2025 is off to a fruitful start! All of our programs are feeling invigorated and ready to tackle the new year.

In Atlanta, our BridgeUP STEM participants concluded their final data science projects and presented them to their peers. The projects were sophisticated analyses where students posed their own research questions, obtained their own data, scrubbed the dataset (including identifying outliers), and ran data visualizations and analyses to generate practical insights. Projects this year were incredible, with some being exceptionally noteworthy:

One Scholar explored global climate change and country emissions (net, and per capita) over a 60 year period. Students determined that Qatar has the highest emission rate per capita, and that overall emissions have actually been declining globally except in Asia, which had a number of outliers. Another group explored persistence/attrition in college by factors such as major, demographics, etc. This team created novel data visualizations of a nested pie chart within a pie chart to display intersectional data (attrition vs persistence by race and gender) that impressed both Dr. Rong and Dr. Hovey.

Having the students engage in research projects that exercise the computer science skills they are learning allows them to apply the subject to real world context. It is so exciting to see the different directions students go in when given the opportunity to explore their passions.

In our Empowering Women vertical, BOLD Scholar, Angelina V. attended the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) National Advocacy Institute program. After applying, and getting accepted to the program, she was ready to spend four days on site at NYU’s Law School.

“It was truly an incredible experience surrounded by social justice leaders, lawyers, attorneys, policy advocates, nonprofit organizers, and students from across the country. I felt empowered to keep pushing forward, even during challenging times with so many pressing social issues.”

Mina Morita (she/her) is a celebrated new plays director who was recently awarded the Woolly Mammoth BOLD Resident Director & Creative Producer position, located in Washington D.C., as part of the BOLD Theater Women’s Leadership Circle. She has directed for: Australia’s National Theatre of Parramatta and La Boite, The Guthrie Theatre, Yale Repertory Theatre, and more. Previously, Mina served as the Leader of Artistic Curation & Strategy as part of the Shared Leadership Team in 2023 and Artistic Director from 2015-2022 at Crowded Fire Theater Company. Welcome, Mina!

The Brown Institute is offering a variety of exciting events in the coming months. They are offering a four-week workshop series to introduce students to spatial investigative and visualization techniques called Points Unknown. News unfolds in places and every newsworthy event is shaped by the details of location. Those details might include the specifics of a neighborhood as it is today or of the history leading to its current configuration.

They also hosted an event on Columbia’s campus, in conjunction with Barnard, around its new exhibit, Trigger Planting 2.0. The exhibit explores the changing conditions of reproductive rights in the United States and across the world. Brown’s panelists speakers explored data and reporting in this space, emphasizing the power of visualization, the nature of privacy, and the importance of humanizing data.

Lastly at the Brown Institute, the winner of the first Marco Cosio Fellowship has been announced! At the end of 2024, the Brown Institute for Media Innovation announced the first fellowship competition in honor of the late Marco Castro Cosio, an artist, technologist, organizer, convener, educator, and a beloved member of the Brown Institute.  The grant will be awarded annually and consists of $10,000 in fiscal sponsorship and a residency at the Brown Institute at Columbia Journalism School. It aims to support emerging creators and researchers dedicated to impactful, interdisciplinary work in tech, media, and the arts. This year, the winner is Lorena (Lolo) Ostia. She is a Peruvian-born, New York based multidisciplinary artist, educator and researcher. Through her work, she explores sustainable art practices, incorporating microbes, bacterial cellulose, recycled objects and bioplastics made from renewable sources. 

“As part of the Marco Castro Cosio Media Art and Technology Fellowship, I will explore the shared histories of Mexico and Peru, focusing on ancestral practices disrupted by colonization. By working with biomaterials — like microorganisms, natural dyes, and soil — I aim to reconnect with these traditions. This project honors ancestral knowledge, uplifts marginalized perspectives, and envisions a more sustainable, inclusive future through creativity. Through a decolonial lens, my project will highlight the hidden ecosystems behind natural dyes and their cultural significance using advanced microscopy. As a migrant artist, I find peace and belonging in working with living materials, which reflect my experiences of displacement and adaptation.”

One of our newest Venture Together recipients, YJC (Youth Journalism Coalition), hosted their inaugural kickoff event at CUNY Newmark Graduate School of Journalism. It was wonderful to see the embodiment of all the initiative’s elements come together in one room – public officials, teachers, students, foundation funders, and evaluators. The kickoff was an actualization of this organization’s vision, bringing together their target communities in a thoughtful and engaging way. Additionally, the first cohort of selected teachers stayed for an additional afternoon session that entailed their initial professional development training from the CUNY developed curriculum. To see so much come together from August when we first granted these funds, to now, is tremendous progress. It was exciting to be in a room with other likeminded folks who share our vision and values for empowering change and civic impact! 

In January, YJC also hosted a stellar roundtable of students, City representatives, and DOE leaders, including the First Deputy Chancellor, Dan Weisber. Students presented on the progress of the Journalism for All initiative, shared personal anecdotes as to why it matters to them, and engaged DOE leaders in conversation about their commitment to scaling the initiative and complying with City legislation that would bolster it. Incredible work! 

Tune in next month for fresh updates from the Foundation. Until then, dream big!