Monday, March 6th, 2023

UNIVERSITY NEWS

Sunrise Brown rallies for DIRE campaign

BY SAM LEVINE UNIVERSITY NEWS EDITOR

Carrying banners and singing along to protest songs, around 100 students, faculty and community members gathered on the Main Green Friday in support of Sunrise Brown’s DIRE campaign, which calls for the University to dissociate from the fossil fuel industry and increase its investment in the Providence community.

The group rallied on the steps of the Stephen Robert ’62 Campus Center before marching to University Hall and delivering a copy of Sunrise Brown’s “Dissociate Now” report to University administrators. The report investigates Brown’s ties to “fossil fuel-affiliated and climate disinformation-affiliated organizations” and presents recommendations for the University’s dissociation from the industry.

UNIVERSITY NEWS

“The University received the report on Friday, and our next step will be to review it in full,” wrote University Spokesperson Brian Clark in an email to The Herald.

“We know this isn’t easy,” Isaac Slevin ’25, a Sunrise Brown organizer, told the crowd in his speech at the rally. “But we know that (this) is what it takes. … If Brown wants to live up to its values of sustainability and academic freedom … then we have to show out for” this campaign.

La Alianza offers support to Latinx pre-law students

Group members discuss programming plans, importance of representation

BY SOFIA BARNETT AND ANIYAH NELSON UNIVERSITY NEWS EDITOR AND SENIOR STAFF WRITER

La Alianza, the University’s first pre-law society dedicated to Latinx students, was founded by Alexandra Ali Martinez ’22 just before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. But when the pandemic scattered students across the globe, Martinez was unable to bring the organization to full fruition.

After months of conversing and strategizing with Martinez, Fabian Antunez Lopez ’25 — current president of La Alianza — grew determined to get the organization up and running. “It was a crazy opportunity, and I was really honored to just take her brainchild and make it my own as well,” he said.

Though La Alianza has only had two general body meetings so far this semester, the organization

has many programming plans in the works.

According to Michelle Alas ’25, a general body member, La Alianza intends to coordinate trips to law schools in the region, collaborate with other University pre-law organizations and offer LSAT support, among other initiatives.

La Alianza is focused on “finding out what types of resources Brown offers … and providing students with resources and information that would have been probably pretty inaccessible otherwise,” Alas said. “It’s been a great experience so far.”

The organization is also planning on inviting alums who are currently in law school or pursuing careers within the industry to speak to La Alianza members about their legal journeys, Antunez Lopez said.

“It’s different when you can have these people come and talk about their experiences. They’re more like our peers and people that we can trust who went to Brown and went through the system themselves,” he said.

For Alas, these networking oppor-

SEE ALIANZA PAGE 5

Dissociate

Sunrise Brown’s DIRE campaign calls for the University to cut all financial and social ties to the fossil fuel industry by refusing research funding, grants and gifts from related organizations, creating a fossil fuel-free retirement fund option for faculty and banning fossil fuel companies from hosting recruitment events on campus, Ethan Drake ’24, one of the Dissociate Now report’s

SEE DIRE PAGE 7

ARTS & CULTURE

SPORTS

Jade Iginla ’26 named ECAC Co-Rookie of year

BY DENNIS CAREY SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Women’s ice hockey player Jade Iginla ’26 has established herself as one of the most impressive rising stars in the NCAA. In her first Bears season — which concluded on Feb. 18 — Jade Iginla led the team with 17 goals and 23 points, posting the top Bears scoring season since the 2006-07 season.

Last Thursday, her success was rewarded after being chosen as one of two Eastern College Athletic Conference Co-Rookies of the Year, joining two-time Olympian Tara Mounsey ’00 as one of just two players in program history to ever receive the honor. In their official announcement, the ECAC dubbed Jade Iginla a “freshman phenom.”

“Knowing what Jade contributed to the program’s success and growth this season made the honor something that I felt she very much deserved,” Head Coach Melanie Ruzzi wrote in an email to The Herald. “I am grateful to the league’s coaches for recognizing her impact amongst an incredibly strong class throughout the ECAC.”

But Jade Iginla is not the only member of her family to find success in the sport. She started playing hockey at age seven in her backyard with her father, National Hockey League Hall of Famer and three-time Olympian Jarome Iginla, as well as her two brothers Tij Iginla and Joe Iginla.

“It’s all I know,” Jade Iginla said of the sport. “(I) eat, breathe and sleep it. It’s definitely a lot of fun … I’m very fortunate to have my whole family involved.”

Jade Iginla has proven she can go far, joining the Bears with an already impressive playing resume. During her high school years, she

SEE HOCKEY PAGE 3

IMPULSE hosts 19th annual spring show

‘RUCKUS’ features beginners workshop, collaborations with three dance groups

BY SOFIA BARNETT UNIVERSITY NEWS EDITOR

Performers were decked out in bright colors and dancing to upbeat hip-hop and pop hits in front of Alumnae Hall’s flashing strobe lights during IMPULSE Dance Company’s 19th annual spring show, “RUCKUS,” last Friday and Saturday.

