CUGS at Trinity College

In Hartford’s South End, the legacy of environmental racism on Black and Latine communities continues to shape daily life. In a powerful reflection, Derin Atalay, Director of the Liberal Arts Action Lab, explores how Trinity College students, faculty, and community members are utilizing participatory research and storytelling to understand the injustices and promote dialogue about environmental equity through the Urban Environmental Justice in Greater Hartford Research Project.* Read the latest blog post on how Hartford’s South End turned shame into power and is claiming its right to clean air, clean water, and community-led restoration here: https://www.trincoll.edu/cher/blog/naming-shame-reclaiming-justice-a-reflection-on-environmental-racism-in-hartford/ Photos by: Mariangie Pena and Sarah McCoy *The Urban Environmental Justice in Greater Hartford project is a research collaboration between Trinity College’s @trincollcher Center for Caribbean Studies, and @trinitycugs with community partners at the @cljct and the @stowecenter . This 3-year project is funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The Mellon Grant facilitation sessions are brought to us by Stowe on the Go. Stowe on the Go is a mobile public history and dialogue program from the Stowe Center for Literary Activism, engaging communities in bold conversations about justice, equity, and activism through immersive, place-based storytelling. #EnvironmentalJustice #MellonGrant #TrincollCHER #StoweontheGo #CommunityResearch

Scavenger hunts around Tokyo, Noh theater and Judo demonstrations, and afterhours jaunts for food, music, and events - it’s all part of the student experience of Technos International Week. Dozens of Trinity students, faculty, and staff have experienced this fully funded trip to Tokyo supported by Technos College and the Tanaka Memorial Foundation, but it can be hard to describe exactly what the experience is like. Ugnė, Naisola, and Simal give an inside look in a new blog on the CUGS site. Check it out at the link in our bio!

Launching Research on Hartford Environmental Justice 🌿 In Spring 2025, we launched the Urban Environmental Justice in Greater Hartford* project with our community partners, conducting oral histories and PhotoVoice sessions through a Liberal Arts Action Lab project focused on trash management and environmental justice. This summer, our Urban Environmental Justice Corps students are continuing the work through oral history collection, archival research, and exhibit planning, laying the foundation for public exhibitions in Spring 2026. *The Urban Environmental Justice in Greater Hartford project is a research collaboration between Trinity College’s @trincollcher , Center for Caribbean Studies, and @trinitycugs , with community partners at the @cljct and the @stowecenter . This 3-year project is funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The Mellon Grant facilitation sessions are brought to us by Stowe on the Go. Stowe on the Go is a mobile public history and dialogue program from the Stowe Center for Literary Activism, engaging communities in bold conversations about justice, equity, and activism through immersive, place-based storytelling. #EnvironmentalJustice #MellonGrant #PublicHumanities #CommunityResearch

We’ve had a busy couple of weeks of visiting events around Hartford! Starting with the Connecticut Forum on global affairs at the Bushnell, then heading last week to the World Affairs Council discussion with Urban Ahlin, Ambassador of Sweden to the US, and today listening to the CT Main Street and Capital Region Council of Governments TOD summit. Thanks to the Office of Community Relations, Office of Study Away, and political science department for collaborating with us to bring students to these events and to @ctforum @ctwac @ctmainst for hosting! Third photo by Nick Caito

At 70 Vernon St, we are hosting a talk on China through the lens of Italian Filmmakers by Mary Ann Carolan, professor of Italian and Director of the Italian Studies Program At Fairfield University. Taking place on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, the Barbieri Endowment for Italian Culture, the Trinity College Urban Studies Program, and the Thomas Endowment for Urban China are co-sponsoring this event!

We’re very excited to post our Spring 2025 calendar! This semester we will be hosting 5 events featuring speakers and Marcuss Fellows presentations! RSVP in the bio for the Marcuss Fellows Dinner and Presentations.

Thanks Prof. Fiona Vernal from UConn for talking with us yesterday about capturing, storing, and sharing oral histories from the Hartford area! We had community action students, global cities students, and faculty and staff from across campus listening in at the CHER/CUGS headquarters at 70 Vernon yesterday.

😁last week at the Marcuss Fellows presentations! Rory Trani ‘24 and Hannah Lorenzo ‘24 wowed us with their research and tip top presentation skills. It’s always a joy to see Stan and Rosemary Marcuss and to share the work students are doing as part of this fellowship! Current juniors who are planning to write a thesis in urban studies (even if you aren’t an urban studies major) can apply to be a Marcuss Fellow by April 12, 2024 at the link in our bio.

Congratulations to Albert Ananyan ’24, who has been selected as #TrinColl’s first Schwarzman Scholar! He will join the @schwarzmanscholars 2024–25 cohort and will complete a one-year, fully-funded master’s degree program in global affairs at @tsinghua_una in Beijing, China. 🔗 Tap the link in bio to read more about Albert’s academic journey to this prestigious fellowship. #TrinProud 💙💛

The @scovillefellowship is an awesome opportunity for seniors or recent alum! This 6-9 month paid fellowship places recent graduates in Washington DC think tanks. Check out their Instagram or website for more information.

We’re very excited to host Professor Robinson all the way from London next Wednesday. All are welcome at this event! We’ll have lunch. Please note the location has changed to the Reese Room in the Smith House.

Ever wished you could spend a semester at the Trinity Rome campus to learn from our talented Italian faculty? We have the next best thing this J-term - Professor Piero Vereni will travel from Rome to Hartford to teach URST 305: Italian Capitals. Professor Vereni will have a special focus on Milan, Naples, Venice and Rome as he teaches about changing urban space over time in Italy. This .5 credit class is scheduled for January 2-12, 2024, in-person in Hartford. @trincoll.rome