MUDD CENTER FOR ETHICS
land use
environmental impact
ANNUAL REP ORT 202 6 IMAGE BY LEIGH ANN BEAVERS
Mudd Center staff members Melissa Kerin and Kate Saacke.
Welcome It is a pleasure to share with the Roger Mudd Center for Ethics community some of the highlights of the 2025–26 academic year. This was a year of remarkable growth and engagement for the Mudd Center. Our programming reached record attendance, with more than 100 participants attending every in-person event. Virtual streaming expanded our reach even further, allowing us to welcome broader audiences and extend the impact of our programming beyond campus. A defining feature of the year was our emphasis on community engagement. Through collaborations with organizations such as Boxerwood Education Association, Virginia Tech’s Forest Botanicals Region Living Monument project, and local farmers, we strengthened connections between Washington and Lee and the southern Appalachian counties. Among the year’s highlights was our symposium on the ethics of rewilding. The symposium demonstrated the value of interdisciplinary dialogue and community partnerships in addressing questions about ethical land preservation, restoration, and rematriation practices. As always, our year-long programming was enriched by the Mudd Center’s Fellows Program, which brings faculty and staff together for informal lectures, discussions, and shared readings connected to the annual speaker series. These gatherings foster thoughtful conversation across disciplines and create opportunities for sustained engagement with the ethical issues explored throughout the year. Building on the successful launch of the Leadership Lab in spring 2025—marked by an outstanding keynote from now Interim (and previously Emeritus) President Ken Ruscio ’76 — the program continued to gain momentum throughout 2025–26. We hosted two compelling conversations examining leadership in law and journalism, both of which drew strong interest from members of the Washington and Lee community as well as the broader Rockbridge County region. In January 2026, we convened a faculty steering committee to begin shaping the 2026–27 theme exploring the relationship between ethics and memory. Our lively discussions, among 15 faculty from the college, generated an impressive range of ideas for speakers and topics from disciplines including history, political science, art, art history, sociology, anthropology, religion, and law. We are excited that next year’s theme, Memory, Mind, and Morality, is already taking shape, with programming well underway for both the fall and winter terms. As we planned for the future, the Mudd Center also undertook a comprehensive self-assessment of its first fifteen years. Through this process, we have identified opportunities to strengthen our work and better fulfill Roger Mudd’s vision for the inquiry of ethics at Washington and Lee. This process has helped clarify priorities and identify new directions that we look forward to implementing in the coming year. Our goal is always to enhance the Mudd Center as a publicfacing hub of learning for the campus. We remain committed to helping students, faculty, staff, and community members explore the rich, challenging, and enduring questions of ethics in all their forms. Thank you for your continued support, engagement, and participation. We look forward to another year of thoughtful conversation and shared discovery. My very best,
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environmental impact
uring the 2025–26 academic year, the Mudd Center’s multidisciplinary program explored the complex interplay between land use and the environment, with particular attention to issues surrounding green technologies, biodiversity, and health. Through a lecture series, symposium, photographic exhibition, documentary screening, and community engagement opportunities, the Mudd Center examined the many meanings of “taking place” while fostering thoughtful conversations about the ethics of using and managing natural environments and land resources. The program centered on guiding questions that examined environmental ethics and their practical applications: Can seemingly competing interests and values, such as economic development and environmental justice, be reconciled? What responsibilities and ethical challenges arise when humans intervene to restore ecosystems? And how might conversations about environmental conservation and land use be fostered in a nonpartisan space despite deep ideological differences? Under the theme Taking Place: Land Use and Environmental Impact, the Mudd Center created sustained opportunities for students, faculty, staff, and community members to engage with visiting scholars and practitioners as well as members of the Washington and Lee community. Programs considered topics including lithium mining — an issue central to decarbonization technologies — and the designation of land for fossil fuel refineries. The series also highlighted community-led initiatives that promote biodiversity and environmental resilience, including rewilding practices and soil restoration efforts. The year’s theme reflected strong student interest, faculty research and teaching, and priorities outlined in the university’s strategic plan, which identifies environmental stewardship as a central institutional commitment. To support these conversations, the Roger Mudd Center for Ethics collaborated with numerous campus partners, including the Art Museum at Washington and Lee, the Environmental Studies Department, Campus Kitchen, the Native American and Indigenous Cohort, and the Office of Sustainability and Energy Education, as well as community organizations such as Boxerwood Educational Association and Rockbridge Area Conservation. The Mudd Center is deeply grateful to the faculty members whose ideas, time, and energy made this year’s program possible: Leigh Ann Beavers, instructor of art; Paul Cabe, professor of biology; Madhumita Chakraborty, assistant professor of earth and environmental geoscience; Leah Green, visiting assistant professor of writing and environmental studies; Romina Green, assistant professor of history; Bill Hamilton, John T. Perry Jr. Professor of Biology and Research Science; Rebecca Harris, professor of politics; Megan Hess, Class of 1960 Professor of Ethics and Accounting; Margaret Hinkle, associate professor of earth and environmental geoscience; Robert Humston, John Kyle Spencer Director of Environmental Studies and professor of biology; Ryan McCoy, assistant professor of environmental studies; Brian Murchison, Charles S. Rowe Professor of Law; and Catarina Passidomo, associate professor of environmental studies. We are especially grateful to Leigh Ann Beavers who kindly allowed us to use her collaged piece of a Whitethorn branch as the main image of the year.