“RUCKUS” featured collaborative work with members of various other on-campus dance troupes, including Fusion Dance Company, DAEBAK and Tempo Performance Company. The show also included over 30 members of IMPULSE’s “ELEMENTS” program, a four-week community dance workshop for beginner dancers at Brown and the Rhode Island School of Design. IMPULSE also invited audience members to join in on dances that have recently trended online.

“The show was super electrifying,” said audience member Tykerius Monford ’25. “It’s really cool that

COURTESY OF KARL SWENSON

This year’s show included over 30 members of IMPULSE’s community dance workshop “ELEMENTS,” an on-campus program for beginners.

IMPULSE tries so hard to collaborate and bring in outside performers.”

Audience member Nora Starhill ’25 echoed Monford’s sentiment, calling the show’s strategic use of lighting “funky and new” and the dancing “beyond impressive.”

For Aziza Alford ’25, IMPULSE community co-chair, the group represents a unique and welcoming community within the University.

“IMPULSE has been my rock at Brown,” Alford said. “It is one of the

most diverse communities that I’m a part of, and I love to be given a safe space to be vulnerable and share my choreography.”

“One of my favorite parts about the show is when we all start yelling on stage while we dance to hype each other up,” Alford added. “I love my IMPULSE family and I’m glad to have their unconditional support.”

Alford noted that this year’s

SEE IMPULSE PAGE 5

Campaign calls for dissociation from fossil fuel industry, reinvestment in city

Coming from a hockey family, Iginla has had success before and after joining the Bears

DANA RICHIE / HERALD

A report from the Elorza administration found that the University would owe almost $50 million annually if it paid full taxes on all of its properties.

‘Daisy Jones and the Six’: The fictional band that sounds better on paper

BY DAPHNE DLUZNIEWSKI SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Daisy Jones and the Six, the fictional band of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s 2019 eponymous novel has finally been given a voice. The band’s album “Aurora” was first concocted in the novel, an interview-style narrative that explores the band’s rise to fame decades after its abrupt split in the late 1970s. The record came off the pages Friday when it launched in tandem with the first three episodes of the new “Daisy Jones and the Six” series on Amazon Prime.

Throughout the book, Reid goes to great lengths to describe the musical quality of each song and even includes a full “Aurora” tracklist with accompanying lyrics. In an interview with Penguin Random House, Reid attributes her inspiration for the story to ’70s music icons. She explains that she “started with the germ of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham,” which shaped the fictional group’s dynamics off of Fleetwood Mac.

The band’s lead musicians, Daisy Jones and Billy Dunne, are portrayed by actors Riley Keough and Sam Claflin. For their roles, Keough and Claflin underwent vocal and instrumental training to fully embody their characters instead of using body and voice doubles. Given the actors’ lack of prior musical experience, their performance on the album is commendable.

“Aurora” was produced by Blake Mills, whose recent projects include Marcus Mumford’s “Self-Titled” and Jack Johnson’s “Meet the Moonlight.” He enlisted the songwriting expertise of Mumford and other prominent artists like Jackson Browne and Phoebe Bridgers to craft the rock-style album.

Mills’s production stays true to the ’70s style, but the near-total abandonment of the book’s original songs and lyrics is wildly disappointing. Though creative flexibility can be expected when musicians are adapting a non-musician’s work, the

departure from the fictional pieces translates into a loss of emotional and narrative integrity for fans of the novel.

The band offered a teaser of its discography with the release of two singles, which excited fans who were prepared to hear the songs they had been reading about finally come to life. But while both songs were technically included in the book, they stray from the original lyrics and meaning. “Regret Me,” the first single released Jan. 25, maintains the classic rock style that readers imagine Daisy Jones and the Six to produce, but the new words create a disconnect from the characters and have a sonically awkward flow.

The second single, “Look At Us Now (Honeycomb),” was released Feb. 15. The progression of the melody and the pre-bridge guitar solo echo Fleetwood Mac’s “The Chain.” In the book, the song is the band’s biggest hit, and although this is believable for the first three minutes of the song, it ends up devolving into a repetitive and seemingly never-ending

loop that prompts listeners to skip to the next track.

The rest of the album delivered little improvement. The upbeat title track “Aurora” begins the album — in the novel, it is meant to be the foundation upon which the rest of the album is built. While the released track starts off maintaining its theme from the novel — having an anchor during tough times — the sound quickly becomes disorienting and hectic, and it is difficult to discern what it is supposed to be about near the end. The track that was supposed to be the band’s grand statement is nothing particularly memorable.

The next two songs, “Let Me Down Easy” and “Kill You To Try,” continue building on the album’s quick-tempo ’70s rock feel. The former’s percussion and the latter’s background vocals are once again reminiscent of Fleetwood Mac’s blues-rock style.

