At ENV Class Day, seniors commended for resilience, urged to seize opportunities to make environmental change
Students and parents joined faculty, researchers and staff from the High Meadows Environmental Institute (HMEI) and the Program in Environmental Studies May 24 for a virtual Class Day ceremony celebrating the accomplishments and resilience of the 31 Princeton University seniors who are the latest recipients of certificates in environmental studies (ENV).
ENV Class Day 2021 recognized students not only for their exceptional work throughout their four years at Princeton, but also for their determination in completing nearly the last year-and-a-half of college under the difficult circumstances necessitated by the COVID-19 global pandemic.
“Within the ENV program, we consistently attract a remarkable group of undergraduates whose interests span many different aspects of the environment and this year is certainly no exception,” said HMEI Director Michael Celia, the Theodora Shelton Pitney Professor of Environmental Studies and professor of civil and environmental engineering. “As we have said many times in the last 15 months, of course we wish we would be doing all of this in person, but we are nonetheless absolutely delighted that all of you are able to join today for this special event.”
ENV Program Director Corina Tarnita, associate professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, recognized students’ resilience during the pandemic that began in their junior year, and expressed her thanks and congratulations to the family and friends who provided students with support during a trying close to their college careers.
“It has been a great honor to have this cohort as my first cohort as ENV director,” Tarnita said. “This graduating class truly is special because of what you’ve managed to withstand. Not since the second World War or the last great pandemic more than 100 years ago has normal life been so disrupted. My colleagues and I have marveled at the poise and composure that this graduating class has shown.”
She urged students to seize the opportunities they will encounter to apply their various talents, experiences and careers to protecting and preserving the planet as the world is increasingly shaped by climate change and environmental crises.
“The remainder of this century and the future of life on this planet will very much be about what we manage to do over the course of your lifetimes,” Tarnita said. “As you do great things, remain vigilant for opportunities to make environmental change. Be alert for the difference that you have a chance to make.”
Before names of certificate recipients were read, the seniors who received prizes from HMEI for outstanding thesis research, or for their exceptional engagement with environmental studies were recognized.
Tilmann Herchenröder in economics received the Peter W. Stroh ’51 Environmental Senior Thesis Prize for exploring the impact of the Clean Air Act (CAA) on turnout and party vote shares in federal elections. “Until Tilmann, no one had investigated how environmental policy shapes the political environment,” said his adviser, Janet Currie, the Henry Putnam Professor of Economics and Public Affairs, adding that his surprising results — that CAA enforcement increased votes for Democrats — “suggest that enforcement makes the environment more salient to voters.”
Emily Reinhold in the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA) received the Environmental Studies Senior Thesis Prize for her thesis exploring potential policy solutions for mitigating single-use plastic waste and transitioning to a circular (zero-waste) economy that would protect the environment and jobs in the plastics industry. Her adviser, Elke Weber, the Gerhard R. Andlinger Professor in Energy and the Environment and professor of psychology and the school of public and international affairs, said that the thesis was well thought out, well researched and a real pleasure to read.”
Four Environmental Studies Book Prizes were presented to students who conducted exceptional research and demonstrated an ability to communicate about it.
Janaya Bruce in molecular biology received the prize in Environmental Engineering and Applied Sciences for her two-year study of how coral adjust concentrations of temperature-tolerant symbiotic algae in response to climate change. Her co-adviser José Avalos, assistant professor of chemical and biological engineering and the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment, wrote in comments read by Tarnita that Bruce “wrote a beautiful thesis that brings us closer to understanding how coral bleaching occurs and how we might be able to stop it. Your dedication and passion for the environment are evident and inspiring.”
Suraj Kushwaha, an independent major who lived and studied in India for two years, received the book prize for Environmental Humanities for exploring the relationship between local knowledge and European exploration in the greater Himalayan region. Tarnita read comments from Kushwaha’s co-advisers Divya Cherian, assistant professor of history, and Rob Nixon, the Thomas A. and Currie C. Barron Family Professor in Humanities and the Environment and professor of English and the High Meadows Environmental Institute, in which they wrote: “Wearing his multiple caps as a historian, an anthropologist and a rhetorician, Suraj has developed a highly original thesis that is deeply insightful about the importance and resilience of indigenous environmental knowledge.”