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IN THIS SECTION
The series examined the many meanings of ‘taking place’ while fostering thoughtful conversations about the ethics of using and managing natural environments and land resources. THE 2025–26 MUDD LECTURE SERIES
LECTURE SERIES 2025–26
Thea Riofrancos, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Political Science, Providence College Strategic Director, Climate and Community Institute; Fellow, Transnational Institute
“The Ethics of Extraction: How ‘Green’ Is the Energy Transition?” THE LECTURE SERIES STARTED OFF with a public talk titled “The Ethics of Extraction: How ‘Green’ Is the Energy Transition” by Thea Riofrancos, associate professor of political science at Providence College. Riofrancos’ talk drew on her newly published book Extraction: The Frontiers of Green Capitalism, examining “green” technologies dependent on lithium extraction in Chile. While lithium has been labeled a “critical” mineral and plays a central role in mitigating climate change, Riofrancos demonstrated how such labels tend to obscure questions of water scarcity, biodiversity loss, and Indigenous land rights. She highlighted how such ostensibly “green” policies tend to result in practices of resource extraction that come with deep environmental, human, and political consequences such as widespread protests in areas of new or expanded lithium mining like Nevada, Chile, Portugal, and Brazil. Despite these challenges, Riofrancos ended on a note of optimism by arguing that a transition to green energy does not actually require the level of lithium extraction currently forecast. Instead, Riofrancos asked us to imagine a transition that focused on increased democratic participation, reduced consumption, and greater investment in public transit.
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LECTURE SERIES 2025–26
Edward Burtynsky Photographer and multimedia artist Solo exhibition Taking Place + documentary screening Anthropocene: The Human Epoch
“Taking Place / Anthropocene” RIOFRANCOS’ TALK WAS FOLLOWED BY two interconnected events highlighting the work of renowned photographer Edward Burtynsky, whose work is held in the collections of institutions such as the Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim, and the Tate Modern. The first was the opening of a yearlong exhibition at the Reeves Museum, which curated an extensive solo show of Burtynsky’s large-format photographs of industrial landscapes. Indeed, his photographs clearly demonstrated the climate impact of the kind of lithium extraction Riofrancos discussed. The second event was a screening of Burtynsky’s documentary Anthropocene: The Human Epoch, co-directed with Jennifer Baichwal and Nicholas de Pencier. The film used striking visuals to make the case that the impact of human industry throughout the planet has led us into a new geological epoch, inviting reflection on the ethical consequences of such widespread human influence on the planet. Burtynsky exhibition, Reeves Museum
Benjamin Backer Founder and CEO, Nature is Nonpartisan Founder, American Conservation Coalition (ACC)
“Common Ground, Common Future: Bipartisan Environmentalism” BENJI BACKER HAD A CANDID conversation about the need to address climate change and related environmental issues with Ryan McCoy, assistant professor of environmental studies at W&L. At the event, Backer, who recently launched the environmental advocacy nonprofit Nature Is Nonpartisan, argued that issues facing the environment should be divorced from partisanship and political ideology, calling on those of both U.S. political parties to work together toward a common solution. McCoy, whose own work engages directly with communities on environmental issues, discussed with Backer the need to disavow culture wars in favor of environmental stewardship and focus on shared concerns about the health of local communities and the natural world. The conversation generated a lively Q&A from the audience, where students challenged Backer’s framing of the issue and exclusive focus on environmental issues. In turn Backer, who welcomed the incisive questioning, challenged the audience to consider how a renewed focus on shared beliefs and common values related to environmental issues might create openings for productive dialogue and collective action even amid profound political disagreement.