The album’s mood then shifts with “Two Against Three,” which helps round out the record despite not appearing in the novel. The

song’s pace is much slower, featuring only Keough’s voice over a gentle guitar strum. The track allows Daisy’s fragile yet talented character to shine through at last, and it provides a refreshing mid-album rest from the first three songs.

“You Were Gone” continues the mellow atmosphere with a strong bridge and full-band harmony that also feels Fleetwood Mac-esque. It is followed by “More Fun to Miss,” whose bold and entertaining delivery from Keough makes it an interesting listen.

The lowest point of the album is “Please.” Its production feels out of place with the rest of the tracks and Claflin’s voice does not fulfill the powerful vocals needed for this type of song. While “Please” is from the book, it was supposed to be written by Daisy Jones and thus should have remained her song. Instead, the vocal perspective shifts to Billy and focuses on his struggles with addiction during the band’s tours. The album would have been better off completely nixing the song altogether.

The final two songs help close the album on a better note. Claflin and Keough’s voices play off each other well in “The River,” and their harmonies add a level of tension that is the hallmark of their characters’ relationship. The album closes with “No Words,” which provides a calming conclusion and delivers a goodbye from the fictional band that will never again reunite to create music.

The tracks themselves are catchy, but musically, they are nothing impressive. The producers and writers could have gotten away with this Fleetwood Mac imitation by sticking with the original songs. But by trying too hard to make it an entirely new record, “Aurora” comes across as a disappointing, wannabe rock album that leaves fans of the book confused and those unfamiliar with the source material unimpressed.

“Daisy Jones and the Six” has yet to make its final mark on the world. The show will continue to release episodes weekly on Amazon Prime Video, with the finale set to air on March 24.

Album ‘Aurora’ strays too far from book, delivers catchy yet unimpressive songs

COURTESY OF AMAZON STUDIOS

To portray the band’s lead musicians, Riley Keough and Sam Claflin underwent vocal and instrumental training rather than using voice doubles.

played with three different programs. The most famous of which — Shattuck-St. Mary’s — has been responsible for helping launch the careers of many other hockey superstars.

She was part of the Canadian team for the U18 Women’s World Championships in 2022, which won the whole tournament. Jade Iginla helped score three points over the course of the tournament including a goal and two assists, one of which came in the championship game against the U.S.

“I think there’s always so much pride in getting to represent your country, and it was (an) even better experience because we won,” Jade Iginla said.

In the fall of 2022, she joined the Bears hockey team out of a desire to compete in a highly competitive conference that boasts four of the top 10 teams in the country and six of the top 15.

“I wanted a great education and I was really excited about the opportunity to help build a program and play a role in that alongside great people,” she said.

When she came to the University, Ruzzi was excited to work with the rising star, believing Jade Iginla would fit well into the rebuilding dynamic that Brown was trying to establish.

“When piecing together our first recruiting class, we looked at players that could play at a high pace and (with) an aggressive style,” Ruzzi wrote. “Scoring is a premium in any program, so having that specific skill set was important for Brown to move up in the league.”

Ruzzi also emphasized the value of Jade Iginla’s “competitive edge.”

“Skill is one thing, but to have the drive to win every battle is why (Jade Iginla) was the perfect player to continue the grit that defines Brown women’s hockey,” she wrote.

Teammate and fellow forward Olivia Williamson ’25 was also energized by the prospect of a teammate with successes like Jade Iginla.

“It was really exciting,” Williamson said. “The focus of our program … in the coming years is … to build Brown hockey back to where it used to be.” Williamson said that bringing in a “phenomenal player” like Jade Iginla was “a big step forward for our

SCIENCE & RESEARCH

program.”

Jade Iginla’s ability to score and create opportunities was nearly unparalleled this season. She has led the team in scoring and has had four different multi-goal games including a hat trick against Rensselaer.

She has excelled in making short-handed goals, which are scored when a team has fewer players than its opponent on the ice. Jade Iginla’s three short-handed goals led the ECAC and were fourth overall in the nation.

Williamson expressed admiration for Jade Iginla’s “hockey IQ,” calling

it “unmatched.”

“I think IQ comes from watching hockey,” Jade Iginla said. “I watched a ton of hockey just growing up watching my dad and watching the NHL and then slowly watching more of the women’s game as I’ve gotten older.”

Her passion for the game persists both on and off the ice, as she takes every opportunity to improve in the sport, Williamson said.

“She’s there at the skill sessions and having meetings with the coaches,” Williamson added. “That is what it takes to truly be a successful hockey player. Anyone on the team could see

it clear as day that her passion for hockey is just so high.”

“She was really able to be herself early on, and I think the coaches are a big part of that,” Williamson said.

Jade Iginla credits much of her success this season to the support of her coaches and the play of her teammates in allowing her to adapt to the new environment with ease, considering her Co-Rookie of the Year Award more than an individual achievement.

“I’m fortunate to play alongside great teammates and have coaches that support me and give me lots of opportunities,” Jade Iginla said.

