Wednesday, November 17th, 2021 - The Brown Daily Herald

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

VOLUME CLV, ISSUE XXXX

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UNIVERSITY NEWS

Students announce creation of The Black Star Journal Publication aims to create safe space for Black creatives to share work, foster community

other students just like them.”

Keiley Thompson ’24, a co-editor for the journal, said that she was approached by Nash with the idea and fell in love with it because many Black stories on campus are shared through word of mouth but not written media.

organizations on campus as well.

Both Nash and Thomspon agreed that the journal would focus on Black accomplishments and Black joy rather than exlusively focusing on struggles within the Black community. “There is so much more to Blackness and being

BY KAITLYN TORRES SENIOR STAFF WRITER Student writers created a new publication, The Black Star Journal, to connect Black voices at the University and create a “better informed community” on campus, the publication announced in a Nov. 10 post on its Instagram @theblackstarjournal.

Amiri Nash ’24, the journal’s founder, told The Herald that he first had the idea to start the journal after thinking about the way Black students on campus are seen and represented in campus publications. He added that journalism can be a tool to both inform the world and document day-to-day lived experiences. “Black students don’t have that same type of archival history of day-to-day life on campus,” he said.

He added that the journal would serve as a platform to represent the experiences of Black students in every aspect of campus life and society.

Nash said that “in a predominantly white space it’s so important for Black students to be able to open (a website or paper) and see that there’s so many

COURTESY OF THE BLACK STAR JOURNAL

“It’s especially important these days that everyone has access to information about their own culture and history,” she said. She hopes that the journal will unify and amplify Black

UNIVERSITY NEWS

Keith Harper speaks at Watson Institute U.S.’s first Native American Ambassador discusses Native American advocacy

BY NEIL MEHTA STAFF WRITER Watson Senior Fellow Keith Harper, the first Native American to be named a U.S. ambassador, discussed political advocacy for Native American communities at the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs Tuesday afternoon.

The conversation was moderated by Geri Augusto, senior fellow in international and public affairs, who asked Harper a series of crowd-sourced questions submitted prior to the event.

Throughout the discussion, Harper called on future leaders to “look for places where we are generalists.”

“What I urge Native American students to do is explore ways of getting into positions where the portfolio (of

responsibilities) … is wider,” he said.

“The generalist is the secretary or the deputy secretary” in an organization, Harper explained in an interview with The Herald. “Their role is not just Native affairs; their role is also water, park service, national monuments and Bureau of Land Management and all these different agencies. And those roles tend to have a lot more authority.”

Audience members asked Harper about the relationship between Native American law in the United States and international policymaking. Harper, a former U.S. representative on the United Nations Human Rights Council, has experience in both.

“Coming out of law school, I had two interests,” Harper said. “One is national security and foreign policy and human rights, and (the other is) tribal law and policy. And there’s not a lot of nexus between those two.”

Instead of approaching Native

SEE AMBASSADOR PAGE 5

Black at Brown than struggle, and there is so much joy that comes with being a Black student at Brown,” Nash said.

Carson McNamara ’24, a prospective writer for the journal, said that

she believes the journal will highlight news, culture and politics within the Black community at Brown.

“I do think it is important for us to not only give an outlet for Black writers and Black artists, but to distribute their work throughout the community as well,” she said.

McNamara added that while applying to colleges she was interested in majoring in journalism. At Brown, she could not find a club that aligned with her work, so she found off-campus writing opportunities instead.

“I’m happy to have something on campus that I can engage in and really feel a part of the Brown community,” she said.

Nash said that the journal also aims to centralize Black news and community events, as it can be hard to find this information on campus in one single source.

“I am most excited about having an outlet for my writing,” McNamara said.

She added that the other news outlets on campus did not suit the work she wanted to do, specifically in-depth pieces about issues surrounding race.

“I didn’t want to be limited or feel limited in my writing by going into predominantly white spaces and having them critique my work,” she said.

McNamara added that the Black Star Journal would allow her to be a part

SEE BLACK STAR PAGE 5

UNIVERSITY NEWS

U. moves away from Piazza Shift to new platform Ed Discussion comes after Piazza introduced paid model

BY NICHOLAS MILLER STAFF WRITER Piazza, an online discussion platform that allows students to ask questions about class material, was a popular service at Brown used in numerous classes, particularly in STEM courses, up until recently. But in April, the Digital Learning and Design office told professors that the University would no longer provide support for Piazza after the company switched to a paid model in November 2020, according to Jim Foley, senior associate director for digital learning and design. Months later, DLD signed a contract to use a different platform called Ed Discussion.

The pay structure Piazza offered was expensive, Foley said, and the University began to investigate other platforms to determine if staying with Piazza was the most cost-effective option.

Piazza’s shift to a paid model was

SEE PIAZZA PAGE 6

METRO

Andrea’s reopens after seven months Despite hiring challenges, staff excited to return after water damage

BY KATY PICKENS SENIOR STAFF WRITER Andrea’s Restaurant, which serves Greek cuisine and has been on Thayer Street for 55 years now, was forced to close its doors seven months ago after a sprinkler malfunction caused water damage. It made its long-anticipated return with a soft opening Nov. 9.

Hiring challenges have created obstacles in the restaurant’s reopening process, but staff say they are excited for Andrea’s to reopen officially and to launch new late-night options.

“We’re so glad to be back,” said Philippe Maatouk, who runs Andrea’s, which is located on the corner of Meeting and Thayer streets. “We heard the messages on the phone from people saying how much they missed this place.”

While Maatouk enjoyed a cup of the restaurant’s French onion soup, he described the challenges the restaurant has faced in recent months. “It was hectic. It was crazy, especially hiring,” he said. “We’ve been suffering with this.”

Several restaurants on Thayer have had to reduce hours due to national labor shortages, The Herald previously reported. Maatouk explained that Andreas was facing the same issues and that due

to understaffing, they will temporarily be closed on Mondays.

“The world is different than it was years ago when I used to” manage restaurants, said Andrea’s General Manager Sandy Brito. She added that despite difficulties in renovating and repairing the restaurant after the water damage, she was hopeful for the future of An-

SEE ANDREAS PAGE 5

KATY PICKENS / HERALD

The restaurant offers a 10% student discount to University students who present their student ID.