Backer and students over lunch
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LECTURE SERIES 2025–26
Benjamin Lee, Ph.D. Professor of Electrical and Systems Engineering; Computer and Information Science University of Pennsylvania
“Toward Sustainable Data Centers for Artificial Intelligence”
Lee in conversation with Melissa Kerin and students
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enjamin Lee gave a talk, titled “Toward Sustainable Data Centers for Artificial Intelligence,” which examined the rapidly increasing energy demands of artificial intelligence. He brought the issue home when he pointed out that Dominion Energy already attributes more than a fifth of its Virginia power usage to data centers, with some forecasting that it will represent half of the state’s power usage by 2038. But while the challenges facing this sector are complex, Lee argued that we must face them in order to capitalize on the moment and not fall behind in the race with countries who are willing to pursue such infrastructure wholeheartedly. Instead, Lee averred, we can assess and mitigate the energy demands and environmental impact of AI by re-thinking datacenter infrastructure. We can focus on energy efficiency, look to renewable sources like solar power and nuclear, build utility-scale batteries to power datacenters, and utilize job scheduling to delay computation to times of the day when energy demands on the grid are lower. In this way, Lee argued that environmentally sustainable computing is still within our reach even in the age of AI.
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SYMPOSIUM 2025–26
Rewilding Place: Ethical Considerations of Theory and Practice Shannon E. Bell, Ph.D.
Bill Hamilton, Ph.D.
Professor of Sociology, Virginia Tech
John T. Perry Jr. Professor of Biology and Research Science, Washington and Lee University
Ruby Daniels Natural Resources Specialist, USDA NRCS; Founder, Creasy Jane
Leigh Ann Beavers Multimedia Visual Artist; Instructor of Art, Washington and Lee University
Elise Sheffield Program Director, Boxerwood Education Association
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his year’s speaker series included a day-long symposium featuring researchers and artists who engage, challenge, and nuance the notion of rewilding and its associated conservation practices of land preservation, restoration, and rematriation. Following opening remarks from Mudd Center director Melissa Kerin, the event was kicked off by a talk titled “Honoring the Understories of Place: Seeing Beyond the Coalfields Imagery in Central Appalachia” by Shannon Bell, who directs her university’s Forest Botanicals Region Social Ecology Lab. The talk drew on her research into the socio-ecological impacts of fossil fuel extraction to examine the herbal-based economies of Appalachian communities and complicated the narratives that tend to reduce the region to its coalfields. Her talk was followed by Ruby Daniels, an herbalist and natural resources specialist with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. Daniels, who tends her ancestral land that goes back to the late 1800s in Beckley, West Virginia, spoke on “The Quiet Histories of Rewilding in Afro-Lachia,” wherein she explored the tension between preservation and reinvention in Appalachian landscapes. She asked how individuals can participate in ecological and cultural restoration without romanticizing or commodifying place. Daniels was also careful to explain the complexities of reclaiming lands dedicated to garbage sites in her neighborhood. The work is not glamorous, she said, but deeply rewarding.
Bell delivering opening talk
Daniels responding to student questions
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SYMPOSIUM 2025–26
Building on Daniels’ talk, Elise Sheffield, longtime program director of the local nonprofit Boxerwood Education Association, and her colleague Karen Stanley presented a joint talk titled “Regenerating Rockbridge: Rooting for the Earth and One Another.” Their presentation expanded on many of the themes Daniels introduced, exploring how communities can foster broad public buy-in for long-term environmental stewardship and cultivate a shared commitment to caring for the land across generations. Bill Hamilton, John T. Perry Jr. Professor of Biology and Research Science at W&L, followed Sheffield and Stanley with a discussion of his research in Yellowstone National Park. His talk, titled “Wolves and Bison and Bears, Oh My! Rewilding the North American West: A Case Study from Yellowstone National Park,” drew from his recent co-authored study in the journal Science and discussed how the reintroduction of large grazers like bison has reshaped one of the country’s most beloved and closely studied landscapes. Finally, multimedia visual artist Leigh Ann Beavers, instructor of art at W&L, closed the symposium with “A Messy Aesthetic,” a discussion of her Whitethorn Project centered around a small, ubiquitous tree — the whitethorn — found in Irish hedgerows and gardens. She connected her work on hedgerows in Ireland with those in the Shenandoah Valley, arguing that personal experience with the specificity of any organism ignites appreciation, which in turn can foster preservation. She shared with us her artistic mission to document the whitethorn bush, which are central to hedgerow systems that serve as microenvironments for pollinators and animals and help to maintain the health of land and environment. These spaces are radically being removed in order to gain more farmland, but the cost of their removal is slowly becoming evident.