Brown American Physician-Scientists Association hosts inaugural conference

and professional goals” across the nation, according to the organization’s website. Malpass, who founded Brown’s local chapter last spring alongside John Pham MD’25, the chapter’s vice president, said he hopes to contribute to APSA’s goals in a way that uniquely serves Brown researchers.

BY AKSHAY AMESUR STAFF WRITER

Brown’s chapter of the American Physician Scientist Association and the Warren Alpert Medical School hosted the University’s inaugural APSA Conference Saturday. Through panels and presentations, the conference brought together experts and students to discuss how physician-scientists bridge the gap between theoretical research and clinical application in medicine.

The conference featured introductory remarks from Mukesh Jain, dean of medicine and biological sciences, a keynote speech from Douglas Lowy, principal deputy director of the National Cancer Institute, faculty discussion panels and a physician-scientist career panel with Jack Elias, professor of molecular biology, cell biology and biochemistry.

Physician-scientists both generate new medical knowledge and apply it to patient treatment, said Ryan Malpass MD’25, president and co-founder of the APSA Brown chapter. Physician-scientists can range “from a medical doctor publishing clinical research to someone doing (pure) bench science.”

APSA “aims to help physician-scientist trainees realize their educational

Brown’s APSA chapter is working to hold annual conferences, informational sessions for students applying to medical training programs and training sessions for students to build physician-science skills.

“It is a wonderful career to be able to make observations in the hospital (and) in the clinic (and) bring them back (to) understand them in the laboratory with the hope of then going back and impacting human health,” Jain said in his opening remarks. “It is not the path of least resistance … but it is an incredibly rewarding career path.”

Jain’s remarks were followed by a keynote presentation from Lowy titled “Embracing Challenges and Change Throughout a Professional Career.” Lowy discussed his experience as a physician in public policy, as well as his work in the 1980s to develop, characterize and test vaccines for the human papillomavirus, more commonly known as HPV.

Lowy encouraged physician-scientists to pursue their passions with intent and a vision for the future. He concluded his speech with a discussion of medicine in public policy, noting his gratitude at being able “to have an impact beyond (his) own research.”

Lowy achieved “truly breathtaking” accomplishments that “changed science, medicine and the health of millions across the nation and world,” Jain said.

The conference also featured presentations on student- and trainee-led research. Ranjan Mukherjee, a medical transfusion specialist, discussed a new vein detection system he co-developed with his wife Somdatta Goswami, assistant professor of applied mathematics (research), in collaboration with George Karniadakis, professor of applied mathematics and engineering.

Mukherjee and Goswami’s system uses deep learning — a type of artificial intelligence that identifies patterns in data by mimicking human brain processes — to locate veins, allowing clini-

cians to more easily and accurately find access sites to a patient’s bloodstream.

A physician-scientist himself, Mukherjee described the need for medical practitioners who can “bridge the gap between clinical medicine and bench research.” He explained that there is often a disconnect between theoretical research and the practical medical challenges that physicians face.

Nina Li ’24 MD’28 also presented at the event, detailing a new platform for detecting contamination in mRNA vaccines that she helped develop at the Tripathi Laboratory. Li said that physician-scientists can “expand the current boundaries of medicine through their research.”

The conference transitioned into

career-related discussions through two simultaneous panels, one for senior experts and one for current trainees. Panelists discussed strategies for success in the field of physician science.

In the future, Malpass said that the Brown APSA chapter hopes to collaborate more with the University, including institutions such as Brown’s School of Public Health and Graduate School of Biology.

“We have a lot of different ways we can go,” Malpass said. APSA is driven to find areas of improvement for physician-science training at Brown and take “action to help address those needs.”

“Our APSA chapter has really positioned themselves to be a voice for aspiring and current physician-scientists at all levels,” Jain said.

Experts, students discuss bridging theoretical research, clinical practice

AKSHAY AMESUR / HERALD Conference events featured a keynote speech from Douglas Lowy, principal deputy director of the National Cancer Institute, and discussion panels with University faculty.

COURTESY OF DAVID SILVERMAN / BROWN ATHLETICS

Jade Iginla ’26 started playing hockey at age seven in her backyard with her father, NHL Hall of Famer and three-time Olympian Jarome Iginla.

Office of Chaplains and Religious Life celebrates 70th anniversary

BY SARAH ONDERDONK SENIOR STAFF WRITER

This year marks the University’s Office of the Chaplains and Religious Life’s 70th year of operation, according to Reverend Janet Cooper Nelson, the chaplain of the University and director of the Office. The Office has a number of plans as it looks ahead to its 75th anniversary, Cooper Nelson added.

OCRL’s history

According to the University’s website, the OCRL “seeks to create spaces and opportunities within” the University community where “profound questions” can be “voiced and explored openly, whether these concerns originate within religious, philosophical, ethical or spiritual practice.”

The work of the University’s chaplains is “rooted in the care of the whole person” and seeks to “increase religious literacy” and support “religious diversity.”