Metro

Metro

Commentary

University News

U. faculty and students attended the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow Page 2

I-195 commission’s projects include new grocery store, housing Page 3

Editorial Page Board: CAPS must expand access to mental health services Page 7

Students weigh in on U. parking spaces, regulations, ticketing experiences Page 8

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | NEWS

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

METRO

U. community attends U.N. climate change conference in Glasgow COP26 aims to bolster Paris Agreement, falls short on climate justice, accessibility

BY BRENDAN GARDNER SENIOR STAFF WRITER Several members of the Brown community attended the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties in Glasgow over the course of the past two weeks. These activists and researchers shared their experiences and perspectives on the outcomes of the conference in interviews with The Herald.

The COP climate conferences, which have taken place nearly every year since 1995, bring together world leaders, scientists, activists, non-governmental organizations and civil society groups, as well as representatives of Indigenous communities and other stakeholders, to coordinate the global fight against climate change. This year’s COP was widely seen as the most important since COP21 in 2015, which produced the Paris Agreement. COP26, which was delayed for a year due to COVID-19, aimed to create a framework for implementing the Paris Agreement and to strengthen countries’ commitments to decarbonization.

Importance and urgency A shared sense of running out of time, along with the trend of increasingly frequent climate disasters, lent an air of urgency to COP26, according to Danielle Falzon GS, who studies sociology and has been attending the conferences since 2016.

“This COP is important because it’s actually giving teeth to” the Paris Agreement, Falzon said. “We have to make actual decisions now and commit to things and figure out the real ways we’re going to take action to achieve the goals set out in Paris.”

The dire warnings in the Sixth Assessment Report, recently published by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and the recent increase in climate change-fueled disasters gave COP26 a particular sense of urgency, Falzon said. She cited “the flooding we’ve seen all over the world, the unprecedented storms, the massive weather fluctuations — everything that’s made climate change a more tangible reality for people,” as well as the IPCC’s report, as reasons why COP26 was “really significant.”

“If we’re not going to take action now,” she said, “we’re already too late.”

Climate justice Central to many of the negotiations was the importance of a just transition.

This idea emphasizes the responsibility of wealthy nations to bear the greatest burden of decarbonization due to their

disproportionate contributions to the climate crisis. Small island nations at risk of being flooded and Indigenous groups on the front lines of climate destruction worldwide urged those at the conference to create a Loss and Damage finance mechanism to support those already affected by climate change.

Zanagee Artis ’22, who co-founded the youth climate activist group Zero Hour and attended the conference, said that concrete policies to advance climate justice fell short. Those at COP26 “talked a lot about climate justice and the need for that, and a lot of it didn’t end up coming through in the final agreement,” he said. Although he said that the increase in discussions about Indigenous rights and human rights was important, more actionable progress was something “we didn’t come away with from COP26.”

“A lot more needs to be done, particularly related to Indigenous rights and the Loss and Damage function,” Artis said. “What COP26 really showed is that countries are unwilling to give up sovereignty for an increase in rights for Indigenous peoples. That’s resulted in an expansion of fossil fuel interests … on Indigenous lands, and reaching an agreement at COP could have changed that.”

Falzon added that Loss and Damage finance for these countries is a third crucial pillar of climate policy, alongside adapting to an already warming world and mitigating further warming.

But a proposal to create a new Loss and Damage funding mechanism ultimately proved unsuccessful.

Emma Venarde ’24, who attended the conference as part of a youth delegation from the Wild Center, also emphasized the importance of women’s and Indigenous people’s rights in the fight against climate change. “We can’t let urgency mean we leave people out,” she said.

countries. Just getting (to Glasgow) was not doable for a lot of delegations.”

“I heard a lot of people say that there were two COPs going on: one where the scientists and activists are, and one where the leaders are, and they’re not really interacting,” she added.

Falzon also noted the lack of representation for many marginalized peoples. For example, she said, “the island nation of Vanuatu does not have a delegation because they were not able to get” to Glasgow due to challenges posed by COVID-19.

She added that “small island states typically only have three negotiators” who often end up dwarfed by the massive delegations sent by countries like the United States.

This inaccessibility for many groups most affected by the climate crisis contrasted with the over-representation of fossil fuel interests at the COP, Artis said. “There was news that fossil fuel interests actually had the biggest delegation … at the conference if you consider them as one bloc of people, which is wild. It was more than any country,” he said. “People causing climate change were part of the conference and (were) sponsoring it.”

Protests This year’s COP also saw a significant number of protests in Glasgow, reflecting a growing sense of urgency and the perception that world leaders are not doing enough to address the climate crisis.

The protests were “huge,” said Deborah Gordon, a senior fellow at the Watson Institute of International and Public Affairs and former director of the Energy and Climate Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Venarde said that youth activism

played a major role in the protest movement, and that some of the groups in attendance included the youth strike organization Fridays for Future and the civil disobedience-oriented group Extinction Rebellion. But one of the most significant protests, she said, happened not outside but inside the COP. After “outrage about the lack of accessibility throughout COP,” she said, a number of constituencies of observers were granted a “People’s Plenary” on the last Friday of the conference to voice their frustration and concerns.

At the plenary, youth groups read from the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report, a choice Venarde called “really powerful.” The message to world leaders, she said, was simple: “It’s your turn to act.”

Afterward, the Indigenous constituency led the several-hundred person room in a walkout that marched through central negotiating areas to join protests outside, sending a message that “not enough work has been done here,” Venarde said.

“It was a really cool moment …

There’s never been a demonstration that large inside of (the central COP zone) before,” she said. “It was really freeing to engage in that last (action) after a week of refraining from screaming.”

Reflections on COP26’s outcomes Many, not only within the Brown community, but also among scientists, activists and leaders more broadly, agree that the conference did not accomplish enough..

“I don’t think we’re making the massive changes that are needed to actually do something substantive to limit average temperature rise to either 1.5 or 2 degrees (Celsius),” Falzon said.

“I don’t think this COP is producing results that are going to do something like that.”

But she added that she saw small markers of progress. “There’s an urgency and seriousness that I haven’t really seen before at other COPs among all nations,” she said, adding that pledges to reduce deforestation and emissions of methane — a gas with a shorter lifespan but a much more potent greenhouse effect than carbon dioxide — represent steps forward. “Any action is good,” she said.

Gordon agreed, adding that COP26 spurred significant progress on establishing a framework for reducing methane emissions. “This is the first ever COP to focus beyond CO2,” she said.

“We are definitely driving to (a) 2.5 to 4 degrees (Celsius) temperature rise unless we deal with methane in this decade,” she said. Dealing with methane “could cut half a degree (Celsius) right away.”