Beavers discussing her Whitethorn Project
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LECTURE SERIES 2025–26
Dr. Daphne Miller Clinical Professor and Physician, University of California, San Francisco Founder, Health from the Soil Up Initiative, UC Berkeley Center for Occupational and Environmental Health
“Ethical Considerations in Farmacology: The Tangled Web That Connects Soil and Human Health”
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he Mudd Center’s final speaker was Dr. Daphne Miller, a family physician and founder of the Health from the Soil Up Initiative at University of California, Berkeley’s Center for Occupational and Environmental Health. Miller’s talk, titled “Ethical Considerations in Farmacology: The Tangled Web That Connects Soil and Human Health,” traced her interest in the links between agriculture and medicine back to her clinical residency in Salinas, California. It was there that she first treated patients who suffered from pesticide exposure, respiratory disease, and diet-related illness after working in the working in the fields. Using an organic carrot field in California’s Central Valley as her central case study, Miller complicated the assumption that “organic” automatically means healthy by pointing out the hidden costs of industrial-scale monoculture: depleted topsoil, nitrogen runoff contaminating local drinking water, lost revenue for surrounding communities, and the respiratory and fungal illnesses tied to largescale tilling. As an alternative, Miller advocated practices boosting biodiversity, minimizing soil disturbance, and conserving resources. She illustrated how this can be accomplished by appealing to her own work in Richmond, California, where her Medicaid-funded “food as medicine” program allows her to write prescriptions for produce sourced from a local regenerative farm. In this way Miller illustrated how soil health, food systems, and community well-being are inseparable and inspired the audience to consider the ethics of “organic” farming at large scales. Miller brought in the work of local farmers, such as Mitch Wapner, who was in attendance. She explained that food sources, like our very own farmers’ market, are rich resources that can maintain healthy soil and food systems. We are especially grateful that Dr. Miller could be with us as part of the series and are thankful to the generosity of another physician, W&L alum Dr. Ralph Caldroney ’72, whose support of the Mudd Center helps to fortify programs like this.
Daphne Miller with Mitch Wapner
Miller with students, staff, and faculty
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IN THIS SECTION
The series is a space for experimentation and collective inquiry — captured through in-depth conversations and extended Q&A sessions. THE 2025–26 LEADERSHIP LAB
LEADERSHIP LAB 2025–26 ETHICS IN PRACTICE
The Leadership Lab A laboratory for the ethics of leading in public life. The Leadership Lab, now an established signature initiative, continues to address pressing issues affecting ethical and responsible leadership. Designed to operate alongside the year-long theme, the Lab creates additional moments of engagement that connect theory to practice and invite participants into focused dialogue on urgent contemporary concerns. Indeed, the format of the Leadership Lab is intentionally designed to foster thoughtful discussion. Thus we evoke the idea of a laboratory — a space for experimentation and collective inquiry — captured through in-depth conversations and extended Q&A sessions. T H U R S D A Y, N O V E M B E R 1 3 , 2 0 2 5
Power and Accountability in Today’s Political Landscape Judge Michael Luttig ’76 and Lewis Powell ’74
MARCH 17, 2026
Journalism, Ethics, and Leadership in the Modern Age Jeffrey Goldberg, Editor-in-Chief, The Atlantic
Judge Michael Luttig ’76 (foreground) with Lewis Powell ’74
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LEADERSHIP LAB 2025–26
T H U R S D A Y, N O V E M B E R 1 3 , 2 0 2 5
Power and Accountability in Today’s Political Landscape Judge Michael Luttig ’76, P’14 and Lewis Powell ’74, P’18, P’20
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he Mudd Center for Ethics developed a strong slate of programming for our Leadership Lab, an initiative designed to foster thoughtful discussion about ethical and responsible leadership across a wide range of professions. The name “Leadership Lab” intentionally evokes the idea of a laboratory — a space for experimentation and collective inquiry — captured through in-depth conversations and extended Q&A sessions. The first Leadership Lab of the 2025–26 academic year featured two Washington and Lee alumni, Lewis Powell ’74, P’18, P’20 and Judge Michael Luttig ’76, P’14. Luttig is widely known for his service as a conservative judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit from 1991 to 2006 and, more recently, as an influential public voice on the Constitution and the rule of law. Powell is a seasoned trial lawyer whose practice has spanned intellectual property, fraud, and telecommunications. He has litigated and argued cases in state and federal courts, as well as before regulatory agencies, in more than 15 states and the District of Columbia. Both Luttig and Powell also served on the American Bar Association’s bipartisan Task Force for American Democracy from 2023 to 2025. <IMAGE 04.1> Their conversation — marked by both friendship and professional distinction — offered a thoughtful and engaging exploration of the ethics of leadership in contemporary politics, as well as the role citizens and future leaders can play in strengthening accountability in public life. The discussion was guided in part by questions submitted by students, many of whom sought clarity on the rule of law and its role in protecting democratic institutions, while others expressed concern about the resilience of those institutions.
