AHEAD ZOOMING The Revival Issue - University of Southern California
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F O R A L U M N I A N D F R I E N D S O F U S C D A N A A N D D AV I D D O R N S I F E C O L L E G E O F L E T T E R S , A R T S A N D S C I E N C E S
SPRING / SUMMER 2021 MAGAZINE
The Revival Issue
ZOOMING
AHEAD
Out with the old and
in with the renew.
Spirit of Revival
USC Dornsife faculty reflect on what revival means to them personally, and on the Message from the Dean
form they hope it takes after the pandemic.
There will be hugs on move-in day and tears on graduation day. There will be lectures
“In the past year — and more — along with the many shocking deaths around us, and workshops and lively debates. And there will be football in the Coliseum again.
the death of hope was often one that reverberated with clarity. Yet our losses After a tumultuous year and a half, we at USC Dornsife are anticipating the return
summoned the voices of the young and of those traditionally disenfranchised, all this fall to our vibrant campus environment. We will welcome one of the most talented and
speaking in unison with a renewed intensity and vitality, demanding that we believe diverse first-year classes in our history, composed of students from across the country
and around the world. A backlog of events, celebrations and applied learning experiences
— each of us — in essential change and a renewed, fiercely revitalized society. will present countless opportunities. And our faculty will bring their cutting-edge ideas
Revival is to claim one’s rightful place in one’s own history and living culture.” “As those of us fortunate enough to be vaccinated and challenging intellectual questions back into the classroom. This will be one of the
DAVID ST. JOHN, University Professor and professor of English and comparative literature emerge from our solitude, we ought to do more than most exciting times ever to be part of the USC Dornsife community.
With so much to look forward to, we are pleased to share this issue of USC Dornsife
reimagine a more just society. We must act on our
Magazine, which explores the theme of revival and rejuvenation from multiple angles.
cherished principles to establish a more effective The pandemic has taken a tremendous toll on many Americans, but the United States
“I’ve always had a soft spot for the first few chapters of safety net, provide greater access to health care, and seems to have reached a clear turning point. While the virus is still ravaging much of
Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac. They describe reconstruct institutions that inspire confidence for all the world, in this country COVID-19 case numbers and deaths are dropping, and life is
members of our communities. If we seize this moment, rapidly returning to some form of normal. This is due in no small part to the intellectual
those first months of the year when the landscape begins
talent and laboratory infrastructure that is housed in our world-class research universities.
to stir after winter’s harsh stillness. The idea of revival after let us hope we can make the world a better place where From DNA sequencing and the discovery of messenger RNA to social science research
lengthy periods of bleakness — like Leopold’s spring — everyone enjoys full protection of basic human rights.” that has helped to make vaccinations available in underserved populations, our research
has long enchanted me. It gives me hope that the things ALISON DUNDES RENTELN, professor of political science, universities have been responsible for many of the breakthroughs that have enabled
that seemed forever lost during our coldest hours can — anthropology, public policy and law COVID-19 vaccines and their delivery — and a huge fraction of the underlying scientific
knowledge developed over decades that made these breakthroughs possible.
and will — be returned to us. The parallels to our collective But our work is far from over. The pandemic has accentuated societal problems that
experience during this pandemic aren’t lost on me.” “We don’t need a post-COVID revival. ‘Revival’ have existed for decades, emphasizing the need to meet another set of challenges with
JOE ÁRVAI, Dana and David Dornsife Chair, director of the suggests restoration of what used to be. We need similar urgency. How do we take what we’ve learned about technology to improve
USC Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies and professor revision, literally looking anew at the world. Surviving education, work, infrastructure and supply chains? How do we take what we have learned
“In May, fully vaccinated, I finally could cross of psychology about inequity to build a future in which everyone has the access and opportunities to
a global pandemic was like living in wartime. We
the continent by plane and visit my ailing father enrich their lives? How do we, as a global community, take what we have learned about
suffered fear and loss, but we learned mutual care and international collaboration to address complex global challenges such as climate change?
and my indefatigable mother. After 16 months
“One thing that I have struggled with over the past common cause, despite the fractious politics that tried With our ambitious community of faculty, students, staff, alumni and friends,
of worried phone calls and FaceTime closing the
year is the loss of community and common purpose. to divide us. Now we can identify other diseases and USC Dornsife will use this moment of revival to see the world with fresh eyes.
distance between us, it is restorative to share Together, we will make it our goal to define better questions, forge stronger collaborations,
When I have returned to campus, it has felt eerily fight them together — the plagues of racial injustice,
tender touch so freely. Revival can’t take any of and leverage the resilience we’ve gained during the past year to pursue the most creative
quiet and still. As we move out of the pandemic, religious conflicts, gun culture, increasing economic
the journey to tenderness and touch for granted. solutions to pressing challenges.
I eagerly await quiet labs coming to life again, stratification, climate disaster …”
For intimacies to thrive, for grief to be shared,
LISA BITEL, Dean’s Professor of Religion and professor AMBER D. MILLER
it was necessary to travel respectfully among the reinvigoration of intellectual exchange, noisy
of religion and history Dean, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
strangers again and to rediscover what we share classrooms, and the spontaneous hallway debates. Anna H. Bing Dean’s Chair
in common.” The revival of our community.”
NAYAN SHAH, professor of American studies and NAOMI LEVINE, assistant professor of biological sciences,
ethnicity and history computational biology and Earth sciences
“As we start to restore the aspects of our lives that
have laid dormant, I hope that we stay mindful of the
thick grief blanketing so many. Those burdened by
loss don’t have the luxury of just restoring what has
been paused. Now they must reimagine what’s next.
I hope that we will meet each other with kindness
and help one another in honoring and remembering
what cannot be revived.”
EMILY SMITH-GREENAWAY, associate professor of sociology
and spatial sciences
Spring / Summer 2021 | 1
COVER STORY
Contents SPRING / SUMMER 2021
SPIRIT OF REVIVAL
Our Lives in Color Again USC Dornsife faculty reflect on what
revival means to them personally
and the form they hope it takes after
SENIOR ASSOCIATE DEAN
FOR STRATEGIC INITIATIVES AND COMMUNICATION A hundred years ago, renowned French sociologist Émile Durkheim wrote about the pandemic.
Lance Ignon the phenomenon of “collective effervescence” — his term for the joy we derive
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
from the shared experience of participating face-to-face with others. 4 FROM THE HEART OF USC
Susan Bell Since the pandemic forced us into lockdown last year, we have lamented those cherished Mars Rover Perseverance; Seaweed
moments that invigorate us, lending vibrant color and a vital sense of belonging to our lives. power; New USC Dornsife center
ART DIRECTOR / PRODUCTION MANAGER
Letty Avila However much of a lifeline technology has been for many of us during this immensely explores impact of innovation; Sugar
challenging period, it has proved to be incapable of replicating the communal joy that we early could mean poor memory later;
WRITERS AND EDITORS experience at sports events, at live concerts, or simply sitting, as actor Frances McDormand From Pump to Plug; Bus poet.