Stacey Edmonson in geosciences received the book prize in Environmental Natural Sciences for her work reanimating ocean project cores from the Bahamas to extract the information needed to understand how climate changes are translated into rock. In comments read by Tarnita, her adviser Adam Maloof, professor of geosciences, said, “With creativity, independence, and fearlessness, Stacey developed a remarkable diversity of laboratory, analytical, and computational tools to extract the stories from these cores.”
Julia Ilhardt in SPIA was honored with the book prize in Environmental Social Sciences for her work seeking to explain the transformation of environmental justice as a policy issue, the mechanisms underlying grassroots activism, and the role of government in addressing environmental justice. In comments read by Tarnita, Ilhardt’s adviser, Michael Oppenheimer, Albert G. Milbank Professor of Geosciences and International Affairs and the High Meadows Environmental Institute, said that, in “producing a nuanced, evidence-based and convincing analysis of how advocacy works, why it sometimes succeeds and why progress is often slow (or negative), Julia’s thesis adds to a still-too-limited literature on movements over time and points to possibilities for progress now on environmental justice.”
The inaugural Henry Horn Prize was presented by Elizabeth Horn, widow of the late Henry Horn, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, emeritus, and founding director of the Program in Environmental Studies. The prize recognizes the graduating senior in the Certificate Program in Environmental Studies who has produced the best video presentation of their independent research for a broad audience.
“Not only do we need a broad approach to thinking about environmental questions, we also need to be able to communicate very broadly,” Tarnita said when introducing the prize. “Communicate not only with our peers, but communicate across disciplinary boundaries and communicate to the broadest possible community beyond academia.”
John Wesley Wiggins in geosciences received the prize for his video presentation of his thesis, “Sea-Level Rise on the Eastern Shore of Maryland: Vulnerability, Adaptation, Environmental Justice.” Honorable mentions went to Emily Reinhold and Jimin Kang in Spanish and Portuguese.
Joe Kawalec in ecology and evolutionary biology received the T. A. Barron Environmental Leadership Prize for his academic excellence, engagement in campus environmental activities, and dedication to studying the evolution of woodpecker plumage patterns and their function as natural camouflage.
A New Jersey native, Kawalec has exhibited a deep interest and engagement in local ecosystems and avian biodiversity. He planned and led numerous birdwatching around New Jersey and New York as co-founder of the Princeton Birding Society. He also started a Project FeederWatch initiative to engage his classmates in documenting backyard birds, and established an Audubon campus chapter at Princeton. Kawalec also has been active in the Princeton Conservation Society, the Princeton University Energy Association, the Princeton S.C.R.A.P Lab composting project and Outdoor Action.
“Joe joined my lab as a sophomore and he has worked tireless for the last three years to understand the function of woodpecker plumage coloration. Understanding this could help us better protect woodpeckers, which are crucial ecosystem engineers,” said Kawalec’s adviser, Mary Caswell Stoddard, assistant professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, when presenting the prize.
“Outside of research, Joe has been a true leader in environmental initiatives,” she said. “Joe, I know that your passion for birds and the environment is only going to continue to grow.”
HMEI Class Day Awards and Prizes
Peter W. Stroh ’51 Environmental Thesis Prize
The Peter W. Stroh ’51 Environmental Senior Thesis Prize was established in 2003 as a memorial to Peter W. Stroh ’51, an active member of HMEI’s Advisory Council and an enthusiastic supporter of the Environmental Studies Program. The $2,000 prize is awarded annually to the student who has produced the best thesis on an environmental topic.
Tilmann Herchenröder, Economics
Thesis title: “Political Effects of Environmental Regulation – Evidence from the Clean Air Act”
Thesis adviser: Janet Currie, Henry Putnam Professor of Economics and Public Affairs
Environmental Studies Senior Thesis Prize
The Environmental Studies Senior Thesis Prize is awarded annually to one senior in the Environmental Studies Certificate Program who has produced the best thesis in the broad area of environmental studies. Student nominations are made by departmental thesis advisers.
Emily Reinhold, School of Public and International Affairs
Thesis title: “Perpetual Plastics No More: Large-Scale Plastic-Waste Mitigation in a Circular Economy”
Thesis adviser: Elke Weber, Gerhard R. Andlinger Professor in Energy and the Environment, Professor of Psychology and the School of Public and International Affairs
Environmental Studies Book Prizes
The Environmental Studies Book Prizes recognize students for the best poster or presentation of outstanding senior-thesis research, and their ability to communicate the results and significance of their work. Candidates are interviewed by HMEI faculty and members of the institute’s executive committee, who then select the winners.