Fortunately, Gordon said, the conference saw the announcement of the Global Methane Pledge, in which 107 countries pledged to slash their methane emissions by at least 30% before the end of the decade. Although implementation is always a difficult question, she added, the pledge and the methane reporting it requires represents a significant step in and of itself.

Venarde said that the movement against climate change must begin to look beyond events like COPs. “These big global negotiations are not what’s going to stop this crisis,” she said, emphasizing the need for local and community-based action. “There’s no one silver bullet solution to all of this.”

The conference helped Venarde to see that “the U.S. and world leaders are not going to save us … we’ve got to save ourselves,” she said. “I’m really frustrated by what I’ve witnessed, but that has to translate into action.”

Inaccessibility and division Compounding the concerns that COP26 did not adequately address climate justice was a common perception that the conference itself was inaccessible to many, Artis, Vernard and Falzon all said.

“This is one of the most exclusionary COPs,” Artis said, describing the difficulty of gaining access to closeddoor meetings.

“This was a really inaccessible COP,” Venarde agreed, explaining that information about events was often extremely hard to come by. “Sometimes we would wait in line a really long time (for access to negotiations) only to be turned away.”

The difficulty of navigating COP26, several sources said, was only a small part of a broader exclusion of certain groups. The lack of accessibility, VeCOURTESY OF DANIELLE FALZON narde said, was “not only for observ- This year’s COP conference was primarily dedicated to creating a framework for implementing the Paris ers and for youth but for Global South Agreement and strengthening world nations’ commitment to decarbonization.

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METRO

Decade later: I-195 commission’s projects Projects promise to bring grocery store, more housing to former I-195 land

BY GRACE HOLLEB STAFF WRITER In 2011, the I-195 Redevelopment District Commission was created to develop dozens of acres of land that were previously occupied by Interstate 195 in Providence’s Jewelry District and Fox Point neighborhoods.

Ten years later, the commission has already completed several developments, and those involved with the commission say additional projects in the works will bring different real estate opportunities, including apartment buildings, retail space and grocery stores.

The commission oversees the development of over 26 acres of land formerly occupied by the interstate, which has been split up into 19 different-sized parcels and seven acres of open space, according to the commission’s website. The I-195 commission facilitated four completed projects, and currently supervises three projects which are under construction and two which are proposed, according to WPRI. “We have the opportunity to develop the land once in our lifetime and so we want to get the most value for each parcel, and that doesn’t just mean sale price, it means attracting development that brings jobs, enhances the neighborhood and fills a need,” Cara Cromwell, a spokesperson for the I-195 Redevelopment District Commission, wrote in an email to The Herald. The group’s mission is to foster economic development on Rhode Island’s I-195 land that creates job opportunities, according to the I-195 District website.

The District Commission seeks out development that will contribute to this mission and works to ensure other factors are in place to make the surrounding neighborhoods good places to live and work, Cromwell wrote. The planning and development of the District has been strategic and deliberate, she added.

Representing more than $600 million of investment, there are more than two million square feet of development completed, under con-

struction or planned, according to Cromwell.

Multiple projects currently under construction are expected to be completed in the next year.

A building with 62 residential units, a 13,000 square foot grocery store and 10,000 square foot retail space is being developed by D+P Real Estate and Truth Box, Inc. on Parcel 6 of the I-195 land, which is on Wickenden Street. The future occupant of the grocery store cannot be publicly disclosed yet, founder of D+P Real Estate Jordan Durham told The Herald.

Jewelry District Association President Sharon Steele previously told The Herald that a location of Trader Joe’s supermarket may be coming to Providence, though a spokesperson for the national chain said she could not confirm the timeline or location of any potential Trader Joe’s store in Providence.

“In terms of construction, things are going smoothly,” Durham said.

“We’re well out of the ground. We hope to be finished with the project sometime in late summer to early fall next year.”

According to the commission’s website, the Aloft Hotel, developed

by CV Properties and Boston Andres Capital and located adjacent to Point225, is expected to be completed by the end of 2021, while Emblem 125, a development in the Jewelry District that will include 248 residential units and 22,700 square feet of retail space, is expected to be completed next summer.

Even as multiple projects remain under construction, flashy planned projects on I-195 land have garnered attention from residents.

Fane Tower, a proposed 46-story apartment building in the Jewelry District which would be the tallest building in R.I. if built, drew critique from various community members, including from former Providence Mayor Joseph R. Paolino Jr. in a Providence Journal op-ed.

Although New York developer Jason Fane experienced multiple delays in the development of Fane Tower, which he attributed to the pandemic, the $3 million land parcel is expected to be sold to Fane in late June 2022, according to WPRI. “The Fane Organization is working through predevelopment,” Cromwell wrote. “They must meet the conditions of the purchase and sale agreement to

close on the property, including securing the necessary financing.” Purchase and sale agreements are between buyers and sellers in real estate transactions, according to Investopedia.

Also in the works on former I-195 land is a new R.I. Department of Health laboratory in the Jewelry District. A resolution to reserve the land for the Department of Health was approved in October, according to the I-195 District website .

I-195 land is only one potential location for this facility. Any developer or site that meets certain criteria can submit a proposal and the state will consider all options for the laboratories, Public Information Officer for RIDOH Joseph Wendelken wrote in an email to The Herald.

This is an important project for RIDOH and a big investment for the state, Wendelken wrote. Stakeholder meetings have been held over the last several months with the goals of raising awareness, building support for the project and answering questions from developers, he added.

In addition to higher profile developments, two buildings of a combined 150,000 square feet and 130 units of mixed-income housing have been proposed by developer Pennrose on Parcel 9, according to the commission’s website.

Still, after 10 years, the commission has successfully developed a portion of the land.

Point225 is a 200,000 square foot commercial office building developed by real estate company Wexford Science & Technology which opened in 2019. It features an 8,000 square foot public gathering space managed by Venture Cafe, according to the commission’s website. This land sale was worth $1 million, according to WPRI. Chestnut Commons is the only residential project completed so far. The 111,000 square foot property, which opened in June 2020, includes 92 residential units and 58,000 square feet of commercial space on the ground floor, according to the commission’s website. The land was sold for almost $752,000, according to WPRI. Other completed projects include a 1,250 parking space garage and the Bowen Center for Science and Innovation, which is home to Johnson & Wales University’s College of Engineering and Design.

EDITORIAL

CAPS must expand access Despite high demand, mental health resources remain in short supply on College Hill. Counseling and Psychological Services, Brown’s main provider of therapy and mental health support for students, is failing to address the needs of a struggling student body.