Michelle Boston
Margaret Crable put it in her Oscar acceptance speech, “shoulder-to-shoulder” at the cinema.
Darrin S. Joy As humans, we are creatures of togetherness, hardwired to connect. History teaches us 5 Curriculum
Jim Key that, as soon as we feel safe again, we will make the effort to do just that.
Stephen Koenig
Meredith McGroarty
Will we also come roaring back, packing restaurants, nightclubs and bars — just as our 6 Profile
forebears did in the 1920s following the ravages of the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918 to
DESIGNER ’20? Historians and economists say it is very possible that we will. 9 Lexicon
Dennis Lan In this issue of USC Dornsife Magazine, we explore the idea of “Revival” from many
VIDEOGRAPHER AND PHOTOGRAPHER different angles. We look at the way forward and delve into the psychological effects of 12 Academy in the
the pandemic on our families and ourselves. We shine a spotlight on the economy and
Mike Glier
in particular how the $1.7 trillion saved by Americans during the pandemic are likely to
Public Square
SENIOR WEB SPECIALIST fuel a spending spree. We find hope as our environmental scholars outline their solutions
Michael Liu
for rapidly enacting positive change during the escalating climate crisis; humor in the
14 Our World
history of snake oil salesmen and their scurrilous promises of revival; and comfort in the 38 Legacy
COMMUNICATIONS ASSISTANT
Deann Webb insights of a courageous alumna who overcame a lifetime of crippling shyness to become
USC’s director of belonging. 39 DORNSIFE FAMILY
CONTRIBUTORS
Maddy Davis, Crisann Begley-Smith, Greg Hardesty, Eric Lindberg,
As the vaccine rollout in the United States causes the number of COVID-19 cases to Scott Fraser elected to National
Abigail McCann, Marc Merhej, Gary Polakovic, Yannis Yortsos drop dramatically, we are gradually reemerging into the world. Academy of Medicine; Alumna
Are we heading back to our old lifestyles? fights COVID-19 on three fronts.
USC DORNSIFE ADMINISTRATION
Experts counsel us to recognize the mistake of believing that the future will look
Amber D. Miller, Dean • Jan Amend, Divisional Dean for the Life Sciences •
Emily Hodgson Anderson, College Dean of Undergraduate Education • exactly like the past. It never does. But, while our lives may be different, we have been 39 Faculty News
Stephen Bradforth, Divisional Dean for the Physical Sciences and Mathematics • given a moonshot moment to learn from our experience of the last 16 months and correct
Steven Finkel, College Dean of Graduate and Professional Education • Kimberly our course to forge a better, more equitable tomorrow — not just for ourselves, but for 40 Faculty Canon
Freeman, Associate Dean, Chief Diversity Officer • Lance Ignon, Senior those who follow in our footsteps. —S.B.
Associate Dean for Strategic Initiatives and Communication • Peter Mancall,
Divisional Dean for the Social Sciences • Renee Perez, Vice Dean, Administration
The shift to online learning during the pandemic enabled biological sciences major Gabriella Schultze to balance her studies with a ballet career, 41 Alumni News
COVER ILLUSTRATION BY ASIA PIETRZYK bringing grace and beauty to a bleak landscape.
and Finance • Eddie Sartin, Senior Associate Dean for Advancement • Sherry
Velasco, Divisional Dean for the Humanities 42 Alumni Canon
THE REVIVAL ISSUE
USC DORNSIFE BOARD OF COUNCILORS
43 Remembering
Kathy Leventhal, Chair • Wendy Abrams • Robert Alvarado • Robert D. 16 From Survival to Revival: Mapping the Road to a Better Future
Beyer • David Bohnett • Jon Brayshaw • Ramona Cappello • Alan Colowick •
The COVID-19 pandemic upended lives around the world. Where do we go from here? By Meredith McGroarty 44 TROJAN COMMUNITY
Richard S. Flores • Shane Foley • Vab Goel • Lisa Goldman • Jana Waring
Greer • Pierre Habis • Yossie Hollander • Janice Bryant Howroyd • Martin Colossal achievement: Classes
Irani • Dan James • Suzanne Nora Johnson • Bettina Kallins • Yoon Kim • 22 All I Need Is a Miracle of 2020 and 2021 celebrate
Samuel King • Jaime Lee • Arthur Lev • Roger Lynch • Robert Osher • Gerald commencement at the Los Angeles
History teaches us that in times of crisis, our desire for easy solutions makes us vulnerable to charlatans —
Papazian • Andrew Perlman • Lawrence Piro • Edoardo Ponti • Kelly Porter •
but beware, their seductive quick fixes will not lead us to a lasting and genuine revival. By Stephen Koenig Memorial Coliseum — for the first
Michael Reilly • Carole Shammas • Rajeev Tandon
time since 1950.
USC DORNSIFE MAGAZINE
RY T H M E J O I E D E V I V R E BY R O B E R T D E L A U N AY
26 Notes on a Post-Pandemic Economic Revival CONNECT WITH USC DORNSIFE
Published twice a year by USC Dornsife Office of Communication Americans saved an extra $1.7 trillion during the pandemic. Experts predict the economy is about to get a jolt of
at the University of Southern California. © 2021 USC Dornsife College.
consumer spending. By Lance Ignon Facebook.com/USCDornsife
The diverse opinions expressed in USC Dornsife Magazine do not necessarily
represent the views of the editors, USC Dornsife administration or
30 The Shy Alumna Instagram.com/USCDornsife
PHOTO BY JASON L AVENGOOD
USC. USC Dornsife Magazine welcomes comments from its readers to Twitter.com/USCDornsife
magazine@dornsife.usc.edu or USC Dornsife Magazine, SCT-2400, Cat Moore ’05 long suffered crippling loneliness until she cracked the secret of creating relationships. As USC’s
Los Angeles, CA 90089. director of belonging, she now helps students do the same. By Susan Bell LinkedIn.com/school/USCDornsife
34 Clearing the Air YouTube.com/USCDornsife
As the climate crisis escalates, USC Dornsife experts are studying ways to quickly enact positive change and find a path
to greener days. By Darrin S. Joy dornsife.usc.edu/magazine
2 Spring / Summer 2021 | 3
Curriculum
FROM THE HE ART OF USC
Viewpoint WRIT 150
Life on Mars
EXPERT OPINIONS
“We’re going to be
faced with two sets of
habits: pre-pandemic USC Dornsife research backs the Mars rover Perseverance’s search for signs of living organisms on the
and during the red planet. By Darrin S. Joy
pandemic. And we’ll The Mars rover Perseverance rocketed skyward on July 30, an adjunct professor at Caltech. He continued work on
have to choose which 2020, from Florida’s Cape Canaveral, hurtled through 300 the deep UV microscope for several years after joining
to repeat.” million miles of space, and triumphantly set down in Jezero USC Dornsife in 2001, working with a team that included
WENDY WOOD, Provost Crater, just north of the red planet’s equator in the eastern Ph.D. student Rohit Bhartia, Jan Amend, professor of Earth
Professor of Psychology hemisphere, seven months later, on Feb. 18. sciences and biological sciences and divisioal dean for the life
and Business, in an April 5 The robotic explorer features a powerful system for sciences, and Moh El-Naggar, Dean’s Professor of Physics
Washington Post article on detecting signs of microscopic life called the Scanning and Astronomy and professor of physics and chemistry,
how to establish and maintain
healthy habits. Habitable Environments with Raman & Luminescence for as well as postdoctoral fellows and other students.
