Harvard Magazine

12/09/2024

On Saturday, December 7th, a small, private celebration took place in Menschel Hall at Harvard Art Museums to mark Alan M. Garber’s appointment as Harvard University's thirty-first president. Garber will serve through the end of the 2026-2027 academic year.



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A private ceremony celebrated Garber’s appointment as president.

12/06/2024

In Harvard Square, a group of mobile Monks is caring for the homeless. Three times a week—on Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays—a group of Capuchin friars from the Province of St. Mary hands out free food and supplies, making seven stops across Cambridge and Boston.

Capuchin friars bring food and supplies to Harvard Square’s homeless.

12/05/2024

Methane: although more short-lived in the atmosphere, this greenhouse gas has 80 times the warming potential of CO2. MethaneSAT, a washing-machine-sized satellite launched on a SpaceX rocket last March and designed by Harvard University researchers, is now collecting groundbreaking data on methane emissions worldwide.

How Harvard scientists hope to slow near-term climate change

12/05/2024

In a new class at Harvard University and Harvard Law School, students explored the concept of granting legal personhood to natural beings, including animals, plants, and ecological features. The rights of nature movement represents a different approach to conservation law than the one typically found in the United States. At the end of the course, students simulated amending the Massachusetts constitution, trying to enshrine a rights of nature provision.

A Harvard course explores legal personhood for natural beings.

12/05/2024

Do you value great journalism? Whether it’s coverage of the latest research and teaching, objective reporting on University news and policies, or stories by our undergraduate fellows, Harvard Magazine's editorial independence allows us to keep you connected to the University and the people who make Harvard such a fascinating place. But we can’t do it without you. Support your magazine's independent, high-quality writing and reporting by December 31. http://harvardmagazine.com/give

12/03/2024

On Tuesday, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law, accusing the opposition of ‘anti-state’ actions, including sympathizing with North Korea. The political landscape across South Korea has grown steadily polarized for years; Lee Junseok ’07 has been fighting these battles across party lines since he became, at 36, the youngest-ever leader of a major party in the country.

South Korea’s Lee Junseok tries to break old binaries.

12/02/2024

No paywall, just big ideas. Each Friday, we send out a free weekly email with a roundup of all content we've covered over the week, including research, happenings, and news around the Harvard University campus.

Sign up here to receive updates and opinions from, and about, the university: https://mailchi.mp/fb04ff53c200/thisweek

Illustration by Mark Steele for Harvard Magazine, 2022.

11/27/2024

The October 7th 2023 Hamas attacks were a “watershed moment,” according to Asim Ijaz Khwaja, the co-chair of Harvard University's task force on combating anti-Muslim, anti-Arab, and anti-Palestinian bias. Kwaja spoke on Monday evening with Aslı Ü. Bâli, a Yale scholar of international and human rights law, about the profound consequences of the past 13 months on American college campuses and American Muslims.

A Radcliffe Institute discussion on repression and free speech

11/26/2024

Does your Thanksgiving dinner make any difference in the context of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change? Experts from the fields of nutrition and environmental science from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health explain “sustainable eating.”

“Sustainable eating,” and healthy recipes you can prepare this Thanksgiving.

11/26/2024

Protesting on campuses last academic year over the Israel-Hamas war changed the face of higher education. Although the campus is far calmer this fall, differences of opinion about Harvard University's direction continue to divide; what schisms remain?

Questions about Harvard governance persist.

11/25/2024

On Monday afternoon, Penny Pritzker, senior fellow of the Harvard Corporation, talked about the governing board’s effort to engage more with the University community and its nascent work on the scheduled spring 2026 search for the next Harvard University president.

The Harvard Corporation’s senior fellow on governance and other issues

11/25/2024

In the 140th playing of The Game on Saturday, Harvard football lost to Yale 34-29. The victory snapped a seven-game winning streak, dropping the Crimson to 8-2 overall and 5-2 in Ivy League play—and a three-way tie for Ivy League championship.

A dispiriting Game yields a second straight three-way title tie.

11/22/2024

Started holiday shopping? 🎁📚🎄If you're looking for a gift for a family or friend this season, check out our list of recommended recent publications—on everything from boys and young men in modern culture to Chinese and Japanese Buddhist thought.

Books about the art and science of eating, on being Zen, helping youngsters grow up, and more

11/22/2024

A Chicago native and the son of Mexican immigrants, José Olivarez ’10 wrote about race, migration, language, and the contradictions of the first-generation immigrant experience in Citizen Illegal (2018). What can these poems teach in our present moment of American politics?

In José Olivarez’s poetry, the political is personal.

11/21/2024

Harvard landscape architect Bas Smets is redesigning the Notre-Dame cathedral grounds with climate change in mind. For ways to cool the outdoor space, Smets turns to nature. In a new exhibit Harvard Graduate School of Design, Smets showcases his microclimatic approach.

An exhibit on landscape architect Bas Smets

11/21/2024

Harvard football is taking on Yale THIS SATURDAY, November 23rd at 12pm EST (streaming live on ESPN), for the 140th playing of The Game. We tiny mic'd some Crimson fans—and here's what they said 🎤🏈

“The Game” is celebrating its 140th year. We tiny-mic’d some Crimson supporters.

11/20/2024

Today, Harvard University announced it will purchase two large renewable energy products: a 200 megawatt (MW) solar facility in Texas and a 208 MW wind facility in North Dakota. The agreement will help to offset greenhouse gas emissions from electricity.

Harvard enters partnership to advance sustainability goals.

11/18/2024

Tomorrow at 12pm EST (11am CST / 9am PST), Harvard Magazine Managing Editor Jonathan Shaw will be featured on The Attitude with Arnie Arnesen, streaming live on 👉http://wnhnfm.org. Shaw will discuss the U.S. housing crisis and proposed solutions. Read more in his most recent Feature from our November-December 2024 issue, "Home Unaffordable Home."

America’s housing problem—and what to do about it