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Powell opened by reflecting on moments in American history that have tested the nation’s moral and ethical courage, noting that January 6, 2021, was one such crisis. He described the pressure placed on then–Vice President Mike Pence to disregard the results of the Electoral College and explained that Pence’s legal team reached out to Luttig for counsel. Luttig recounted how he approached that pivotal moment, emphasizing that his education at Washington and Lee prepared him to respond with clarity, honesty, and integrity in times of difficulty. As Luttig told the audience: I just want to assure you today that no matter what you are being told, there is, and there will always be in this world, truth. There will always be honor distinguished from dishonor. There will always be truth distinguished from falsity. There will always be facts distinguished from fiction. There will always be courage distinguished from cowardice. And there will always be duty and responsibility, as distinguished from the abdication of duty and responsibility. No one today can change that basic fact about life and human beings, no matter how hard they try — and they are trying mightily today. He also reflected on his time at Washington and Lee, where, he said, he “learned about honor, truth, responsibility, obligations, civility, and duty to country, to community and to each other.” Given Luttig’s recent publications in The Atlantic, Mudd partnered with Eric Deggans, Knight Professor in Journalism and Media Ethics at W&L, to bring another distinguished voice to campus: Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic and one of the nation’s most respected journalists.
LEADERSHIP LAB 2025–26
I just want to assure you today that no matter what you are being told, there is, and there will always be in this world, truth. There will always be honor distinguished from dishonor. There will always be truth distinguished from falsity. There will always be facts distinguished from fiction. There will always be courage distinguished from cowardice. And there will always be duty and responsibility, as distinguished from the abdication of duty and responsibility. No one today can change that basic fact about life and human beings, no matter how hard they try — and they are trying mightily today. JUDGE MICHAEL LUT TIG ’76, P ’14
Judge Christopher Russell, President Ken Ruscio ’76, Judge Michael Luttig ’76, P’14, Melissa Kerin, Lewis Powell ’74, P’18, P’20, Toni Locy, Daniel Ranweiler, Melanie Wilson, Kish Parella, Brian Murchison.
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LEADERSHIP LAB 2025–26
MARCH 17, 2026
Journalism, Ethics, and Leadership in the Modern Age Jeffrey Goldberg, Editor-in-Chief of The Atlantic
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his event marked the first collaboration between the Mudd Center for Ethics and the Knight Program in Journalism Ethics. This partnership began last fall when Eric Deggans, Knight Professor of Journalism and Media Ethics, reached out to explore opportunities for collaboration between our programs. We believed the Mudd Center’s Leadership Lab, which fosters dialogue about ethical and responsible leadership, would be the ideal forum for a conversation between Deggans and Jeffery Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic. Goldberg and Deggans sat down for a conversation about the state of journalism today and what it means to be a leader in the profession. Jeffrey Goldberg joined The Atlantic in 2007 and became editor-in-chief in 2016. Under his leadership, the magazine earned its first Pulitzer Prizes and multiple National Magazine Awards for General Excellence. Previously, he was a correspondent for The New Yorker, and his work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine and The Washington Post. He is the author of Prisoners: A Muslim and a Jew Across the Middle East Divide (Knopf, 2006) — arguably even more relevant today — and On Heroism: McCain, Milley, Mattis, and the Cowardice of Donald Trump (Zando, 2024). Throughout his career, he has received numerous fellowships and awards recognizing his reporting and contributions to journalism. During their conversation they engaged in a wideranging discussion about the state of modern media and the importance of high-quality journalism in sustaining democracy through informed citizenry. They also discussed the ethics of leading a newsroom in today’s complex media and political environment, and how The Atlantic seeks to provide leadership in political journalism amid turbulence at The Washington Post, CBS News, and other mainstream news organizations. One particularly significant topic was Goldberg’s reporting on the 2025 “Signalgate” controversy. Goldberg was accidentally included in a Signal