Organics & Chemicals. SHERLOC will search for subtle Their work showed that the microscope could be used to
clues any microbes may have left behind using technology identify bacteria and could also be used on dry samples to
“What is striking developed under the direction of USC Dornsife Professor distinguish many different molecules — a key necessity in
to me is that there Emeritus of Earth Sciences Kenneth Nealson. the arid Martian environment.
A renowned microbiologist and astrobiologist, Nealson The deep UV microscope is part of Perseverance’s robotic
are just so many worked to develop a component of SHERLOC called the arm, where it is combined with other instrumentation that
communities who have deep ultraviolet microscope. The instrument uses a deep expands the number of chemicals the system can detect.
been marginalized UV laser, which emits a tight beam of light that’s deep in In what is the culmination of nearly 25 years of work on
and underrepresented the ultraviolet end of the spectrum. Nealson’s part, scientists deployed SHERLOC soon after
or demonized in Deep UV light has a shorter wavelength, enabling it to the rover touched down. Should it detect possible chemical
Hollywood, and penetrate samples — including Martian soil and rocks — signatures of life, they can choose to bring samples back to
while causing organic molecules to glow with fluorescence. Earth for deeper analysis.
just how meaningful The effort began in 1998, shortly after Nealson became a “That is my dream,” Nealson says, “to bring back
it is for various senior scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and those samples.”
communities when
you see yourself
finally represented.”
EVELYN ALSULTANY, associate
professor of American studies and
ethnicity, in an April 27 Today.com
article on the importance of actor
Riz Ahmed’s Oscar nomination.
CURRICULUM PHOTO COURTESY OF WIKI COMMONS; CLEMENT S PHOTO COURTESY OF JIM CLEMENT S
“Women’s sports
continue to get short
shrift, which is
WRITING ACROSS THE AISLE “defending your point” and already know; it’s to use the holds, and how we can listen grade for leaning more
significant when Instructor: Jim Clements, “strategy” is evidence that back-and-forth as a site of to each other to understand conservative,” he says. “It
you consider the associate professor (teaching) the goal of many debates is learning,” he says. those systems better, before was about the content of your
larger picture of of writing not to connect or grow or Clements was inspired to making our moral choices. writing, not the leaning of your
girls’ and women’s learn, but to win against an create the course after Romano Orlando, a senior writing.” —M.M.
efforts to achieve “opponent,” says Clements. observing that his students majoring in Italian and neuro-
equal opportunities, A more effective viewpoint, he often say they feel that nobody science at USC Dornsife and “L’Écoute” (“Listen”), a
tells students, is to consider listens to each other and that pursuing a concurrent master’s beloved, abstract sculpture by
resources, pay and a debate not as a battle but as a repercussions for “saying degree in translational French artist Henri de Miller,
respect in sports.”
P H O T O BY M A R T I N H O LV E R DA
dance, with two people engaged the wrong thing” are dire. biotechnology at Keck School sits in front of the Gothic church
MICHAEL MESSNER, professor in a delicate push and pull — Rather than sort opinions into of Medicine of USC, says that of Saint-Eustache in central
of sociology and gender studies, not to beat each other, but to categories such as “correct” as a more conservative student, Paris. The 70-ton sandstone
in a March 24 Sports Illustrated
create something beautiful or “incorrect,” his class aims he found the class to be a representation of a giant
article featuring his research on
the wide disparity in television together. to discover what belief refreshingly judgment-free zone. head gently cupped in a hand
and online coverage of women’s Framing debate methods “Your goal is not to tell the systems are at the foundation “I never felt singled out, encourages passersby to stop
and men’s sports. in terms such as “attack,” other person something you of the positions each of us or that I would get a worse and listen, too.
4 Spring / Summer 2021 | 5
PROF ILE FROM THE HE ART OF USC
Taking Farm-to-Table from Hollywood to Bollywood
Late spring in India brings family of 20 in which a passion In 2013, she arrived on foothills to the north and GROWING GAINS
the harvesting of karela, for food seemed almost an campus as a junior. Bengalaru in the southern state Building the business has
a knobbly, green gourd much inheritable trait. Her mother, Her time as a Trojan helped of Karnataka. The experience posed challenges at times.
prized in Indian cooking for Rajkumari Naheta, turned prepare her for running a opened Naheta’s eyes to India’s Transporting produce from
its distinctive, bitter flavor. her passion for baking into business. She cites the course agricultural potential. rural parts of India, which
Muskmelon, mangoes and a successful catering company “Gender and Global Issues,” “It was amazing to see the lack reliable roads, required
lychees are also in season, and and Naheta’s sister, Aditi taught by Jessica Peet of variety of produce across India’s painstaking logistics and the
green peas flood the market. Dugar, runs the city’s Masque, international relations, as a topography. I didn’t think that recruitment of a complex
These days, many of these listed as one of Asia’s top particular inspiration. produce like high-quality network of locals to help
crops are raised using large- restaurants in The World’s
scale farming techniques and 50 Best Restaurants ranking.
pesticides. But down rutted,
dirt roads, tucked into remote
Naheta baked alongside her
mother, tested recipes with
“(The USC Dornsife course ‘Gender and
corners across India, some small
farmers still grow produce
her sister and helped in
cooking classes. “I’ve known Global Issues’) taught me to think out of
the old way — chemical-free, my mom’s cake recipe since I
with close attention to the
local ecosystem.
was a toddler,” says Naheta.
She was also bitten early on
the box, which is one of the best skills
In more remote areas, alumna
Shriya Naheta says, farmers
by the entrepreneurial bug,
inspired by her mother and I could have acquired as an entrepreneur.”
have been practicing organic by her father, Sudhir Naheta,
techniques for generations — who runs an antique jewelry
even if they have never heard business. “It taught me to think out romaine lettuce, arugula or facilitate deliveries. COVID-19
of the term. India’s appetite “I was lucky to grow up in of the box, which is one of kale could be grown here,” struck a blow as restaurants
for organic products is also on an extremely entrepreneurial the best skills I could have she says. and retailers slowed down or
the rise. According to a 2020 and open-minded house- acquired as an entrepreneur,” Small farmers often didn’t halted orders completely.
