On October 7, students, faculty, and community members gathered at the first Log Lunch of the month to hear from students Angela Hsuan Chen ’23 and Jahnavi Kirtane ’24. Both Angela and Jahnavi received Center for Environmental Studies grants to pursue research opportunities over the summer, and both were well-prepared to share their takeaways with Log Lunch-goers.
Angela spoke first, presenting on her work in riparian forests in northern Sweden. Her work focused on forest buffers, which are remaining strips of forest along a river that preserve the ecosystem and soil after trees have been harvested. Angela’s research collaborated with the local forestry industry as well as the Indigenous Sámi tribe. On the day to day, Angela measured tree width and worked to identify tree taxa. She also collected data on soil and vegetation diversity, and even used jelly cups implanted with nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus to measure those nutrient concentrations in rivers. For Angela, the biggest challenge was adjusting to viewing the trees as crops and commodities for forestry, as opposed to the purpose they serve here on campus as natural elements in a beautiful setting. As a Biology major with a concentration in Environmental Studies and Spanish, Angela is finishing her career at Williams with a thesis on fungi in Hopkins Forest.
Jahnavi spent her summer a little closer to Williamstown, in Lynn, Massachussetts, writing the first ever comprehensive plan for the city. Jahnavi framed city planning as the work of strengthening the relationship between the built and natural environment. She started with a brief history of city planning, describing how the policies of city planning were top-down in the past, often displacing communities of color and excluding their needs and perspectives from the plan itself. Jahnavi’s team prioritized a variety of voices in structuring this new plan, providing a survey for Lynn’s citizens in multiple languages to cater to the immigrant population in Lynn. Jahnavi herself collected data the geographic makeup of businesses, non-profits, and other resources in the city to see where the need is for new infrastructure. For example, she saw that communities of color experience a scarcity of playgrounds. For Jahnavi, collecting this geographical data enforced the importance of physical space and how it shapes our day-to-day experience. As an American Studies and Environmental Studies double major with a minor in Africana Studies, Jahnavi understands city planning as the intersection of data collection with social and environmental justice that is geared towards community engagement and inclusivity.
Both Angela and Jahnavi expressed their gratitude for the Williams network in helping them access these opportunities and pursue their interests. Angela noted how she had gotten this position through a colleague of her biology professor Sonya Auer, and Jahnavi worked under a Williams alum who was a fellow American Studies major. With the grant from CES, Angela was able to delve into her interest at the intersection of ecology and policy in forest management practices, and Jahnavi could apply her passion for environmental justice and build a more inclusive and sustainable future.
The Log Lunch cooks whipped up a delicious meal of kohlrabi and carrot fritters, garlic yogurt sauce, lemon tahini slaw, spiced chickpeas, and brown butter miso chocolate chip cookies for dessert.
Log Lunch is a CES program hosted every Friday at noon. During Log Lunch, a vegetarian meal prepared by Williams students is served, followed by a talk on an environmental topic. Speakers are drawn from both the student body and faculty of Williams, as well as from local, national, and international organizations. Learn more here.
BY CAMPBELL LEONARD ’25
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