According to Cooper Nelson, the University’s religious history is “kind of a hidden story.”

Arthur L. Washburn was the first to hold the title of chaplain at the University, according to an article from the Encyclopedia Brunoniana. Washburn had been acting as a chaplain for years by the time he was officially named chaplain in 1942 — he regularly attended religious services, visited sick students in the infirmary every day and had been living amongst students in a dormitory, the article states.

The Office of the Chaplain was officially established in 1952, but it was not up and running until 1953, according to Cooper Nelson. The first official University chaplain to preside over the office was Edgar C. Reckard, a Presbyterian minister and professor of religious studies. Reckard was succeeded in 1958 by Charles A. Baldwin, who remained

in the role until Cooper Nelson was appointed in 1990. Nelson was ordained in the United Church of Christ and her appointment made her the first woman to head an Ivy League university chaplain’s office.

With the 1959 end of compulsory chapel attendance for students, Manning Chapel, housed on the second floor of Manning Hall, became a place where all religious groups could worship. Baldwin conducted Protestant services while local religious leaders acted as chaplains for other faiths. Now, there are full-time chaplains available for a number of religious groups.

“The Chaplain of the University was a solo operation for a long time,” Cooper Nelson said. “In 1996, we began a full review of the program and came up with the design that it holds now.” Currently, the OCRL has associate chaplain positions for the University’s Muslim, Protestant, Catholic and Jewish communities,

although the last position is temporarily vacant.

Upcoming plans

Cooper Nelson said that the Office is interested in establishing chaplain positions for the University’s Hindu and Buddhist communities. She added that the Office has wanted to create these positions for a while but lacks funding.

Cooper Nelson is also focused on renovating Manning Chapel over the next five years.

“Our Muslim community does not have a proper place to pray,” she said, “The lower floor of Manning Hall … could make a really great prayer space for the Muslim community as well as our meditation community.”

The state of their prayer space is “really unfortunate because we have no natural lighting and have been flooded on multiple occasions,” Brown Muslim Students’ Association

CALENDAR

Design Chair Shazain Khan ’24 previously told The Herald.

Cooper Nelson, above all, hopes to increase the visibility of the OCRL on campus.

Imam Amir Toft, associate chaplain of the University for the Muslim community, expressed a similar sentiment, adding that visibility helps the Office better serve University community members.

“As the university gets bigger, and as campus life gets bigger, it’s easy to sometimes lose visibility to the students, faculty and staff that we’re here to support and serve,” Toft said.

In an email to The Herald, Associate Chaplain of the University for the Catholic Community Edmund McCullough wrote that “religion is an important and ineradicable element of the human experience.”

“Since Brown aims at … understanding and ameliorating the human condition, it ought to be able to understand and to respect religious

TODAY’S EVENTS

Chemical & Environmental Engineering Guest Seminar

2:00 - 3:00 p.m

Barus and Holley, Room 190

Coaching for a Change Info Session

9:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Career Lab, 1st floor Event Space

TOMORROW’S EVENTS

Slave Resistance, Criminal Law and Regimes of Racial Violence in the Americas

12:30 - 1:30 p.m. Online

#WallsDoTalk: Celebrating Women in Medicine

5:30 - 7:30 p.m.

Warren Alpert Medical School

commitment,” he added.

Cooper Nelson said that she hopes to garner stronger support for several OCRL programs over the next few years, such as Thursday night interfaith suppers and various support groups for community members.

Not only does Cooper Nelson hope to continue supporting and supplementing these long-standing programs, but she is also determined to promote the new spiritual life residential community that will be housed in the Brook Street residence halls and better support the University’s South Asian religious communities.

“This work includes how you eat in the dining hall and what kind of prayer spaces we have,” she said. “It’s important because you could be part of a very large tradition or you could be part of a very small one, and every single person matters.”

What Grace Talusan is Thinking About Now

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. Zoom

Leavetaking in a Professional Context

5:00 p.m.

Smith-Buonanno Hall Room 106

Cracking the Marble Ceiling: Perspectives from Women Elected Leaders 7:00 p.m. Online

Brown University Women’s Tennis vs Tufts 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.

Pizzitola Memorial Sports Center

DANA RICHIE / HERALD

Reverend Janet Cooper Nelson is focused on renovating Manning Chapel in the near future to provide a prayer space for Muslim students.

OCRL seeks to establish Hindu, Buddhist chaplain positions, grow programming

spring show was particularly notable for IMPULSE because it highlighted the group’s dedication to community engagement through its very composition.

“This year’s show proved just how diverse our company can be,” she said.

According to Ming-May Hu ’23, one of the co-directors for “RUCKUS,” building community is what the company does best. For this year’s performance, Hu choreographed a joint dance piece with Fusion.

“I loved getting to combine my love for two different companies and bring the communities together,” she said. “One of the best things about IMPULSE is that, in the end, we are all united by our love for dance and each other and want to share that.”