group chat that featured senior officials in the Trump administration, including Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. The chat reportedly contained sensitive information regarding Pentagon war plans and a military operation in Yemen. Deggans asked Goldberg how he approached the ethical challenges of finding himself unexpectedly in possession of such highlevel information — an unprecedented situation for a journalist. Goldberg reflected on the responsibility that came with that knowledge, saying, “People might not believe this, but I don’t want to learn that kind of information right before an attack. I don’t want the responsibility of that information. I don’t. I can’t report it ethically, so why do I need to know it?” He explained that publishing details about the impending attack would have been unethical and potentially dangerous. “I’m a journalist. I’m an American journalist. I’m not going to do anything that’s going to put an American service member, government official, [who is] in a dangerous location…I’m not going to do anything that’s going to put their lives in danger. I’m just not.” Goldberg also noted that he received criticism from some on the political left who argued that “because you didn’t say anything, Yemenis died.” As he explained, the situation involved difficult tradeoffs and ethical complexities that required careful consideration as he navigated unfamiliar territory. This story, along with others highlighted during the conversation, offered the audience insight into the ethical challenges journalists face, including balancing the public’s right to know with responsibilities related to public safety and national security. Students also had the opportunity to ask Goldberg questions during a lengthy Q&A session. Topics included how to create a healthier political and social media ecosystem, how to balance democratic values and First Amendment protections in relation to largely unregulated social media platforms, and what the future holds for journalism amid the continuing decline of daily and regional newspapers.
T To hear these two talks, please visit Mudd’s Leadership Lab page. Recordings: wlu.edu/mudd-center/leadership-lab
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LEADERSHIP LAB 2025–26
“People might not believe this, but I don’t want to learn that kind of information, right before an attack. I don’t want the responsibility of that information. I can’t report it ethically, so why do I need to know it?” JEFFREY GOLDBERG
Deggans (L) and Goldberg (R) in conversation
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FA C U LT Y & S TA F F C O M M U N I T Y
Mudd Fellows Faculty and staff, thinking together across disciplines.
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he Mudd Center’s Fellows Program brings together faculty and staff to engage with the annual theme through interdisciplinary discussions, small-group lectures, and shared readings. Meeting several times throughout the year, this small cohort has the opportunity to debate ideas and think through different aspects of the theme in a collaborative setting. This year, we hosted four fellows events that ranged from book discussions to conversations with specialists and artists. In September, the group met to discuss Thea Riofrancos’ book Extraction: The Frontiers of Green Capitalism and to consider how the concerns she raises relate to the yearlong theme of land use and environmental impact. This was followed by a November gathering at the Reeves Museum, held within the captivating exhibition Taking Place: Edward Burtynsky, the photographer’s yearlong solo exhibition. We were fortunate to have Russell Hart, photographer and editor, join us to discuss Burtynsky’s work. Having known and interviewed the artist over many years while serving as executive editor of American Photo, Hart provided an insider’s perspective on the development of Burtynsky’s rich and challenging body of work. In the new year, we turned our attention to technology and the environment with a discussion of artificial intelligence. Leading the conversation was Josh Fairfield, William Donald Bain
Family Professor of Law and Director of Artificial Intelligence Legal Innovation Strategy at W&L Law School. The session provided an opportunity to consider the intertwined issues of cognitive security and environmental impact in relation to AI. He led us to consider the impact of AI on human cognition and social structures. Of particular interest was the issue of AI systems and ethics, wherein AI is trained to treat ethics (and other key human concerns) as solvable obstacles or constraints rather than moral boundaries. Our final Fellows event took place in March at Seasons Bakery & Café. Ahead of her Mudd Center lecture, “Ethical Considerations in Farmacology: The Tangled Web That Connects Soil and Human Health,” we held a lively discussion on Dr. Daphne Miller’s book Farmacology and read a chapter from a work by Wendell Berry. Together, these readings sparked an easygoing yet dynamic conversation over cookies, cake, and coffee. We meandered through topics connecting medicine, agriculture, composting, and environmental health while exploring how regenerative farming practices can nourish both ecosystems and human well-being. These rich conversations foster a meaningful community of faculty and staff who are deeply invested in exploring the issues raised by the year’s theme. We are grateful to those who contributed to this past year’s program.
