Alumni Notes: New Projects, a New Handbook, and More A global sample of science reporting from KSJ alumni and inside perspectives on their new projects.

Alumni Work Inspired by KSJ

A New Science Journalism Handbook

Andrada Fiscutean (‘20) coordinated the first Romanian science journalism handbook with colleague Cristina Radu. They brought the project to life with a microgrant from EurekAlert! and the Balkan Network of Science Journalists. Fiscutean said of the project, “For us, it wasn’t just about creating a resource for our students—we both teach at the University of Bucharest—but also about building a community of passionate science journalists dedicated to raising the bar in the field.” 

The handbook includes input from over 20 journalists and content creators. It is currently a digital document, what Fiscutean described as, “a version 0 of the project.” The team will continue to refine the project, implementing input from the community. Fiscutean cites her time at KSJ as a key inspiration behind this effort, “ I feel incredibly lucky to have had that opportunity to study at MIT and Harvard, and when I returned to Romania, I really wanted to find ways to give back and contribute to growing the local science journalism community.”

Started at KSJ

Virginia Gewin (‘21) used her time as a KSJ project fellow to conduct more in-depth reporting on air quality monitoring in environmental justice communities in the US. In a piece for Grist, she investigates how EPA funding to deliver air quality monitors to environmental justice communities is more complicated than it initially seemed. The piece unpacks how “state regulatory agencies don’t have to heed these monitors and some states even passed (or attempted to) legislation to block the use of community-based air quality monitoring in regulatory or legal affairs.” 

Trying Something New

Meera Subramanian (‘17) published a personal essay in the fall issue of the Virginia Quarterly Review. Subramanian described writing the piece, “While bits of memoir slip into my science writing, ‘A Measure of Gratitude‘ is a deeply personal piece that I was reluctant to write for years, but it finally felt like it was time. It’s about the power of female friendships and the burden of gratitude. It’s about sickness and health. The prospect of dying and the act of living. It’s about seeking and hoping and letting go and finding. There is cancer, the extraction of healthy body parts, applied philosophy, and love. Lots of love.”

​​Susan Phillips (‘14) did a vertical video series about climate solutions videos for WHYY. The videos showcase residents implementing small-scale climate solutions in their local area. Until this project, Phillips has covered the climate through web and radio. This was her first time using video and reporting in front of the camera.

Yves Sciama (‘14) published “At the end of the earth with Paul-Antoine Libourel” for The Transmitter. This was his first 4000-word story written and published in English. He shared that this project— about a French researcher working with chinstrap penguins in the Antarctic —was “a lot of work, but I feel it was worth it.” 

Changes Behind the Desk

Meera Subramanian (‘17) is one of ten science journalists (and the only American) who make up the second cohort in the FRONTIERS Science Journalism Residency Programme. 

Kai Kupferschmidt (‘24) is the ninth Nature Marsilius Visiting Professor at Heidelberg University.

Reto U. Schneider (‘98) will be a journalist in residence at the Complexity Science Hub in Vienna from February to April 2025.

Awards

Rebecca Boyle (‘22) published her debut book, Our Moon, in January. It has since been long-listed for the National Book Award in nonfiction and joined other honorees at the Miami Book Fair in November. 

In the News

In addition to articles that alumni have sent to KSJ directly, this section includes a compendium by Federico Kukso (‘16) highlighting a global sample of reporting by KSJ alumni.

Kai Kupferschmidt (‘24): “Like ‘old Twitter’: The scientific community finds a new home on Bluesky,” Science. 

Dyna Rochmyaningsih (‘24): “For Indonesian oil palm farmers, EU’s deforestation law is another top-down imposition,” Mongabay.

Eva Wolfangel (‘20): “Learning to program – can that be eliminated? Software developers explain which skills will be relevant in the future,” in German, Die Zeit.

Jason Dearen (‘19) and Michael Biesecker: “Polluted waste from Florida’s fertilizer industry is in the path of Milton’s fury,” AP.

Tim De Chant (‘19) and Rebecca Szkutak: “Climate VCs are cautiously optimistic about a second Trump term — here’s why,” TechCrunch.

Teresa Carr (‘18): “Could an Old Drug Protect Against a New Pandemic?,” Undark.

Iván Carrillo (‘17): “Hunting: killing for conservation?,” Dialogue Earth.

Zack Colman (‘16): “What the ‘show me the money’ climate summit tells us about the new Trump era,” Politico.

Federico Kukso (‘16): “Planetary highways: this is how space missions trace their routes,” in Spanish, Agencia SINC.

Betsy Mason (‘16): “What do jumping spiders find sexy? How DIY tech is offering insights into the animal mind,” MIT Technology Review.

Rod McCollom (‘16): “Cultural Competency in Health Care Can Save Lives,” Scientific American. 

Giovana Girardi (‘15): “How geopolitics impacted the poor outcome of COP29,” in Portuguese, Agência Pública.

Yves Sciama (‘14): “Biodiversity: Species are moving, scientists are perplexed,” in French, Mediapart.

Dan Falk (‘12): “The Mysterious Impact of Music on the Brain and Body,” Undark.

Valeria Román (‘05): “Six myths about the dengue mosquito debunked by science,” in Spanish, Infobae.

Angela Posada-Swafford (‘01): “The surprising tricks cacti use to survive the harshest climates on Earth,” National Geographic.

Steve Nadis (‘98): “Stars behaving absurdly,” AEON.