USDA report, India’s organic hold with very supportive says Naheta. At USC Dornsife, have the means to market However, for Naheta,
food sector is expected to parents,” says Naheta. They she was also able to network their organic goods or lacked the positives outweigh the
reach $10.25 billion by 2025. indulged her creativity and with stars of the business official paperwork. Seeing a negatives. The pandemic
Despite these stunning her interest in developing world, such as billionaire need for a conduit between helped to normalize online
projections, connecting business ventures that could investor Mark Cuban, whom India’s remote organic farms food orders and brought in
producers and consumers still also benefit others. she met when he came to and customers who were a new set of customers eager
presents many challenges, “We used to do small drives campus to give a talk. increasingly demanding farm- for healthy produce to boost
given the inaccessibility of for charity, selling handmade to-table food, Naheta launched their immune systems. And
the farms and the farmers’ cards or setting up a lemonade THE GOOD EARTH Zama Organics in 2016. Naheta sees her sustainable
lack of opportunity to market stand. I was always trying to Soaking in California’s vibrant Naheta coordinates pickups business model as the fruition
their crops. come up with ideas,” she says. food scene, which celebrates of produce from her network of her childhood dream.
Naheta, who graduated fresh produce, farm-to-table of small farms and then sells “No matter what we do, we’re
from USC Dornsife in 2015 BOLLYWOOD TO HOLLYWOOD and organic food, also inspired these goods via the Zama impacting lives,” she says.
with a degree in international Naheta originally attended Naheta. USC’s farmers market, Organics website. Her business “That’s true for the farmers we
relations, founded Zama Brandeis University in which takes over McCarthy sources tea from Assam, work with, our delivery drivers
Organics to help fill that gap. Massachusetts for her Quad each week, introduced pineapples from Moodabidri and packers who are mostly blue-
Her business now acts as the undergraduate degree but a her to the great abundance of and olives for olive oil from collar or migrant workers, and
intermediary between 50,000 spring break visit to her best organic fruit and vegetables Rajasthan. Indigenous farmers the well-being of our customers.”
small farms and thousands of friend, who was attending USC, that small farms are capable supply morel mushrooms and Eventually, Naheta hopes to
eager customers across India. changed her trajectory. The of producing. salt. WhatsApp is the favored bring organic Indian foods to
Her undergraduate years bright, bustling sprawl of After graduating from communication platform the international market. She’s
spent in the organic food Los Angeles, studded with palm USC Dornsife, Naheta between farmers and Zama already in talks to supply prod-
haven of Southern California, trees, felt instantly familiar. returned to India where she employees, a buzz of messages ucts to the Middle East. “There
where she shopped regularly “Both Los Angeles and Mumbai tagged along as her sister flying from field to office. is a definite global demand and
at the farmers market on are on the west coast, one is hunted for organic farms Naheta started with just two that’s very exciting,” she says.
USC’s University Park campus, home to Bollywood and the that could supply fruit and employees and her business has Organic turmeric, figs or
Perceiving a gap in the market, planted the first seeds of other to Hollywood and they vegetables to her restaurant. since grown to 50 workers. “Our raspberries, grown on small,
PHOTO BY RITIKA SHAH
alumna Shriya Naheta founded inspiration for her business. both have great food. These are The duo crisscrossed the total revenue from our first year family-owned farms in India
Zama Organics in 2016 to act as two cities I can call home,” says country, stopping at farms in of operations was less than our and brought to market by a
the intermediary between 50,000 THE FOOD GENE Naheta. “I immediately worked Pune and Nashik in the state current monthly revenue,” she USC Dornsife alumna, could
small farms and thousands of Naheta grew up in Mumbai, on transferring to USC and it’s of Maharashtra in western says. “It’s crazy to look back and be coming soon to a shelf
eager customers across India. India, in a multigenerational the best decision I ever made.” India, Shimla in the Himalayan see where it all started.” near you. —M.C.
6 Spring / Summer 2021 | 7
Lexicon
FROM THE HE ART OF USC
Recognition P O L I T I C A L S C I E N C E A N D I N T E R N AT I O N A L R E L AT I O N S
Powered by Seaweed? it about 260 feet at night so it can absorb nutrients in
deeper water.
“Forging new pathways to make biofuel requires proving
JUS COGENS
dʒ s 'ko dʒ nz / noun
Peremptory norm of interna-
Kelp elevator study shows promise for producing that new methods and feedstocks work. This experiment … tional law protecting human
biofuel from giant seaweed. demonstrates kelp can be managed to maximize growth,” rights that may not be violated
says USC Wrigley Institute’s Diane Young Kim, adjunct under any circumstance.
LISA PON assistant professor of environmental studies. —G.P. Origin: From the Latin
P O N P H O T O BY M IK E G L IE R; S T E V E N S P H O T O C O U R T E S Y O F A N G E L A WA L K E R; D E N G P H O T O C O U R T E S Y O F Y U D E N G; K E L P E L E VAT O R P H O T O BY DAV ID G IN S B U R G; D O IN G G O O D P H O T O C O U R T E S Y O F J OA N N A M A N I T I
Guggenheim Fellowship “compelling law,” jus cogens
Pon, professor of art history, originated under Roman law.
Doing Good
was awarded a fellowship from
the John Simon Guggenheim More recently, rules governing
Memorial Foundation. She interpretation of these funda-
will use the fellowship to mental norms were codified in
complete her book about the The COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t stopped students from the 1969 Vienna Convention on
Renaissance artist Raphael,
a project that she says goes
making the world a better place. the Law of Treaties.
against the idea of an art Usage: Ratified treaties
historical monograph to Undergraduates in “Doing Good: How to Start and Run in conflict with a peremptory
examine the partners and a Successful Nonprofit Organization,” taught by Kamy norm of international law
collaborations in Raphael’s Akhavan, executive director of the USC Dornsife Center for are void.
networks.
the Political Future, are putting their classwork into practice “This century jurists will
by helping the homeless, immigrants and orphaned children. probably consider recognition
Catherine Cummings, a law, history and culture major, of new jus cogens of gender
Biofuels come primarily from mass-produced farm and her organization Water Drop LA provided thousands and racial equality, the right to
crops. But researchers at the USC Wrigley Institute for of gallons of clean water to homeless Angelenos. An a fair trial, access to medicine
Environmental Studies, headquartered at USC Dornsife, orphanage in the Philippines recently broke ground and the Internet.