The college experience is already stressful in a normal year — even more so during a pandemic. Students have to juggle high-stakes academics, strained sleep schedules and hectic social lives, all amid added concerns over COVID-19 tests and unpredictable pandemic policies. It is no surprise that Brown students have reported to The Herald feeling burned out and overwhelmed this semester.

But when these students seek out CAPS, they are often not able to receive the help they need. Students previously told The Herald about difficulties scheduling appointments with therapists and obtaining consistent mental health counseling.

For many students, therapy isn’t a one-time fix. It requires sustained and substantive support, which isn’t possible when CAPS attendees have to settle for infrequent appointments.

And the center’s poor reputation regarding appointments does not just affect its current users — ­­ it can deter other students from reaching out altogether.

While CAPS is always available for urgent mental health crises, this doesn’t make up for its overall deficiencies. Students shouldn’t feel like they can only be heard when they are at their breaking point. If CAPS improved the accessibility of its regular counseling services, many of these emergencies could be prevented from occurring in the first place.

To its credit, CAPS has implemented new measures this semester, such as the telehealth service HealthiestYou, in order to expand student access to counseling. But virtual resources are no replacement for in-person ones. After a year of Zoom, many students want and, frankly, require opportunities to see a therapist face to face, opportunities that remain far too few.

CAPS is aware of this problem, and its assistant directors previously told The Herald that they are currently looking to hire more employees. And we acknowledge that understaffing, especially amid a pandemic, doesn’t have an easy fix. But as students, we are tired of waiting; CAPS has long faced high demand, and we do not believe that its current failures can be entirely attributed to the pandemic.

CAPS would likely benefit from having a central authority to spearhead new initiatives and address students’ needs. But the center has remained without a director for over a year. CAPS relocated to a new building this semester, yet its underlying issues with accessibility still linger. New facilities are pointless without bold leadership that expands the center’s services.

Psychological and psychiatric support shouldn’t feel like a scarce resource on our campus. It is deeply disheartening, not to mention damaging, when students feel like they aren’t able to receive the services they require. As we work toward a future that recognizes the importance of mental health, the University must invest in and expand its mental health services, starting with CAPS. CAPS occupies an indispensable role in our community. Despite our criticisms, we recognize the impactful work the center does for Brown students. We see CAPS not as a hopeless project, but as a cornerstone of the University’s mental health resources. For many, the center remains one of the only sources of mental health counseling, particularly for students who cannot afford outside services. Improving CAPS is crucial if we want equitable, as well as effective, care for all on this campus.

We also recognize the dedication of CAPS employees, whose hard work has improved the lives of so many Brown students.

But if CAPS as an institution wants to realize its stated ideal of creating an “inclusive, compassionate, affirming, and socially just environment,” it has a lot more work to do.

— Editorials are written by The Herald’s editorial page board. This editorial was written by its editor Johnny Ren ’23, and members Catherine Healy ’22, Olivia Burdette ’22, Devan Paul ’24 and Kate Waisel ’24.

COURTESY OF THE I-195 REDEVEOLPMENT COMMISSION

The I-195 Redevelopment District Commission oversees 26 acres of land which were formerly occupied by the interstate. This area is divided into 19 separate parcels and seven acres of open space.

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | NEWS

4

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

ARTS & CULTURE

‘Spencer’ shows human face behind the cultural icon Director Pablo Larraín gives intimate insight into mind of Princess Diana

BY FINN KIRKPATRICK CONTRIBUTING WRITER Diana, Princess of Wales, is undoubtedly one of the great pop culture icons of modern history. Her glamor and philanthropy followed by an untimely and tragic death — all set against the backdrop of British royalty — yield a truly idiosyncratic and fascinating figure to explore. Diana’s story is long and complex, epic and tragic, but Pablo Larraín’s “Spencer,” titled after her maiden name, does not intend to tell that all-encompassing story. Instead, it sticks to just three eventful days in the life of the princess: Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day 1991.

In “Spencer,” almost entirely set within the grounds of the Queen’s Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, we see Diana, played by Kristen Stewart, fully come to terms with her fraught relationship with both her husband Charles, Prince of Wales (Jack Farthing), and the institution of the Crown as a whole.

The estate serves as an excellent backdrop for Diana’s inner turmoil and takes on a role not unlike that which could be found in a psychological horror film. Diana is constantly reminded that, in the estate, everyone can hear anything you say and see everything you do if you are not excruciatingly careful. Lead servant of the estate Major Alistair Gregory (Timothy Spall) is seemingly omniscient.

Since his military service, Gregory has upheld an unflinching dedication to the Crown. Throughout the film, he uses this dedication much to Diana’s dismay, continuously trailing her as she walks the estate grounds. In many

ways, he symbolizes the grasp of the Crown that Diana is trying so hard to escape from.

In Diana’s own bedroom, she is told to constantly keep her curtains closed, as there are paparazzi camping outside in hopes to capture intimate shots for the tabloids. Diana continuously defies these orders to the point that the curtains get sewn shut.

She then cuts at the thread with wire cutters to re-expose herself to the outside world. Diana is not allowed to pick her own clothes or dress herself, and when she defies orders once again by wearing her Boxing Day dress to Christmas mass, the staff at the estate erupt in chatter over how unhinged she has become.

Outside of Diana, the film focuses primarily on the staff rather than the other royals. But young Princes William (Jack Nielen) and Harry (Freddie Spry) are often featured. They highlight how Diana’s obligations to the Crown affect her mental health and keep her from the things she loves.

Prince Charles is only featured in about three scenes, where he is painted as the leading cause of his wife’s declining mental state. The Queen (Stella Gonet) also appears briefly to show how Diana’s antics are tearing at the traditions of the monarchy.

The unconventional decision to decenter the other Royals ultimately pays off, as the lack of a familial circle surrounding Diana puts her loneliness and detachment in the spotlight. The staff of the estate serve as an excellent proxy for the Royals; in many ways, they are more steadfastly attached to the traditions of the Crown than the Royal Family themselves.

Along with Gregory, the chef Darren (Sean Harris), dresser Maggie (Sally Hawkins) and second dresser Angela (Lauren Benson) round out the main supporting characters, and they all deliver in their roles. Darren is immensely dedicated to serving the kitchen and by affiliation, the

COURTESY OF PABLO LARRAIN / NEON

Claire Mathon’s cinematography and Jonny Greenwood’s score help set an ethereal tone in “Spencer.”