Fellows session with Russell Hart at the Taking Place exhibition
Fellows session with Josh Fairfield on AI, cognition, and ethics
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The 2025–26 Mudd Fellows Joel Adams, Business Administration Nicholas Barber, Earth and Environmental Geoscience Mauricio Betancourt, Environmental Studies James Broda, Mathematics Chris Brown, Sociology and Anthropology Calvin Bryan, Economics Ronda Bryant, Student Affairs Paul Cabe, Biology Tara Cooper, Biology Madhumita Chakraborty, Earth and Environmental Geoscience Suzanne Delle, Theater Isra El Beshir, Art Museum Kelly Fujiwara, Special Events Donald Gaylord, Sociology and Anthropology Keri Gould, Law School Joseph Guse, Economics Hunter Holden, Development Li Kang, Philosophy Jeff Kosky, Religion Emily Landry, Business Administration Jennifer Linscott, University Development Mengying Liu, Physics and Engineering Will Mackie, Law School Suzette Malveaux, Law School Vaughn McBean, Leadership Giving Ryan McCoy, Environmental Studies Catarina Passidomo, Environmental Studies Jane Steward, Office of Sustainability Dirk van Assendelft, ITS Chrissy van Assendelft, ITS
Photographer Russell Hart speaking with Mudd Fellows
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GOVERNANCE
The Advisory Board Guidance, counsel, and community.
Advisory Board members play a vital role as sounding boards and advisers to the Mudd Center staff on both thematic and organizational matters. Through their thoughtful guidance and leadership, they help advance the center’s mission by participating in Mudd events, promoting its programs, and engaging the broader community. The Mudd staff have greatly valued the insightful and generative conversations we have shared throughout the year.
THE 2025–26 BOARD Chris Brown, Assistant Professor of Anthropology (2024-27) Isra El-beshir, Director of the Art Museum at W&L (2025-28) Li Kang, Associate Professor of Philosophy (2022-27) Jeff Kosky, Professor of Religion (2025-28) Emily Landry, Assistant Professor of Business Administration (2025-28) Suzette Malveaux, Roger D. Grott Professor of Law (2025-28) Kish Parella, The Class of 1960 Professor of Ethics and Law (2025-28)
Next year, the Advisory Board will undergo a few changes. Professors Suzette Malveaux and Kish Parella will all be on sabbatical during the 2026–27 academic year. We are delighted to welcome assistant professor Angela Sun (Philosophy Department) who will join the Advisory Board for a three-year term. We are also grateful to Mikki Brock, professor of history and chair of the department, for agreeing to serve on the Advisory Board this year while professors Malveaux and Parella are on leave.
THE 2026–27 BOARD Mikki Brock, Professor of History (2026-27) Chris Brown, Assistant Professor of Anthropology (2024-27) Isra El-beshir, Director of the Art Museum at W&L (2025-28) Li Kang, Associate Professor of Philosophy (2024-27) Jeff Kosky, Professor of Religion (2025-28) Emily Landry, Assistant Professor of Business Administration (2025-28) Angela Sun, Assistant Professor of Philosophy (2026-29)
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STUDENT SCHOLARSHIP
The Mudd Undergraduate Journal of Ethics A new home for undergraduate ethical inquiry.
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ince its transition in fall 2024 from a conference proceedings volume to an interdisciplinary journal, the Mudd Undergraduate Journal of Ethics (MUJE) has provided students with new opportunities to engage Mudd’s yearly theme, interview featured speakers, and showcase outstanding undergraduate scholarly and creative work. Indeed, student engagement with MUJE has grown significantly over the past year, alongside its national and international visibility. The journal received a record 44 academic submissions — more than double its typical number — as well as several creative submissions. From all of these submissions, nearly 50 in total, the editorial staff chose three outstanding academic essays and two creative pieces of writing to feature their theme that explored ethical responses to institutional crises. Saaraim Nunez ’27, the incoming editor-in-chief for MUJE, identified several goals for the upcoming year. In addition to increasing submissions, Nunez hopes to expand creative and visual contributions and strengthen MUJE’s role as a space where students can respond to the Mudd Center’s yearly theme and broader ethical questions in public life. A focus will be placed on making the editorial process more transparent, improving the discoverability of published work, and developing stronger outreach and connections to students and departments both at W&L and at other colleges and universities. He’ll be working with a team of editors and reviewers to continue building MUJE into a more visible, rigorous, and accessible platform for undergraduate ethical reflection.
44 manuscript submissions — a Center record
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P H I L A N T H R O P Y & I M PA C T
Advancing Roger Mudd’s Vision Progress, impact, and future directions.