are looking to the ocean for a potentially superior biofuel thanks in part to the efforts of Joanna Maniti, a business “Jus cogens is a sort of super
crop: seaweed. administration major at the USC Marshall School norm. In his classic essay
RAYMOND STEVENS
Fellow, American Association
Focusing their reserearch on giant kelp, Macrocystis of Business. ‘It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, It’s
for the Advancement pyrifera, one of nature’s fastest-growing plants, the scientists Natalia Wurst, a senior majoring in public policy Jus Cogens,’ international law
of Science report that a new aquaculture technique dramatically and psychology, is forming the USC Immigrant and expert Anthony D’Amato says,
The world’s largest general increases kelp growth, yielding four times more biomass Migrant Resource Center, which will act as a resource hub ‘If an International Oscar
scientific society, the American than natural processes. The technique employs a contraption for immigrants in Los Angeles County. were awarded for the category
Association for the Advance-
ment of Science (AAAS) elected called the “kelp elevator,” which enhances growth by raising Akhavan teaches his students how to build a board of of Best Norm, the winner by
J U S T I C E BY PIER R E S U B L E Y R A S /A R T C O L L EC T I O N/A L A M Y; D U ND E S R EN T EL N PH O T O BY PE T ER Z H AOY U Z H O U
Stevens, Provost Professor of and lowering seaweed to different depths to optimize sunlight directors, market an organization and procure funds. Guest acclamation would surely be
Biological Sciences, Chemistry, exposure and nutrient supply. speakers from nonprofits around the nation share real-life jus cogens.’ ”
Neurology, Physiology and The team’s findings suggest it may be possible to use experiences and tips. At the end of the semester, Akhavan
Biophysics, a fellow.
Said Stevens: “The AAAS
the open ocean to grow kelp crops for low-carbon biofuel, had his students pitch their nonprofit idea to a slate of
fellows election comes with similar to how land is used to harvest fuel feedstocks such previous speakers.
an increased responsibility to as corn and sugarcane — but with potentially fewer adverse “I’ve been to a lot of pitch presentations in my career and
help make the world a better environmental impacts. Ocean crops do not compete for there are always some that are kind of duds. These students
place, something that I take very fresh water, agricultural land or artificial fertilizers, and were all top-notch, and any one of them would have received
seriously.”
ocean farming does not threaten important habitats when funding in a real-world situation,” says Akhavan.
marginal land is brought into cultivation. Wurst, Cummings and Maniti all point to Akhavan’s
However, there are some challenges. To thrive, kelp has class as essential to moving their projects forward.
to be anchored to a substrate and only grows in sun-soaked “Professor Akhavan connected me with a whole new
waters to about 60 feet deep. But in open oceans, the sunlit network of people in the nonprofit sector who helped me Alison Dundes Renteln,
surface layer lacks nutrients available in deeper water. grow Water Drop to an even bigger organization than professor of political science,
To maximize growth in this ecosystem, the scientists I could have ever dreamed,” says Cummings. —M.C. anthropology, public policy
had to figure out how to give kelp a foothold to hang onto, and law, teaches international
YU DENG lots of sunlight and access to abundant nutrients. Would law and human rights in
Sloan Research Fellowship kelp effectively absorb nutrients and survive deeper below USC Dornsife’s Department
Deng, assistant professor of
the surface? of Political Science and
mathematics, has earned a
Sloan Research Fellowship. Beginning in 2019, research divers collected wild kelp, International Relations and
The two-year fellowship, affixed it to the kelp elevator designed and built for the at USC Gould School of Law.
awarded by the Alfred P. Sloan study by California-based company Marine BioEnergy Her interdisciplinary publications
Foundation, recognizes Inc., and then deployed it off Catalina Island, near the focus on human rights, bioethics
distinguished performance
and a unique potential to make USC Wrigley Institute’s marine field station. For about and global health, comparative
substantial contributions to 100 days, the elevator raises the kelp near to the surface jurisprudence, sensory studies
the field. during the day so it can soak up sunlight, then lowers and international public policy.
8 Spring / Summer 2021 | 9
FROM THE HE ART OF USC FROM THE HE ART OF USC
Numbers
Spotlight
Exploring the Impact of Innovation
LIVING IN L.A.
The annual USC Dornsife-Union
Bank LABarometer livability
Sweet Memories Writing Behind Bars
survey reveals Angelenos plan Bitcoin for your thoughts? A new center at USC Dornsife aims to help us understand the social, economic, political Scientists find a direct connection between particular Bringing poetry, philosophy and physics to prisoners in
to leave Los Angeles County and ethical implications of innovation. By Stephen Koenig bacteria in the gut and impaired brain function. an effort to reduce recidivism and stereotyping.
even as residents’ consumer
confidence is rising. It also shows Prison may not seem the best place to teach university-
that while Angelenos continue to level classes, but to the surprise of instructors in the Prison
be less satisfied with their quality Education Project (PEP) at USC Dornsife, the venue has
of life compared to all California proven to be ideal. With no phones or internet access, the
residents and people throughout classroom environment harkens back to a simpler time BRYSON CHOY ’22
S W E E T M E M O R IE S P H O T O BY T O M D E E R IN C K /N AT I O N A L C E N T E R F O R M I C R O S C O P Y A N D IM AG IN G R E S E A R C H; P E P P H O T O C O U R T E S Y O F N IK D E D O M IN I C ; C H OY P H O T O C O U R T E S Y O F B RY S O N C H OY
the country, they perceive there in education. QUANTITATIVE BIOLOGY
to be less crime, vandalism, “We’re present with one another in a way that I don’t find QUANTITATIVE AND
and drug and alcohol use in their in my other classrooms. No one’s checking their phone,” COMPUTATIONAL BIOLOGY
neighborhoods than they did says PEP Co-director Nik De Dominic, assistant professor
in 2019. (teaching) of writing. “Many unanswered
Since 2018, PEP has brought classes on subjects questions in the life
1/10
including film, biology and writing to prisons around the sciences can be viewed
state, including the California Rehabilitation Center in
Norco and the Santa Fe Springs women’s prison. through an inter-
USC Dornsife faculty teach the classes and USC students disciplinary lens informed
serve as volunteer assistants. by computer science
Number of Angelenos plan to New research shows how drinking sugary beverages early Inmates at some prisons receive a reduced sentence in
leave L.A. County next year. in life may lead to impaired memory in adulthood. The exchange for attending PEP classes. and mathematics. I’m
study is also the first to show how a specific change to For those who balk at the thought of prisoners receiving excited by the prospect
the gut microbiome can alter the function of a particular free classes, Kate Levin, co-director of PEP and assistant of using my background
region of the brain. professor (teaching) of writing, argues that PEP provides
in quantitative biology
40%
Neuroscientist Scott Kanoski, associate professor practical benefits to the community.
