weekend, May 30–June 2, setting a new attendance record as the university celebrates its 3s and 8s. Reunion 2013 also marks the 40th anniversary of women’s athletics at Colgate and the lucky 13th reunion for our Class of 2000.

While on campus, alumni can learn about Colgate Reads, a community-wide project spearheaded by English professors Jane Pinchin and Jennifer Brice. The program aims to register 2,013 participants who will read “Tenth of December” by George Saunders before September 10, when the acclaimed author visits campus. Sign up and be counted during this special Year of 2013 program!

Whether you are on campus or following the festivities from home, make sure to visit our Reunion Live page throughout the weekend to keep an eye on our social media feeds and photo galleries. Join the conversation wherever you are by tagging your posts #gatereunion.

Colgate alumni: while you’re online, please visit colgate.edu/profile to update your profile and confirm your preferences in the alumni directory. Remember: It’s your profile, and you share only what you want to share. E-mail alumni@colgate.edu with questions.

Learn more about Andrea ‘Drea’ Finley ’13 in this video that is a window into her time on campus as a mentor, academic coach, public speaker, and respected member of the Colgate community.

Finley, who has been accepted to Princeton Theological Seminary, had worked with Colgate’s Office of Undergraduate Studies,  interned with the Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual,Transgender, and Queer Initiatives,  served as vice president of the Black Student Union, and hosted a talk show on WRCU-FM.  She was the keynote speaker to kick off the university’s Martin Luther King Jr. celebration week.

Listen closely;  Finley’s skill on the piano provides the soundtrack.

Researchers investigate the ecological impact of cultural and religious stewardship on sacred forests.

Two interdisciplinary science research projects featuring collaborations among diverse faculty from Colgate and around the world will move forward with grants from the Picker Interdisciplinary Science Institute at Colgate.

The projects support the core mission of the institute, which aims to foster the creation of new knowledge that is obtainable only through the development of sustained interdisciplinary research.

Colgate physics and astronomy professors Rebecca Metzler and Kiko Galvez  received a two-year award for their project “Probing Biomineral Formation through Novel Laser Imaging Polarimetry.”

The project will combine the physical optics involved in diagnosing complex light forms with the biophysical research of the biomineral surfaces made by various mollusk species. The colorful inner surfaces of mollusk shells are an example of biominerals produced by living organisms.

The researchers and their students intend to obtain information about the unique composition and structure of the shells by studying the polarization of the iridescent light they reflect in order to learn more about their physical properties.

“Rebecca and Kiko are each bringing very different approaches and perspectives to this very creative collaboration, and together they will develop exciting new ways of visualizing and understanding complex biological materials,” explained  Damhnait McHugh, director of the institute.

In addition, Colgate faculty members Catherine Cardelús (biology), Eliza Kent (religion), and Peter Klepeis and Peter Scull (geography) received a one-year award for their project “Does religious management mitigate the socio-ecological drivers of forest change in sacred groves of northern Ethiopia?”

They will collaborate on the project with Margaret Lowman (North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences and North Carolina State University) and Alemayehu Wassie Eshete (Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia) to assess whether and how cultural and religious stewardship of “sacred forests” in Ethiopia reduces negative impacts on these compromised ecosystems.

“This team represents an exciting collaboration across many disciplines. The depth of understanding to be gained by their collaborative approach is immense,” said McHugh. “Coupled with close connections with the people most invested in the sacred forests, this work can have a powerful impact on the fate of these unique habitats.”

Learn more about the institute and this year’s supported projects on the Picker Interdisciplinary Science Institute website.