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n support of Roger Mudd ’50’s vision of creating a center that would serve as “a national resource for the study of ethics in contemporary life,” the Mudd Center has pursued this goal by bringing nationally and internationally recognized intellectuals, artists, and public figures to campus through its lecture series. Over the past two years, we have built upon this foundation by continuing yearlong thematic programming, while also expanding our use of symposia, exhibitions and interdisciplinary events and by launching a new signature initiative — the Leadership Lab. The 2025–26 academic year marked significant progress toward these goals. Through our annual theme and Leadership Lab, we welcomed distinguished guests including Judge Michael Luttig ’76, P’14, The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg, and physician and author Daphne Miller among others. We also partnered with the Art Museum at Washington and Lee to bring to campus ten large-format aerial photographs by internationally renowned photographer Edward Burtynsky. These programs generated exceptional levels of attendance and engagement among students, alumni, faculty, staff, and the local community. The Goldberg event alone drew more than 300 participants through a combination of in-person and virtual attendance. The Burtynsky exhibition became a focal point for both campus and community engagement, bringing hundreds of schoolchildren from Lexington and Rockbridge County to campus while also attracting scores of W&L classes. Along with the exhibition were associated programs such as the
Jeffrey Goldberg event, in-person audience
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sustainability walk, offered through the Office of Sustainability, which took people through the gardens and composting systems of the college campus. These events embodied the center’s commitment to interdisciplinary inquiry and demonstrated how the arts and campus efforts can deepen public engagement with pressing ethical questions related to the environment. This year, we have also worked to position the center for future growth. During the year, we established partnerships that will bring acclaimed author George Saunders to campus in collaboration with Lifelong Learning and secured worldrenowned artist and architect, Maya Lin, as the keynote speaker for the 2026–27 theme, Memory, Mind, and Morality. These initiatives not only enrich the intellectual life of the university but also continue to strengthen the Mudd Center’s national profile. Recognizing that achieving Roger Mudd’s full vision requires ongoing reflection and strategic planning, the center undertook a self-study during 2025–26 to assess its current strengths and to identify opportunities for greater impact. This process has prompted us to consider how the center can further distinguish itself as a national resource for ethical inquiry. Among the goals emerging from this work are hosting a scholar-in-residence during Winter 2027, cultivating stronger relationships with peer ethics centers, and developing clearer measures of impact that demonstrate the center’s contributions to ethical inquiry, public engagement, and intellectual life. We are eager to implement these goals over the 2026-27 year.
Burtynsky exhibition, community visit
Sustainability walk on campus
OUR 2026-27 SERIES WILL EXPLORE the ethical dimensions of memory. Rather than treating memory as a passive record of the past, the series examines it as an active, interpretive process that shapes how individuals and communities understand responsibility, identity, and justice. Because remembering is inseparable from forgetting, the yearlong program offers opportunities to reflect on how acts of remembering and forgetting — and the choices they entail — shape the moral contours of our lives. Through lectures, conversations, film screenings, and participatory experiences, Memory, Mind, and Morality will explore questions at the heart of personal and public life: • What do we owe one another through acts of remembrance? • Whose histories are preserved, commemorated, or omitted—and by whom? • How might personal and social memory shape moral responsibility? • How should we evaluate emerging technologies such as griefbots and memory modification? • When do such innovations promote human flourishing, and when might they compromise authenticity, autonomy, or dignity?
AT A GLANCE | Fall Events FRIDAY–SATURDAY, SEPT. 4–5 | WOLFE WEEKEND Friday, Sept. 4 | 4:40–5:35 p.m. | University Chapel
George Saunders, author “Vigil” Saturday, Sept. 5 | 10:15–11:15 a.m. | Huntley 327
Melissa Kerin, Director, Roger Mudd Center for Ethics “Memory and Moral Reckoning in George Saunders’ Vigil” REGISTRATION REQUIRED. SEE WOLFE SEMINAR SCHEDULE.
THURSDAY, SEPT. 17 | 5:15 P.M. | KELLER THEATER
Maya Lin, artist and architect “Memory, Monument, and the Natural World” Mudd Keynote
THURSDAY, OCT. 22 | 5:15 P.M. | STACKHOUSE
Sven Bernecker, Chancellor’s Professor of Philosophy “Carrying the Blame: The Memory Conditions of Responsibility Over Time” University of California, Irvine
THURSDAY, NOV. 5 | 7 P.M. | STACKHOUSE
Film Screening & Conversation Black Mirror — Season 2, Episode 1
MONDAY, NOV. 16 | 5:15 P.M. | HARTE CENTER
JT Torres, Director, Harte Center for Teaching and Learning “Remember Me: Ethics of Griefbots and Social Memory” Washington and Lee University
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Mudd Center for Ethics