For Arielle Martinez Cohen ’23.5, co-director of the show, “RUCKUS” was “truly the highlight of my Brown experience.”

“I’m so in awe of how talented everyone is in dancing and choreographing,” she said. “Sometimes I’ll watch a dance and start fangirling over everyone and then realize I actually get to dance with them.”

Hu expressed a similar sentiment, adding that it was “really rewarding to perform with some of my favorite people and put on an amazing show for the audience.”

“As a freshman, I never thought that I would become co-director,” she said. “This group has helped me gain so much confidence and grow as a dancer and a person, especially in the last year.”

“We are so happy with how the show turned out and can’t wait to do it again next year,” Martinez Cohen said.

tunities are imperative to the organization’s mission of uplifting Latinx students who are considering legal careers.

“Especially as Latine students and students of color at a predominantly white institution, we need to be uplifting each other and supporting

each other in every way that we can,” she said. This way, “more of us can go into this profession and into this industry (and) open up more opportunities for other Latine students in the future.”

Joel Gonzalez ’25 said that the group allows students with shared cultural backgrounds to connect and discuss their identities and passions.

“It was a safe space for us to talk about our demographic background,” Gonzalez said. “The majority of us are coming from immigrant backgrounds, and the things we want to fix are mainly immigrant reform and other (related) issues.”

Antunez Lopez emphasized the importance of representation in empowering Latinx students to excel

in any career they may choose to pursue. “History is due for another Latinx movement in America,” he said. And “change happens on college campuses, especially one like this.”

But despite “really big plans” for La Alianza, Antunez Lopez acknowledged that the organization “has to start off small.”

“We’re trying to learn and gain lots of experience so that we can really launch” into the campus community, he said.

Members hope La Alianza can act as “a model organization to start opening up more inclusive organizations for Latinx students on campus,” Gonzalez said. “It’s revolutionary.”

COURTESY OF KARL SWENSON

ALIANZA FROM PAGE 1

COURTESY OF MAIRA ROJAS-TINEO

The organization hopes to expand its programming and reach on campus, particularly by bringing in alumni at various stages of their legal careers. “Especially as Latine students and students of color at a predominantly white institution, we need to be uplifting each other in every way that we can,” said Michelle Alas ’25.

Fang ’26: It’s time we stop and smell the roses in Providence

Like most college students, my day is filled with walking — to class, the library, the gym and between meals. Having grown up in a car-obsessed suburb, I experienced somewhat of a culture shock in college when I learned I needed to walk everywhere. But I’ve since adjusted and have come to look forward to walking around Providence. I love my morning walks to the gym when the sun is quietly breaking through the maple trees, and my walks to class when I can see white-speckled starlings and orange-breasted robins on the Main Green. During the fall, I’m delighted by the oak, elm and birch leaves that carpet the sidewalks on my way to the library.

When we rush around constantly from classes to meetings and spend our days looking at screens, we miss so much of life’s smaller details, like the hawks that perch on the trees around the Ratty and the delicately serrated edges of elm leaves scattered across campus. Urban beauty is all around us, even if it is not readily apparent. Taking a moment to appreciate Providence’s biodiversity can help us better understand the living things around us and find happiness in the smaller things that usually pass us by in our busy lives.

Though much of Providence County’s original forested lands have been replaced with pavement and residential development, nature continues to thrive in the area. In Blackstone Park, a short walk east of Brown’s campus, birds such as mergansers, black-capped chickadees and Northern cardinals are frequently seen.

Seekonk River, which links together the Blackstone River and the Narragansett Bay, has calm waters that provide a resting spot for migratory birds. Watchemoket Cove, which borders the right side of Providence River along the East Bay Bike Path, also hosts calm waters that are home to mute swans and cormorants, black aquatic birds with long, hooked beaks. And red-

are more than a dozen pockets of old growth trees scattered throughout Rhode Island — some of which are hundreds of years old.

From the various animals to the ancient trees, Providence is far from just a collection of buildings and streets. Spending a little more time outdoors when the weather is nice or just paying attention to Providence’s many natural

Even exposure to the sounds of nature can be recuperative compared to the sounds of traffic. When we pay more attention to the living things around us, we tend to pay more attention to ourselves too. A study in England found that those who are more connected with nature have greater senses of contentment and personal growth.

Providence is far from the most biodiverse city in the world, but the plants and animals that do live here are a critical component of this city that shouldn’t be overlooked. The green space that we do have should be cherished, and we all have a responsibility to preserve it so that plants, animals and humans alike can all enjoy it together. Small things like safely picking up litter or planting native seeds help make our environment even better. Buying and using a field identification book of common trees and birds makes it much easier to recognize the species around us, and taking pictures of local fauna and flora can help us appreciate their natural beauty.

tailed hawks, American robins and crows can be spotted hopping, skipping and chirping around campus.