Crown, but he clearly has a soft spot for Diana. Maggie is shown to be the princess’s most trusted companion and the pair discuss everything going on in her life. Charles doesn’t like this chumminess, and he orders Maggie back to London and sends for Angela instead — a much colder figure.

Then there is the strangest aspect of the film: the surrealist scenes of Diana’s visions of Anne Boleyn (Amy Manson), the beheaded second wife of King Henry VIII. Supposedly a distant relative of Diana’s, Boleyn’s story clearly resonates with the princess, predominantly due to the fact that they both had unfaithful husbands and felt trapped within the royal system. Boleyn’s barbaric fate serves as an extreme example of where Diana

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feels her life is currently heading, but the scenes invoking Boleyn disrupt the otherwise natural flow of the film.

While these scenes are clearly thematically important, the tonal dissonance between the surreal and real takes the viewer out of the narrative and dampens the overall effect.

Although “Spencer” takes place five years before the tragedy that took Diana’s life, that future moment is in many ways the most integral part of this story. Only through the viewer’s knowledge of that infamous night in Paris do the Boleyn allusions and tabloid anxieties have any emotional resonance. And while it is certainly clever on the part of screenwriter Steven Knight to reference Diana’s untimely death, his nods can also be

painfully on the nose. Lines of dialogue revolving around the dangers of the paparazzi feel as if they need to be completed by a wink to the camera, which greatly undermines the gravity of many scenes.

“Spencer” is a fascinating, albeit flawed, character study of an icon.

The screenwriting can be borderline stilted and the references heavy handed, but the cinematography by Claire Mathon and score by Jonny Greenwood contribute to an ethereal aesthetic that completely enthralls the viewer. The film is an excellent exploration of a global figure trying to navigate the private and public aspects of royal life — and her ultimate failure at doing so.

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | NEWS

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

BLACK STAR FROM PAGE 1 of a community which understood the meaning behind her work in a way predominantly white publications would not.

McNamara said that she is looking forward to writing pieces from her perspective as a Black queer woman.

“It’s important to bring that intersectional lens when thinking about Black issues and issues of race in general,” she added.

A piece she said she would be working on for the journal was an analysis of the play “Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner” by Jasmine Lee-Jones, which was performed on campus from Nov. 4 to 14 at the Leeds Theater.

Nash said that the name of the journal derived from the idea that it would serve as a safe space for Black students on campus. The word “star” represents the importance of the star symbol within the Black community and the North Star. Thompson explained that the North Star represented a path toward a better future and that the word “journal” is used to signify that the publication will focus on sharing stories rather than just news.

Thompson told The Herald that the journal’s leadership is still in the process of brainstorming what the

publication may look like in terms of funding, a constitution and the organization’s relationship to past Black publications on campus such as the African Sun. Nash added that they have looked at Black newspapers across the country for formatting ideas.

The publication hopes to be approved as a recognized club by the University in January and begin posting digital stories on their website early next semester. In honor of Black History Month, Nash said that the journal plans on publishing its inaugural print paper this coming February.

Thompson added that the print paper will have a curated format, while the website will allow for experimentation in artistic media such as film and photo series.

The paper is currently looking to recruit members to serve as writers, section editors, business managers, artists and other positions. There will be an interest meeting Nov. 17 at 7 p.m. for prospective members.

“We really want whatever medium you have,” Nash said. “We want there to be a place for you in the newspaper.”

Looking toward the future, Thompson said that the publication hopes to reach outside of the bubble of College Hill. She added that the journal can be a resource in teaching others outside

NEIL MEHTA / HERALD

Harper encouraged Native American students to work in a diverse range of roles to best address the needs of their communities

AMBASSADOR FROM PAGE 1 American issues from an international lens ­— through institutions such as the U.N. — Harper encouraged change-makers to look domestically. Responding to a question about the U.N.’s role in addressing issues facing Native American communities, Harper pointed to the current American influence within the organization.

“The United States is very powerful

in the U.N. system,” he said. “And the notion that there’s going to be a movement to force the U.S. to do something like that is unlikely.”

Augusto concluded the talk by emphasizing the importance of offering Native American and Indigenous Studies at Brown. The Native American and Indigenous Studies Initiative is in the process of launching a Critical Native American and Indigenous Studies concentration, The Herald previously

of the Black community about Black culture.

The journal “will act as another resource without people having to specifically cater themselves to creating media that explains Blackness,” she said.

Nash agreed, adding that engaging the Providence community is one of the journal’s goals. “We really want to be able to work from an engaged perspective on getting out there into the Providence community and doing programs,” Nash explained.

For now, both Thompson and Nash are excited about the positive response to the paper’s announcement.

“I am pleased that this is something the community wanted,” Thompson said, adding that the goal of the journal is to recognize what spaces it can fill that other publications do not already.

Nash said that Black students are excited for the representation the journal will bring and that he is excited to see how the journal will transform the Black experience at Brown.

Building “a community is the goal here, and we’re going to keep that in mind as we move forward,” Thompson said.

5

ANDREAS FROM PAGE 1 drea’s. “We have momentum going,” she said. “We took the opportunity to do a little redesign and revamping; we expanded the bar area. The late-night drinking crowd (can) have a place to go after work to relax.”

She added that once the restaurant hires more staff, they plan to remain open until 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday and until 1 a.m. Sunday through Thursday in order to attract students looking for food late at night.

Currently, Andrea’s is open until 10 p.m.

Maatouk said the restaurant will install televisions around the bar for customers to watch sports games, and University students can show their student IDs to receive a 10% discount on their meal.

Andrea’s “will be versatile. You can have a nice lunch, but you can come in later at night and have something to eat, watch a game and listen to some music,” Brito said.

The men’s basketball team often chooses Andrea’s for pre-game meals, Brito added, emphasizing that the staff is excited to see regular customers return. She said she was also looking forward to hosting private events in the back section of

the restaurant.

Tamenang Choh ’21 GS has played for the basketball team since 2017, and said he was looking forward to eating at Andrea’s again.

“I’m very happy they’re reopening. The owner is a really good guy and has always shown us love,” Choh wrote in a message to The Herald.

“They’ve always been good to us and had our food ready to go.”

“Not to mention, the food’s really good and gets us ready for our games,” Choh added.

The grand reopening will be Thursday, Nov. 25 on Thanksgiving, according to Maatouk. He said it was wonderful to be back in business and to see long-time customers again.

Days after the restaurant’s soft opening, Maatouk found himself chatting with customers once again. Laughs from inside jokes with patrons nearly drowned out bouzouki music playing on the restaurant’s sound system.