of biological sciences at USC Dornsife, and researchers “Research shows that if someone in prison just takes one to tackle such outstanding
Innovation has always recast the ways in which a public and the life sciences; and the social and ethical impact of new at UCLA and the University of Georgia, Athens, gave class, they’re far less likely to recidivate,” she says. It costs questions.”
collectively engages, laying bare its utility and promise digital technologies. adolescent rats free access to a sugar-sweetened beverage. a little more than $80,000 to incarcerate an inmate for
Increase from 2019 to 2020 in well ahead of its oft-unintended consequences. No one Additionally, STPL hosts the USC Berggruen Fellowship When the rats grew to be adults, the researchers tested one year in California. If programs like PEP can prevent
the number of Angelenos who Chosen from a pool of over
foresaw that Gutenberg’s printing press would lead to the Program, a partnership with the Los Angeles-based memory function controlled by two different brain inmates from returning to the system, it could save taxpayers 5,000 students from 438 academic
want to leave the county.
publication of a popular book outlining how to identify Berggruen Institute. Each year, six to eight prominent regions: the hippocampus and the perirhinal cortex. a considerable amount of cash. institutions, Bryson Choy has been
and sentence witches, bringing about the execution experts spend roughly a year interacting with USC faculty The researchers found that, compared to rats that G Bajaj, a health and human sciences major who is PEP’s awarded a coveted scholarship
of scores of innocent people in the pre-Enlightenment. and students as they work on ambitious research projects. drank just water, the rats that consumed high levels of the student co-director, says working with the prison population from the Barry Goldwater
2.7
But never has the pace of innovation rivaled what we are Complex supply chain logistics have recently been at sugary drink had more difficulty with memory linked has broadened his perspective as he studies toward becoming Scholarship and Excellence in
Education Foundation.
experiencing in the 21st century. the forefront of Lakoff’s mind, as the pandemic revealed to the hippocampus. Sugar consumption did not affect a physician. Choy, who hails from Honolulu,
While we are drawn to reports on the latest gizmo unanticipated challenges. Early in the crisis, there were memories made by the perirhinal cortex. “In order to be a good health professional, you have to is currently working toward a
or treatment for disease, it is increasingly clear that we need to difficulties in obtaining enough protective gear for medical The scientists then checked the rats’ gut microbiomes understand the different facets of the community you’re bachelor’s degree and a
better understand the social, economic, political and ethical professionals and essential workers. And who can forget and found differences between sugar drinkers and water serving,” he says. “If you can’t understand someone that’s progressive master’s degree.
He plans to use the Goldwater
implications of innovation — especially those that are not the empty shelves in the toilet paper aisle? Massive changes drinkers: The sugar drinkers had larger populations of experiencing homelessness or someone that’s formerly Scholarship to apply the
Percent rise in consumer immediately obvious. This is the driving force behind the were needed in the information infrastructure that links two particular species of gut bacteria. incarcerated, how do you expect to advocate for that computational techniques he
confidence in L.A. County from USC Dornsife Center on Science, Technology, and Public manufacturers, ports and trains to hospitals and retail Next, the researchers transplanted lab-grown samples patient?” —M.C. learns at USC Dornsife to advance
June 2020 to February 2021. Life (STPL). Formally launched in December 2020, STPL is outlets — changes that require both new algorithms of those bacteria into the guts of adolescent rats that knowledge of human health.
a venue for collaborative reflection and research on a scientific to streamline delivery and new discussions of equity drank just water. The rats receiving the bacteria showed In particular, he’ll focus on how
-3
the shape of certain proteins and
and technological ecosystem that is changing in real time. and ethics. Going forward, scholars could explore the memory impairment in both the hippocampus and the biological molecules contributes
“The center seeks to improve our understanding of the assumptions underlying pandemic preparedness planning or perirhinal cortex, suggesting that diet-related changes to to their role in disease and how
implications of new technologies, like artificial intelligence ask how essential workers should be defined and protected. brain function may actually be rooted in changes to the they might be targeted with
and genomics, that have got a lot of public attention,” says USC has a wide range of faculty interested in the gut microbiome. therapies.
“My future research will place
Professor of Sociology Andrew Lakoff, who is director of impact of science and technology on social life, but they are Finally, the scientists found that gene activity in the an emphasis on elucidating the
STPL. “It is also looking at the role of technologies that scattered across different schools and departments. STPL hippocampus changed in both sugar-drinking rats and
PHOTO BY COSMIN SERBAN
structure-function of clinically
profoundly shape social life but tend to remain below the looks to serve as a bridge, amplifying research that will rats transplanted with the bacteria. The affected genes relevant proteins and biological
radar, like logistics and infrastructure.” benefit from administrative structure and facilitating control how nerve cells transmit electrical signals to other macromolecules, as well as
Change from 2019 (37%) The center is designed around three broad intellectual conversation among people who might not otherwise meet. nerve cells and how they send molecular signals internally. the development of novel
to 2021 (34%) in percentage computational tools for
of Angelenos who agree areas that are particularly fraught in terms of the social and “I’d like us to be seen as a place where new ideas emerge, The results of this study confirm a direct link, on a accelerating structure-based
there is a lot of crime in their political impact of innovation: The implementation of policy where scholars and students are able to develop novel molecular level, between the gut microbiome and brain drug discovery,” he says.
neighborhood. to address the planet’s environmental crises; biomedicine projects with our collaboration and support,” says Lakoff. function. —D.S.J. —C.B-S.
10 Spring / Summer 2021 | 11
FROM THE HE ART OF USC
Academy in the Public Square URBAN T REES
A THRIVING PARTNERSHIP
USC Dornsife and the city of
USC researchers will guide
where the city and others
From Pump to Plug Vehicles could also become autonomous and drive them-
selves to connect with a charger.
At the symposium, firms located in L.A., Madrid,
Los Angeles have launched a USC DORNSIFE PUBLIC EXCHANGE plant the trees, using computer What will the end of gas-powered vehicles mean for New York, San Francisco and Australia presented designs for
partnership to guide the growth models, air sensors and other Los Angeles, a city renowned for its car culture? how stations may look in 2022 and in 2023, reflecting ways
of an urban forest of shade trees Rio de Los Angeles
State Park
tools to help determine fueling will continue to evolve. —M.C. and J.K.
Using an environmental justice lens, the
Ernest E. Debs
Regional Park
in Eastside communities the locations where trees
vulnerable to heat waves and USC Urban Trees Initiative focuses on a would have the biggest impact
Bus Poet
Montecito
Heights
Open Space
LEGEND
air pollution in a warming Study Area Boundary
3.5-square-mile zone northeast of USC’s on pollution, shade and
Health Sciences campus in Boyle Heights.
Heritage
global climate. heat islands.