Providence’s trees are also greatly varied. Just along Prospect Street are birches, honey locusts, oaks and elms, which brighten autumn with their red and yellow leaves. Some of these trees are so old that their roots have escaped the confines of the sidewalk and created little hills and valleys through the concrete. There

wonders can make all of us a little happier. My friends and I derive lots of entertainment from simply watching the birds in the Providence River paddle around. They have a distinct power hierarchy: swans on top, followed by geese, seahawks, ducks, pigeons and lastly, sparrows. Our joy is backed up by science, too. Regular exposure to nature, even in small doses, has been linked to lower stress, improved mood, lower blood pressure and improved well-being.

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

Social Media Editors

It’s hard to slow down when we’re always so busy, but it’d be a shame to miss out on the quirks and joys of the plants and animals in the city we all call home.

Juliet Fang ’26 can be reached at juliet_ fang@brown.edu. Please send responses to this opinion to letters@browndailyherald. com and other op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com.

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“Providence is far from the most biodiverse city in the world, but the plants and animals that do live here are a critical component of this city that shouldn’t be overlooked.”

co-authors, previously told The Herald.

Published last Monday, the report found that the University received $20,511,567 in contributions from non-profit organizations affiliated with fossil fuel companies and climate disinformation donors between 2003 and 2019. The report also found five instances in which Brown-affiliated authors accepted funding “from at least one of the top 50 companies” responsible for total fossil fuel production as listed by the Urgewald Global Oil and Gas Exit List or the Global Coal Exit List.

Baylor Fox-Kemper, professor of earth, environmental and planetary sciences, is one of the five Brown-affiliated researchers who conducted research using fossil fuel-affiliated funding. At the rally, he shared how he accepted a research grant from British Petroleum in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, after which the company committed to investing in research on the soil spills’ impacts.

“I will not do that again,”

Fox-Kemper said at the rally. “I will not take fossil fuel money.”

Fox-Kemper added that the fossil fuel industry funds research that promotes strategies like carbon capture and carbon storage, which have previously been used to justify more oil and gas projects, “to keep the existing money in the pockets of the same companies for longer.”

“We deserve a better future, we deserve better opportunities and we deserve better than the fossil fuel industry,” said Bella Garo ’24, a Sunrise Brown organizer. “It is time to dissociate and it is time to dissociate right now.”

In March 2020, the University announced that it was halting investment of the endowment in fossil fuel extraction companies, but Sunrise Brown is calling for full dissociation. Their push follows Princeton’s announcement last year that it would dissociate from 90 companies active in the thermal coal or tar sands segments of the fossil fuel industry.

Sunrise Brown, said that she attended the rally to encourage the University to commit to further separation from the fossil fuel industry. “It’s time for us to call for more action.”

Reinvest

Speakers at the rally also advocated for the University to increase its investments in the local community.

“Brown isn’t being a good neighbor. We need to demand that Brown pays more to the city of Providence,” said Carina Sandoval ’23, a co-founder of Students for Education Equity.

“How can we actively work to pay off our debt to the community and be a better community member? The answer starts with reinvesting in Providence and increasing our voluntary payments.”

As a non-profit, the University does not pay property taxes on its educational buildings but does on its commercial holdings. A report from the Providence Finance Department and the Office of then-Mayor Jorge Elorza last year found that the University would pay almost $50 million annually if it paid full taxes on all of its properties, which are valued at over $1.3 billion.

Sunrise Brown’s DIRE campaign calls for the University to pay more in voluntary payments to the city. The University is expected to pay around $4.5 million this fiscal year through two agreements with the city. Both of these agreements are expiring in June of this year.

“I’m here because I care deeply about Brown’s relationship with the city of Providence,” said Janek Schaller ’24, who attended the rally.

“The incredible ambition and talent of (the University’s) student body has to be put to excellent use and our administration has to … allow us to work together to realize a much more sustainable and equitable future for the city of Providence.”

“It’s really exciting to (have seen) such high turnout for the rally,” Slevin wrote in a message to The Herald. “We’re confident this is the start of a movement.”

Fiona Mathews ’26, a member of

Additional reporting by Dana Richie.

DANA RICHIE / HERALD

Although Brown announced it was halting investment of the endowment in fossil fuel extraction companies in 2020, Sunrise Brown is calling for full dissociation and increased reinvestment into Providence.

SPORTS

Men’s basketball comes up short 84-75 against Yale during season finale

Team misses playoff spot as captains Paxson Wojcik ’23, Perry Cowan ’23 play final games

BY DENNIS CAREY AND LINUS LAWRENCE SENIOR STAFF WRITER AND SPORTS EDITOR

An electric crowd of 2,003 packed into the Pizzitola Sports Center on Saturday night to see the men’s basketball team face off against the Yale Bulldogs in the program’s most anticipated game in years.

The stakes were simple: with a win, the Bears could secure the fourth and final spot in the Ivy League playoffs. But lose and the season ends. While the outcome was up in the air, the regular season finale was guaranteed to be the final home game for captains Paxson Wojcik ’23 and Perry Cowan ’23, who were honored on the court with their families in a senior night ceremony prior to tipoff.