This familiarity and community, Brito said, is essential to the Andrea’s experience.

“We’re looking to have fun, a great place for people to get great food and feel at home,” Brito said.

“It’s a very homey, cozy establishment.”

reported.

“We need Native American and Indigenous Studies at Brown,” she said.

“We need them because they’re Native American and Indigenous Studies … but we also need them because of the knowledge production that it is our duty to do.”

Though he pushed for political advocacy throughout his speech, Harper added that scholars are also essential in enacting change for Native American communities.

“Scholars are particularly good at assessing information and coming up with conclusions about what works and what doesn’t,” Harper said to The Herald. “That’s an invaluable contribution, and one that (academics) can offer a lot to.”

“Students are very good at having their voices heard, especially at Brown,” he added. These students, who he described as “smart and strategic,” can be effective “at advising the kind of strategy that might encourage administrative decision-makers to make the right choices for their communities.”

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | NEWS

PIAZZA FROM PAGE 1 the most important factor in the decision, Foley said, adding that Piazza’s history of sharing student data with employers was also a significant consideration.

The platform uses a feature called “Piazza Network,” in which the data of students who opt in to the feature is shared with employers who pay to be part of the network. According to the Piazza website, shared data includes classes taken on Piazza, if the user is a teaching assistant or a student and a number of optional data fields such as major, graduation year, awards received, work experience and diversity indicators. The network does not share grades but does share whether a student has received a “Top Student Badge,” which is given to the student in each class that receives the most “instructor endorsements” on their submitted answers and responses, according to the Piazza website.

Before 2016, the box presented to students to opt in to the Piazza Network was pre-checked, meaning students were signed up for the service by default, according to Foley.

After widespread complaints from a number of universities, the company made the box unchecked, making opt out the default.

Shortly before Piazza made that change, the University established its own agreement with the company, according to a Piazza statement in 2016. The University maintained and periodically renewed this agreement throughout the time it partnered with Piazza, Foley said. He added that the agreement ensured that students would have to actively opt in for their data to be shared, and that Piazza would be liable if there was a data breach.

Foley said Piazza reached out to revise this agreement in summer 2020 but was subsequently unresponsive to DLD. Foley said another concern arose when Piazza tried to show advertisements on the platform in November 2020 before establishing the paid model without giving notice to the University, Foley said. Because the company used targeted ads, DLD felt that Piazza was violating its data privacy agreement with the University,

Foley added.

The advertisement experiment only lasted a couple days, but shortly afterward, Piazza informed DLD that because of the increase in use of the platform during the pandemic, the company was facing rising costs and would need to introduce a paid model, Foley said, adding that the University had until the beginning of the spring semester to sign a contract.

“We don’t do that,” Foley said.

also provided instructions and held one-on-one consultations about how instructors could move their classes to Ed Discussion.

Faculty who spoke to The Herald expressed gratitude for the work DLD did to support the platforms switch.

“They were very responsive in terms of helping people make the transition,” Professor of Computer Science Kathi Fisler said. “Once the change was made, the staff were fantastic.”

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

be part of the meetings in which the decision was made.

Foley explained that feedback from instructors was a valuable part of the decision-making process, in particular to inform what functionality professors needed from the discussion tool.

Still, Fisler said she believes the University made the right decision. “I wasn’t sorry to see (Piazza) replaced,” Fisler said.

Before the change to the opt-in fea-

ASHLEY CHOI / HERALD

“We’re not going to get bullied into doing that.”

Several Piazza officials did not respond to multiple requests by The Herald for comment.

Instead, DLD closely analyzed a number of similar platforms during the spring semester. Ed Discussion, which also uses a paid model, emerged as the favored option, Foley said. Foley did not disclose whether there was a price difference between Ed and Piazza, but said DLD chose Ed mostly because it had better student privacy protection and accessibility.

After the office made the decision, DLD contacted every instructor that had used Piazza to alert them that the office was no longer supporting the platform, Foley said. The department

But Fisler said she was frustrated that instructors were informed of the change so close to the beginning of the summer semester, adding that some professors use discussion platforms in complicated ways and therefore needed more time to adapt.

“Some faculty got notified at the 11th hour or 12th hour, which is definitely a bit problematic,” said Professor of Computer Science Shriram Krishnamurthi.

Fisler added that DLD also asked for feedback from professors while making the decision, but it never explained how that feedback was used in the selection of Ed. “It doesn’t give you a very good sense of what went into the decision,” she said. Fisler also wished that more faculty had been invited to

CA L E N DA R

ture, Fisler said she sent her students instructions multiple times explaining how to opt out. “I made big announcements at the start of my classes saying, ‘This is what Piazza does,’” she said. “‘If you don’t approve of this, (then) this is what you have to do.’”

Krishnamurthi said that when the University announced it was no longer supporting Piazza, he stopped using the platform completely. “At that point, I could no longer tell whether (the University’s) protections of student data applied or not, ” he said.

Most instructors using online discussion platforms for this fall have made the switch to Ed Discussion, based on a search of Courses@Brown syllabi conducted by The Herald, but some instructors have decided to con-

tinue to use Piazza.

Michael Frank, professor of psychology and director of the Center for Computational Brain Science, whose class CLPS 1492: “Computational Cognitive Neuroscience” still uses Piazza, said he kept using the platform because it had worked well for him and his students in previous years. “We didn’t feel the need to switch the platform entirely,” he said.

Juan Uribe GS, the TA responsible for Piazza for ECON 1210: “Introduction to Macroeconomics,” taught

by Professor of Economics Stelios Michalopoulos, said the course staff decided to continue using Piazza for similar reasons. “We decided to stick with what we know,” Uribe said, adding that he received positive feedback about Piazza from the undergraduate TAs he spoke to.

Frank and Uribe both said they were not aware of any data sharing associated with Piazza.

Piazza established separate versions for paying and nonpaying users starting August 2021, according to the Piazza website. In the free model, users do not have access to features like polls and statistics, and users are also repeatedly prompted to make an “optional financial contribution if Piazza has delivered value to them.”

Both Frank and Michalopoulos said their classes use the free version.

Piazza also now uses a different interface to ask students if they would like to opt in to the Piazza Network.

The student must click either “join the network” or “don’t join the network,” with neither being a default option. But it doesn’t explicitly state that students’ data will be shared with companies if they opt in.

Foley said that he hoped the professors continuing to use Piazza would switch to Ed soon. “No one in my area feels like we need to control what faculty use. But I do have concerns about Piazza passing expenses onto students,” he said.