Environmental Humanities
Suraj Kushwaha, Independent major
Thesis title: “Mountains of Help: Local Knowledge in the Quest to Explore the Himalaya”
Thesis advisers: Divya Cherian, Assistant Professor of History; Rob Nixon, Thomas A. and Currie C. Barron Family Professor in Humanities and the Environment and Professor of English and the High Meadows Environmental Institute
Environmental Social Sciences
Julia Ilhardt, School of Public and International Affairs
Thesis title: “The Fight for Fresh Air: Localized Movements for Environmental Justice and the Incremental Process of Policy Reform”
Thesis adviser: Michael Oppenheimer, Albert G. Milbank Professor of Geosciences and International Affairs and the High Meadows Environmental Institute
Environmental Natural Sciences
Stacey Edmonsond, Geosciences
Thesis title: “Were Shallow Carbonate Geochemistry and Production Different During the Last Interglacial Period?”
Thesis adviser: Adam Maloof, Professor of Geosciences
Environmental Engineering and Applied Sciences
Janaya Bruce, Molecular Biology
Thesis title: “How Do Coral Reefs Respond to Climate Change? Investigating the Role of Symbiodiniaceae Community Composition on Coral Performance Under Long-Term Exposure to Warming and Acidification”
Thesis advisers: José Avalos, Assistant Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering and the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment; Robert Toonen, Professor, Hawai’i Institute of Marine Biology, University of Hawai’i at Mānoa
T. A. Barron Environmental Leadership Prize
The T. A. Barron Environmental Leadership Prize recognizes a member of the graduating class who has distinguished himself or herself by showing exceptional dedication to environmental concerns, not only in formal classes and independent academic work, but also by leading and encouraging activities among fellow students and in the community at large.
Joe Kawalec, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Thesis title: “Conspicuousness and Crypsis in Woodpecker Coloration”
Thesis adviser: Mary (Cassie) Stoddard, Assistant Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Henry Horn Prize
Established in 2021, the Henry Horn Prize recognizes the graduating senior in the Certificate Program in Environmental Studies who has produced the best video presentation of their independent research for a broad audience. The prize honors the late Henry Horn, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, emeritus, and founding director of the Program in Environmental Studies.
First Place
John Wesley Wiggins, Geosciences
Thesis title: “Sea-Level Rise on the Eastern Shore of Maryland: Vulnerability, Adaptation, Environmental Justice”
Thesis adviser: Michael Oppenheimer, Albert G. Milbank Professor of Geosciences and International Affairs and the High Meadows Environmental Institute
Honorable Mentions
Emily Reinhold, School of Public and International Affairs
Thesis title: “Perpetual Plastics No More: Large-Scale Plastic-Waste Mitigation in a Circular Economy”
Thesis adviser: Elke Weber, Gerhard R. Andlinger Professor in Energy and the Environment, Professor of Psychology and the School of Public and International Affairs
Jimin Kang, Spanish and Portuguese
Thesis title: “Tales from Indigenous Brazil: A Translation of Daniel Munduruku’s ‘Chronicles of São Paulo’ and ‘The Lessons I’ve Learned’”
Thesis advisers: Christina Lee, Associate Professor of Spanish and Portuguese; Jhumpa Lahiri, Director and Professor of Creative Writing
Becky Colvin Memorial Award
Willow Dalehite ’22 and Katherine Irelan ’22, both in ecology and evolutionary biology, received 2021 Becky Colvin Memorial Awards, which are presented by HMEI and the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology to students in their junior year to provide support for travel, research supplies, and other expenses associated with field research for the senior thesis.
Dalehite, advised by Christina Riehl, assistant professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, will study the behavioral mechanisms and environmental factors that influence the social behaviors of a cooperatively breeding bird species — the Carolina wren – with implications for the evolution and conservation of the species.
Irelan, who is advised by Lars Hedin, the George M. Moffett Professor of Biology and professor of ecology and evolutionary biology and the High Meadows Environmental Institute, will study the impact of water stress on nutrient acquisition and below-ground traits of Leptecophylla tameiameiae – a model plant species — by observing its tolerance in different moisture environments with implications for its durability during prolonged and more frequent drought events.