Despite a hard-fought effort, the Bears ultimately came up short 84-75, keeping them from their first Ivy Madness appearance in the tournament’s six-year history.

“We (expected) a different result, but it doesn’t take away from our growth and how much we improved since the beginning of the season,” said Head Coach Mike Martin ’04 in a press conference following the game.

“You can’t control what happens to you, but you can control how you respond to it, and I thought our guys did a good job all year blow-after-blow responding to what came at us,” he added. “There’s a whole lot of positives that we can take from this season (and) from tonight’s game.”

The Bears started the game with Wojcik, Cowan, Dan Friday ’24, Kino Lilly Jr. ’25 and Nana Owusu-Anane ’25.

The Bulldogs wasted no time putting the Bears under pressure, beginning the game with a 10-2 run. Bruno attempted to keep pace, pushing the game within three on three-pointers from Wojcik and Lilly Jr. But Yale continued to dominate, expanding their lead to 23-9 with 8:39 left in the period.

Just when the game appeared to be slipping away, the Bears exploded for a 10-0 run to bring the game back within four points. A locked-in Wojcik scored five of the 10 points and had a steal leading to a Lilly Jr. 3-pointer.

Yale responded with two buckets to re-extend their lead, but Brown’s momentum was reignited with a fiery 12-0 run. In the span of just over six minutes, the Bears had come back from down 23-9 to pull ahead 31-28.

The run sent the crowd into an absolute frenzy. The home sell-out crowd was the first since 2012, according to an announcement made at the game. Between baskets, players ran to celebrate in front of the bleachers packed with fans wearing white t-shirts as part of a coordinated “white out” effort.

The Pizzitola Sports Center reached peak volume when Bruno took the lead during the Bears’ most electric sequence of the game. After stealing the ball near the Bulldogs’ basket, Wojcik slung a pass to Friday, who quickly relayed it to Aaron Cooley ’25. Cooley drove down the court, ran towards the basket and dunked over the head of a Yale defender as cheers exploded from around the arena.

Cooley also drew a foul on the dunk and scored his free throw to give Brown a three-point lead with 2:34 remaining in the first half. Friday scored two more free throws to give Brown a 3329 lead, but the Bulldogs managed to retake a thin 34-33 advantage going into halftime.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Bears forced many turnovers that allowed them to recover from the early gap. “We had turned them over nine times in the first half,” Martin said. “I thought our ball pressure impacted them after that 23-9 start.”

But the Bears were not immune to turnovers themselves, allowing 18 points off them in the first half.

A bright spot for the Bears was their 100% free throw shooting percentage in the half, which had proved an issue for the team earlier in the season. The Bears at one point ranked the second-worst in free throw percentage out of all Division I programs.

The two teams stayed close throughout the beginning of the second half. Brown managed to take a 43-40 lead off a shot by Wojick from behind the arc, but Yale soon pulled ahead with an 8-0 run. Brown would not lead again for the remainder of the game.

“Yale played well. They were tough, they were physical,” Martin said. “I have a lot of respect for that program.” With their win, Yale secured the first seed in the Ivy League playoffs next weekend.

Multiple controversial calls from referees throughout the game drew the ire of Brown’s crowd. One particularly critical moment came when Friday — who had already scored a season-high 16 points — was called for two questionable fouls within a span of 16 seconds. It was his fourth and fifth of the game, meaning he had fouled out.

The final dagger for the Bears seemed to come after a foul was called on Wojcik late in a Yale possession with 1:14 left in the game. The call sent the Bulldogs to the line for two free throws right as it appeared the Bears had managed a critical stop. Both shots were made.

Down 71-65 with just over a minute remaining, the Bears’ fouls became intentional in a last-ditch attempt for a comeback.

With 22 seconds left on the clock, Wojcik committed his fifth foul of the night. The team’s leading scorer, who had scored a season-high 25 points along with eight rebounds, four assists and three steals, walked off the court to a long standing ovation from the crowd. As he hugged his coaches, his teammates and finally took a seat on the sidelines, the tears began to flow.

“It’s always tough to come off the floor for the last time,” Wojcik said. “I’m gonna miss playing for those guys and playing alongside my teammates.”

Wojcik, who transferred from Loyola University Chicago before his junior year, reflected that his two years in a Bears uniform “have been wonderful.”

“I’ve enjoyed every second of it. There’s no group I’d rather go out with. I love these guys, I love this staff,” he said.

Having now missed the playoffs as a result of tiebreakers three of the past four seasons, the team will look to finally get over the hump next year and continue playing ball past the regular season.

“We have to get better,” Martin said. “We’re gonna lose two fantastic seniors, but we should feel good about the direction and where we’re at despite coming up short.”

KAIOLENA TACAZON / HERALD

The regular season finale was guaranteed to be the final home game for the team’s two senior captains.