He emphasized that he is uneasy about Piazza’s use of student data now that there is no agreement with the University. “It’d be great to see folks on a tool we know we have a license for and … an agreement (with) where data is being protected.”

COVID -19 AT BROWN LAST 7 DAYS*

NOVEMBER S

7

Completed Tests

People Tested

M

Tu

W

Th

F

S

2,058

1,872

1

2

3

4

5

6

Confirmed Positives

Positivity Rates

7

0.3 %

8

9

10

11

12

13 SINCE AUGUST 24, 2020*

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

Completed Tests

People Tested

572,945

18,059

Total Cases

Prevalence

828

4.6 %

*AS OF NOV. 16

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | COMMENTARY

7

Simon ’25: Sustainable fashion is a class issue

BY ALISSA SIMON STAFF COLUMNIST

There’s this dress I’ve been eyeing for a while now. Puff-sleeved and speckled with floral print, it’s classic, playful and exactly the kind of style the brand Reformation is known for.

Founded in 2009, Reformation has become famous not only for its dresses but also for its commitment to reduce its impact on the planet with a “focus on climate action and environmental justice.” A 2019 Fashion@Brown article by Marley Presiado names the company, along with Everlane and Stella McCartney, as one of the brands gaining traction amongst consumers concerned with shopping sustainably. But sustainability often comes at a cost, one I can see glaring back at me from my online cart. The price tags on a mini dress or ethically-sourced sweater implicate class dynamics that often go ignored by advocates of eco-fashion. Purchasing environmentally conscious clothing and detaching from a wasteful, vicious cycle of fast fashion is often framed as a consumer’s responsibility and a moral accomplishment. But making these kinds of choices remains a luxury for many shoppers.

Until we can speak more honestly about its inequities, the sustainable fashion movement will lack the inclusivity it needs to succeed.

The premise behind sustainable or slow fashion brands is that they aren’t just selling a product but an ethos as well. In an industry that produces 10% of the world’s carbon emissions and over 92 million tons of material waste annually, these are the brands that make a concerted effort to reduce water usage, recycle materials and cut emissions. Because of the added costs associated with a lower scale of production and the use of ethically-sourced materials, the biggest names in slow fashion are significantly more expen-

sive than the fast fashion brands that have long defined the market — think Forever 21, H&M and Zara. Fast fashion is wasteful beyond belief. Its models of constant production in many ways represent the very worst of the industry, and slowly but surely, these brands are falling out of favor. I’ve watched it happen in my own closet. Ask me where my pants are

of class differences are still too often ignored in favor of moral grandstanding. Virgil Abloh, the lead designer behind luxury brand OffWhite said back in 2016, “Don’t let Zara and Uniqlo educate you on the price of a garment because that’s not fashion. That’s McDonald’s.” Abloh’s comment treats fast fashion with the moral superiority of someone who

“Until we can speak more honestly about its inequities, the sustainable fashion movement will lack the inclusivity it needs to succeed.”

from, and I feel compelled to add an asterisk to contextualize my purchase in order to save face: They’re from Zara, but I bought them years ago. I would never shop there now.

And yet fast fashion’s promise of democratizing fashion and allowing the everyday shopper to access runway trends without breaking the bank is hard for me to totally disavow — especially when slow fashion retailers seem relatively unconcerned with capturing a similar spirit of accessibility. It would be one thing if there were brands serving customers who wanted to shop more sustainably at a range of price points. But practically all the labels taking ethical clothing mainstream are markedly more expensive than their fast fashion counterparts. That cost differential remains a significant barrier to more eco-friendly shopping habits for many, yet the nuances

drops hundreds of dollars on groceries for their new, vegan lifestyle and lectures their friends to do the same. It’s a privileged take on slow fashion that is worryingly pervasive, not only amongst upper-middle-class consumers, but also among the figures most influential in the industry.

Of course, buying new from high-end brands isn’t the only path to a more environmentally conscious wardrobe. Thrift and secondhand retail stores have existed for decades — purveyors of sustainable fashion before it was trendy, with the added benefit of being relatively affordable and accessible. Much like thrifted garments themselves, the secondhand apparel market has gained a new lease on life. Worth $28 billion in 2019, its value is now expected to exceed $64 billion by 2024.

However, because of this rapid growth, a gap is

developing between consumers who thrift out of economic necessity and those who do so for the aesthetic. The “gentrification” of thrifting drives up store prices while buyers resell their finds on curated online marketplaces for double or triple the cost. Even in practices premised on accessibility, there are economic inequalities at play.

It’s easy to dismiss these worries, to discount any considerations that seem less consequential than the ultimate goal of protecting the environment. And yes, it’s crucial to reduce overconsumption and to make informed choices that trend towards sustainability. But it’s also necessary to be somewhat realistic and recognize that shopping will always hold cultural relevance. Especially for young people, experimentation and expression through fashion remain essential tools for self-identification. Being shut out of this cultural practice is yet another way that the stratification of wealth manifests itself, including on college campuses like Brown. It’s important to keep that in mind as we seek out new pathways to sustainable fashion. F@B’s “Swap Don’t Shop” project is an excellent example of an initiative that recognizes the importance of style and is pragmatic about the desire for novelty, proposing swapping closets with others as an alternative form of consumption that is both environmental and egalitarian. It is this kind of effort that will ultimately help us recognize what a culture of truly ethical fashion could look like: something innovative and inclusive of a wider range of experiences. It isn’t as breezy as a Reformation photo shoot might make it appear.

Alissa Simon ’25 can be reached at alissa_ simon@brown.edu. Please send responses to this opinion to letters@browndailyherald. com and other op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com.

8

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | NEWS

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

UNIVERSITY NEWS

Students navigate campus parking, ticketing policies Students discuss challenges, concerns with having cars on campus

BY JACK WALKER UNIVERSITY NEWS EDITOR Despite living off campus since this past summer, Ray Huang ’23 has not had access to an overnight parking space for his car, instead leaving it parked on near-empty side streets around campus. This is by no means a perfect solution for his parking concerns, and this past summer he faced frequent ticketing from University parking enforcement whenever he tried to leave his car in spaces on campus restricted for overnight parking.

While he noted that it “seems fair enough” for the University to reserve spaces for faculty and staff members who need to park their cars on campus, Huang said the cost of accessing parking permits and the frequency of ticketing for parking violations on campus pose day-to-day challenges for students with cars at Brown.