Square Schools
5
Rose Hill
Rec. Ctr LAUSD Campuses
The zone encompasses much of the
Mount Rose Hill
Olympus Park Park
Led by USC Dornsife Public Lincoln Heights El Sereno
Public Park & Open Space “The data generated by our
Eastside communities of El Sereno, Ramona
Elysian Park
Exchange, the USC Urban Trees East Los
USC Health Sciences Campus
Miles team will provide a detailed Mellon Mays Fellow finds inspiration for his fiction and
Initiative provides a science- Lincoln
Heights
Angeles Park El Sereno
Rec. Ctr
El Sereno
Senior Ctr
0 0.5 1
Gardens and parts of Lincoln Heights. scientific road map to help the award-winning poetry on the bus.
The area suffers from poor air quality and
Youth Ctr
based approach to help city and the community plant
110
Lincoln Ascot
Heights Hills Park
Rec. Ctr
advance L.A. Mayor Eric Los Angeles State
Historic Park
little shade. The median household income an urban forest that maximizes Jack Kerouac, America’s foremost literary itinerant, saw
Garcetti’s Green New Deal,
Lincoln Park
710
in the area is about half that of L.A.’s benefits to our environment little to appreciate in bus travel. But Joseph Debaerien,
which aims to plant 90,000 USC Health overall median income of nearly $62,000, and human health,” says an English major at USC Dornsife, sees a missed oppor-
Sciences Campus
trees citywide, increasing
Wellness Park
& Fitness Ctr
Hazard
Rec Ctr Henry Alvarez
Memorial Park
according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Kate Weber, director of Public tunity. For Debaerien, not only are buses an ideal setting
the forest canopy by 50% 10
Ramona
Gardens Park
and people of color comprise most of Exchange, which fast-tracks for writing inspiration, traveling by bus is an excellent way
specifically in low-income Ramona Gardens the population. collaborations between to experience social class in America.
+90,000 +50%
heat zones by 2028. academic experts and the “It has its own culture that stems from the working
The initiative’s other private and public sectors to In Los Angeles, a city defined in large part by the auto- class,” he says. “You see people with Target shopping bags
collaborators include experts address pressing challenges. mobile, gas stations have become inseparable from its carrying everything that they own. That’s something that
and students from USC Dornsife’s For example, USC Dornsife’s identity. Some, like the Union 76 in Beverly Hills, with its you never see on a plane or in a private car.”
Spatial Sciences Institute new Carbon Census network, sweeping Googie roof, are architectural icons. Others are Debaerien uses his own experiences as material for his
(SSI), the Center for the Study Under L.A.’s Green New L.A.’s Green New Deal calls for run by the Center for the Study memorable from film appearances. However, L.A.’s gas fiction and poetry, having ridden the bus back and forth
of Urban Critical Zones, and Deal, the city aims increasing the forest canopy by 50% of Urban Critical Zones, will stations may soon have to radically adapt if they wish to survive. between his family home in Las Vegas and USC’s University
the Landscape Architecture + to plant 90,000 trees specifically in low-income heat deploy sensors that measure Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom mandated that by 2035 Park campus on summer and winter breaks.
Urbanism program, as well as citywide. zones by 2028. airborne pollutants to help all new cars and light trucks sold in the state must be Debaerien spent his childhood bouncing from one city
the city’s Department of Public determine where new trees zero-emission. to the next, sometimes sleeping on floors and couches
Works, community leaders and would most reduce pollution Automakers are already responding. It’s increasingly clear with his mother and siblings. By the time he arrived at
nonprofit organizations. and improve air flow. that before the first half of this century is over, the dominant USC at age 18, he had lived in six cities.
+66%
The new blueprint by USC — if not exclusive — means of transportation will be electric- He enrolled as a psychology major but ultimately returned
researchers identifies four places TACKLING GLOBAL WARMING powered vehicles. to his earliest enthusiasm, literature. Debaerien won first
best suited to plant shade trees The scientific analysis will help What will this mean for L.A., a city that is home to about place at an undergraduate writing conference for “Bus Stop
P U M P T O P L U G I M A G E C O U R T E S Y O F W O O D S B A G O T ; B U S P O E T P H O T O B Y IJMOAEGL ECS ABRYI LDLEENT N
across L.A.’s Eastside to bring city officials and community 550 gas stations but relatively few charging stations? Poem,” which details a memorable experience while on a
cooling relief to thousands of leaders create greenways and Six of the world’s leading architecture, landscape and urban Greyhound back to Los Angeles from Las Vegas.
people most at risk of heat waves inform where they should design firms shared their creative proposals — including Recently awarded a Mellon Mays Undergraduate
and air pollution. For example, at Ramona Gardens near concentrate their efforts to eye-popping renderings — to address the challenges and Fellowship, Debaerien is now writing a paper that
Better still, the scientific Soto Street and Interstate 10, 183 trees bolster climate resiliency, opportunities posed by the projected growth of electric explores the bus as a site of both creativity and class
tools that the USC researchers could be added, a 66% increase. protect public health and vehicle use in L.A. at “Pump to Plug,” a virtual symposium consciousness. He has his eyes set on graduate school next,
used have wider applications promote ecosystems. hosted by USC Dornsife’s 3rd LA project. but isn’t sure where.
to guide tree-planting efforts in Renderings of one site at Founded and directed by Christopher Hawthorne, L.A.’s “I still haven’t found a place that really feels like home,”
other communities across L.A. Ramona Gardens, near Soto chief design officer and professor of the practice of English, he says, noting that he plans to keep rambling until
Street, show how the public 3rd LA is a laboratory for urban reinvention. The project, he does. —M.C.
A NEW URBAN FOREST housing community’s vast, open which focuses on L.A. as a leading model, looks at how
2X
“Planting a thriving urban forest lawns could be transformed into cities around the world can become more sustainable,
requires diligent planning and verdant forests of big trees. interconnected and equitable.
input from multiple perspec- “This partnership between the “Some of the issues that need to be addressed are: Where
tives,” says John Wilson, city and USC researchers is will people charge their cars? What happens to the gas
principal investigator for the taking on global warming by station sites? And what happens at the Port of Los Angeles,
project and director of SSI. Experts say tree planting improving sustainability where where a shift to electrified trucking is so central to Mayor
“We have taken a deliberative could double shade across people live,” says USC President Eric Garcetti’s efforts to green the port?” said Hawthorne,
approach based on robust L.A.’s Eastside. Carol L. Folt. “It’s a good example who moderated the symposium.
data and community input to of how we can enhance the Electric cars currently need hours to charge; and charging
ensure that residents enjoy quality of life in our neighbor- station customers may linger for a meal or to grocery shop.
/ I ISST O
the many benefits of a rich hoods as we face the challenges But in five to 10 years, charging time could decrease,
L AC N
canopy of trees.” of climate change.” —G.P. giving people only enough time to grab a quick snack.