On-campus parking for students Huang said that while many employees tend to park in University-reserved spaces during the day, those spots tend to be “empty at night.”

“I think the general opinion is that (if) the streets are empty,” it should “be easier to obtain a permit” for parking, or there should be looser enforcement of ticketing policies, he argued.

Parking facilities on campus are administered by the University’s Transportation and Brown Card Services, and are available for employees, emeriti and graduate and medical students, Beth Gentry, vice president for business and financial services, wrote in an email to The Herald. Spaces are then offered in “a limited number” to junior and senior undergraduates “when and where available,” but in gaining access to on-campus parking spaces, these students are prioritized below those with accessibility needs and commuter students with “special situations.”

Gentry wrote that through a parking lottery system, the University “has been able to offer approximately 50 parking spaces” to juniors and seniors living on campus, with the associated charges “processed through the student account.” Students living off campus are ineligible to receive 24 hour parking permission from the University.

But Gentry added that construction work on the Brook Street Residence Hall, which began last month, has displaced some of these parking spaces, making it more difficult for students seeking to park their cars on campus.

“As is the case in nearly every urban campus in the country, undergraduate student parking is extremely limited,” Gentry wrote. “The University encourages students not to bring their cars and to instead take advantage of the alternative transportation methods offered including the Brown University Shuttle program (and Rhode Island Public Transit Authority) services,” which are “free to the Brown community with the swipe of a Brown ID but paid for by Brown.”

Beyond this, Gentry wrote, “students can often rent spaces from local landlords” to park their cars,

pay hourly rates through the visitor parking garage at 111 Power Street or, alternatively, utilize “Zipcar and electric bicycles and scooters” in the Providence area.

Lev Simon ’22, who grew up in Rhode Island, has had a car since his first year at Brown, and kept the vehicle parked at his parent’s home in the southern region of the state. While he said accessing the car was rather inconvenient, Simon said the pros of having

ventional mass-transit methods.”

Navigating University ticketing policies “An unauthorized vehicle is, by definition, unauthorized to use parking spaces that are paid for by employees or students,” Gentry wrote. “Anyone, not just students, who violate Brown’s parking policies are subject to citations.”

Gentry explained that “a valid parking permit is required to park in any

its system had not yet been updated to include his records at the time he received the ticket.

But Simon noted that, in “a moment of panic” after getting the ticket, he parked on Brown’s campus illegally because he was unsure whether his parking permit was legitimate. Simon received a ticket from University parking enforcement, but ultimately had his fee reduced by half after explaining his situation and confusion over whether

$700 per academic year, while the City of Providence charges $200 for an overnight permit for cars registered outside of Providence.

Huang also noted that, despite the barriers students looking to park on campus face, sharing information with one another has made navigating regulations on campus somewhat easier.

“Students who have cars kind of talk and we know the streets that don’t get ticketed too often,” he said.

LOKI OLIN / HERALD

a car outweighed the cons. “You could say I sort of got used to it,” he said.

When his family moved to a rural area in Massachusetts, Simon began renting a parking space off campus from a local homeowner. He added that the location was somewhat crowded, making him worried that he might cause damages to the homeowner’s vehicles or property when parking. Currently, Simon pays for a permit from the City of Providence to park his car on city streets overnight.

Despite the challenges of being unable to park his car on campus, Simon noted that having a car on campus has greatly enhanced his time at Brown.

Having a car has “been very helpful just (for having) cool adventures as I bring my friends to my (hometown) in southern Rhode Island and sort of take them around the cool parts of the state,” Simon said. But it is also useful for “mundane things like getting groceries or transporting myself from one part of campus to another.”

In addition, Simon noted having a car has facilitated his travel during breaks. When going home to Massachusetts for Thanksgiving, his car is important in helping him access his family’s house, which is located in a rural part of the state that is “not a particularly accessible place by con-

Brown University parking lot or garage,” and that violators of this policy receive tickets from parking officers hired by Transportation and Brown Card Services to patrol campus parking areas and “provide enforcement” from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. On top of this, “there is also limited enforcement provided by Brown Public Safety in the evening and weekend hours,” she added.

For individuals who receive a parking violation from Brown, “they may appeal the associated fine within 10 days of the issuance of the citation,” she wrote.

Huang is currently in the process of appealing a ticket he received after parking near the construction site at the Brook Street Residence Hall, where he says signs advertising parking restrictions were put up after his car was already parking there, making him unable to see the restriction prior to receiving a ticket with a $100 fine.

Simon has received three parking tickets in his time at Brown and successfully appealed two of them. He felt his first ticket, received for parking in a restricted location on campus, was “deserved.” In another incident, Simon was ticketed by the City of Providence despite paying for an off-campus parking permit. He appealed this ticket and was successful, and the City found that

he was legally permitted to park on city streets.

Students weigh in on parking regulations “We do recognize that the possibility of enhancing our current parking options may exist,” Gentry noted, citing a “recent pilot program allowing some employees a remote or hybrid work schedule” that she hopes “will likely provide an opportunity for us to manage parking differently.”

In addition, Gentry said ongoing efforts from the University to collect input from community members regarding transportation on campus, including a Transportation Survey it piloted this semester, aim to “ensure (student) voices are heard.”

For Huang, increasing access to parking permits is a good place for the University to start as it works to make transportation more accessible to students, given that current permits are “insanely expensive.” According to Huang, these high costs make some students wary to even apply for a campus parking permit, having “found it more cost effective to just pay tickets” they receive from parking in restricted areas.

University parking permits for undergraduate commuter students and graduate and medical students cost

But for some community members, restrictions on parking for students seems necessary to promote a more sustainable future for Brown’s campus and beyond.

Chris Sarli ’22 does “advocacy work around transit, bicycle infrastructure (and) pedestrian infrastructure throughout the entire city and state.”

Sarli said the University should increase restrictions for cars on campus, because “we as a society need to decrease our reliance on automobile usage” for reasons ranging from combating climate change to mitigating city infrastructure concerns, to more effectively using the land available across the city.

“I think that students shouldn’t have personal cars on campus,” he added. “For a lot of people, having a car on campus is a luxury and not anything close to a necessity,” and “it’s a luxury that we as a society can’t sustain.”

“I love my car,” Simon said. “It is incredibly convenient. Having it on campus has made my experience both in this year and in other years I have been at Brown demonstrably better.”

But he acknowledged that demand for cars necessitates a commuter infrastructure that is not sustainable.

“The best thing for Brown to do,” he said, “would be to further limit parking on campus.”