K
12 Spring / Summer 2021 | 13
Our World
FROM THE HE ART OF USC
ALUMNA The Universe ALUMNA FACULTY Latin America ALUMNUS Bell Gardens STUDENT New York City ALUMNA China, Worldwide
Spain; Germany; Latin America;
Could Alien Worlds Host Life? Washington, D.C.
Growing up in a small, rural
When Deisy Del Real’s studies
on immigration took her to
Argentina, she felt a sense
In his campaign to be elected
to the Bell Gardens city
council, Jorgel Chavez took to
U.S. Foreign Service
Laurie Barge ’09, an astrobiologist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, investigates town in Northern California, of acceptance there that his skateboard and traveled Betty Thai, who graduated in May with a degree in political
the origins of life on Earth to make sense of how life could form on other planets. Carolina Cortez ’18 missed the pleased her. The country had from one end of the city to science and East Asian languages and cultures at
community and culture she recently passed laws making the other, talking to residents USC Dornsife, has earned a fellowship that could lead
If you rewound the timeline of Earth to the beginning and then restarted it, would you remembered from her early immigration a human right, about the problems they were to a job as a United States diplomat — an ideal fit for
get life again? If you tweaked some major condition, like taking away the moon or the childhood in Imperial County expanding constitutional facing and his plans for the the first-generation graduate who wants to help tackle
continents, would life reemerge? on the California-Mexico protections to all people in community. global challenges.
These are the questions astrobiologist Laurie Barge ’09 contemplates in her Origins border. But now, as a graduate the country regardless of And it paid off for Chavez, The Thomas R. Pickering Foreign Affairs Fellowship will
and Habitability Lab at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. of USC Dornsife’s School of legal status, and promoting who graduated in May with a cover Thai’s tuition and fees at a two-year master’s program.
Barge, who received her Ph.D. in geological sciences from USC Dornsife, is researching International Relations and mechanisms that ensured bachelor’s degree in political The aspiring diplomat will also receive a stipend to cover
P H O T O C O U R T E S Y O F N A S A , E S A , T H E H U B B L E H E R I TAG E T E A M (S T S C I /AU R A ), A . N O TA (E S A /S T S C I) A N D T H E W E S T E R L U N D 2 S C I E N C E T E A M
how life first sprang up on Earth and which conditions are most essential to its a new fellow in the Rangel immigrants had access to legal science from USC Dornsife and living expenses and complete two summer internships —
emergence here — and on other planets. Graduate Fellowship Program, services to help them start a master’s degree in public first at the U.S. Department of State, then overseas at a U.S.
To do so, she simulates environments like ocean vents — which some scientists Cortez is pursuing her dream down the path to residency administration through the embassy or consulate. In exchange, Thai has agreed to spend
hypothesize played host to the first life forms — conducting experiments to learn more of becoming a diplomat to and citizenship. Progressive Degree Program at least five years as a foreign service officer after completing
about their chemicals and minerals. a Latin American country, The United States could look at the USC Sol Price School her degree.
Barge was inspired by the research of USC Dornsife’s Professor Emeritus of Earth a career that would draw on toward Argentina and some of Public Policy. In November Like many children of immigrant parents, Thai grew up
Sciences Kenneth Nealson, who used geology to search for signs of life on other planets, both her American and other South American countries the 23-year-old won a seat in the role of cultural navigator. Acting as a crucial bridge
especially Mars. between two worlds made her deeply passionate about
CHAVE Z PHOTO COURTESY OF JORGEL CHAVE Z; NYC AND U.S. FOREIGN SERVICE PHOTOS COURTESY OF IS TOCK
Mexican heritage. when visualizing its own on the council, becoming
In addition to her lab work, Barge is the science lead for the InVADER mission, which “I want to give back to both immigration policies, says the youngest person to understanding cultural differences.
is sending a probe down to the deepest depths of the ocean to understand how life forms of my communities,” she says. Del Real. Currently Turpanjian hold a city council seat in When New York City announced it would be greatly expanding After devoting her Saturdays to learning Mandarin as a
in deep-sea vents. At USC Dornsife, Cortez postdoctoral fellow at USC Los Angeles County history. outdoor dining in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, questions child, Thai became the de facto translator and navigator for
The more we know about the birth of life on our own planet, the better equipped we completed a study abroad Dornsife’s Equity Research As a proud lifetime resident abounded as to how a city full nearly to bursting with cars, her American classmates while she studied in China through
will be at finding signs of life on alien worlds, says Barge. —M.C. program in Bilbao, Spain. After Institute, she will join the of Bell Gardens and a buses and people would be able to accommodate thousands of a Gilman Scholarship in 2019.
graduating, she worked in then- faculty in the fall as assistant graduate of the city’s public tables and chairs in its preciously limited outdoor space. Now Thai, who is working toward a master’s degree at
Sen. Kamala Harris’ office for a professor of sociology. schools, Chavez says he’s But it turned out that by cutting off some streets to car traffic USC Gould School of Law, envisions a career devoted to
year before being accepted into “The discussion tends to be eager to serve the community and capitalizing on more limited late-night and weekend bus advocating for vulnerable groups worldwide.
the Congress-Bundestag Youth open borders or full restriction, he loves. routes, the city was able to secure additional outside dining space “I realized there are a lot of deep-rooted issues, especially
Exchange for Young Professionals but there are a lot of things in “It means a lot to me, growing for more than 10,300 restaurants through its (now permanent) facing underserved communities and minorities,” she says.
program. Upon her return from the middle,” she says. up in the city, to be able to give Open Restaurants program. “I want to get involved in politics
Germany, Cortez volunteered Public education efforts back and to advocate for the Using geographic information sciences tools, Alexa Weintraub, to help solve those
with a nongovernmental might also be useful, Del Real people here.” —M.M. a junior majoring in geodesign at USC Dornsife, created a map issues.” —E.L.
organization in Mexico. adds, noting that some South showing how street and sidewalk space could be repurposed
Now, thanks to the Rangel American countries have to allow for more outdoor seating — without affecting public
Fellowship, a five-year launched programs aimed at transportation.
program that prepares young inspiring empathy between Weintraub notes that her map, “Eating on the Streets:
people for a career in the immigrants and the local A New Pandemic Lifestyle,” can serve as a guide to how
U.S. Foreign Service branch, population. —M.M. restaurants in other high-density, space-limited cities might be
she started an internship in able to modify their dining spaces to prevent disease transmission.
Washington, D.C. in May with “I think there’s a lot of potential for restaurants to continue
the House Foreign Affairs expanding and coming up with innovative ideas for outdoor
Subcommittee on Western dining in the future,” she says.
Hemisphere, Civilian Security, Her instructor, Leilei Duan, a lecturer with the Spatial Sciences
Migration and International Institute, agrees, noting that Weintraub’s project has broader
Economic Policy. —M.M. lessons for sustainability and city planning. —M.M.
14 Spring / Summer 2021 | 15
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