John Palfrey ’94, J.D. ’01, a respected educator, author, legal scholar, and innovator with expertise in how new media is changing learning, education, and other institutions, will serve as the sixth president of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, effective Sept. 1, MacArthur Board Chairman Dan Huttenlocher announced March 5. Since 2012, Palfrey…

Walking down a dark alley, you might quicken your pace or even break out into a run — even if there is nothing there to harm you. Your instinct to flee is based on an ambiguous threat in your environment. But what part of your brain controls that response? How are those nebulous feelings relayed…

Many years before Uber and Lyft, there were jitney cabs: ride-share services created by and for black Americans discriminated against by taxi companies. It was a business idea that originated in the black community, as well as an innovation in the marketplace. It’s also just one example of a successful black industry excluded from the…

Nearly half of all childhood cancers are not being diagnosed globally, according to a new modeling study led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The study found that, in 2015, there were 397,000 cases of childhood cancer worldwide, but only 224,000 were diagnosed. And if health systems around the world don’t improve, the…

On Feb. 7 and 8, Harvard University Dining Services (HUDS) hosted a delegation of 20 guests from China in a cultural and culinary exchange called Food Forward, focused on sharing strategies and best practices for collegiate dining programs around nutritious and sustainable menus. During the two days, eight chefs and a dozen educators and advocates…

As entrepreneurial rocket companies come closer to shooting the first space tourist into the void, perhaps even this year, another reality is dawning: It’s tough to launch. Up until now, companies competing in the commercial space race have been blessed somewhat by the glamour of it all. Investors enthusiastically, maybe too much so, backed a…

Juan Manuel Santos, the former president of the Republic of Colombia and Nobel laureate, will deliver the graduation address to the Harvard Kennedy School Class of 2019, Dean Douglas Elmendorf announced today. Santos served as president of the Republic of Colombia from 2010 to 2018. While president, he reached agreement with FARC, a guerilla army,…

Thanks to greenhouse gases, the Earth’s climate is changing. One of the main sources of these gases is business. However, business is also the main source of new products, services, and business models that may save us from wholesale climate calamity. But what are businesses doing to address climate change? What can — and should…

Black women are three to four times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than white women, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—and a big reason for the disparity may be racism, say experts. “It’s basically a public health and human rights emergency because it’s been estimated that a significant portion of…

Michael S. Dosmann, Keeper of the Living Collections at the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, was recently named the 2019 recipient of the David Fairchild Medal for Plant Exploration in recognition of his outstanding contributions to botanical exploration and horticulture. Awarded by the National Tropical Botanical Garden (NTBG), the Fairchild Medal was presented to Dosmann at…

The Los Angeles Times announced Feb. 21 that one of its prestigious book prizes will be presented to Terry Tempest Williams, Harvard Divinity School’s (HDS) writer-in-residence. According to the Times, Williams will receive the Robert Kirsch Award, a lifetime achievement prize “given to a writer with a substantial connection to the American West.” Williams has been called “a…

Across the U.S., bicycling rates are on the rise among low-income residents and people of color. But cycling infrastructure in cities, such as dedicated bike lanes, are often lacking in low-income or minority neighborhoods, and riders there a face higher risk of accidents and crashes. A new study from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public…

The Harvard Art Museums are pleased to announce the appointment of Melanie Sheffield as chief development officer, a new leadership position in the museums’ Office of Institutional Advancement; she will assume the role on March 4, 2019. The chief development officer will provide strategic direction for the planning and execution of all functions related to…

The Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation, a research center at Harvard Kennedy School, was rated a top university-affiliated think tank and listed as one of the best transparency and good governance think tanks in the latest edition of the “Global Go To Think Tank Index Report.” The index, produced annually by James McGann,…

The more a country relies on coal-fired power plants to generate energy, the greater the lung cancer risk is among its citizens, according to a new study from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The study was published on Jan. 28, 2019 in the journal Environmental Health. Most estimates of health risks from coal-fired…

The 109th annual Christmas Carol Service raised more than $13,000 for Y2Y Harvard Square, a youth homeless shelter founded and run by Harvard students. The annual carol service in the sanctuary of the Memorial Church is the oldest carol service in the nation. Each year, donations are taken at the end of each of two services…

The Harvard Museum of Natural History (HMNH) announced the new Climate Change exhibit that draws on the latest scientific information about our warming climate, the global and local consequences, and how to both reduce the fossil fuel emissions that cause it and prepare for its effects. Developed in collaboration with the Harvard University Center for…

Men who have smoked marijuana at some point in their life had significantly higher concentrations of sperm when compared with men who have never smoked marijuana, according to new research led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The study, conducted in the Fertility Clinic at Massachusetts General Hospital, also found that there was…

The Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation today announced the launch of the Innovation Field Lab New York, a new two-year program comprising data-driven experimentation and real-time policy innovation to improve neighborhoods in 10 cities in the state of New York. The program supports city leaders through data-analytic support, applied research, and executive education…

Six National Football League head coaches were fired on Dec. 31, or “Black Monday,” as it’s known in the sport. The infamous tradition begins immediately after the conclusion of each NFL regular season and represents efforts by underperforming teams to make leadership changes. This story is not unique to sports, of course. Based on surveys with executives…

Companies are facing a growing yet largely undetected threat to their worker productivity, employee retention, and competitive advantage: the needs of employees who are caregivers. The aging population, an increasingly female workforce, and the tightest job market in half a century make supporting caregivers a critical talent management issue, according to the new report, “The…

The burden of colorectal cancer is staggering. In 2018, it was the third-most commonly diagnosed cancer among both men and women in the U.S., and data indicate that younger adults are increasingly being diagnosed with it. To help develop new treatments and preventive measures to stop the disease, Cancer Research UK has awarded roughly $26…

The Harvard University Choir is taking its brand of American choral music to Britain, the cradle and keeper of a rich Christian choral tradition. The choir is scheduled to depart Boston on Sunday for a week-long tour of performances at several of England’s most prestigious university chapels and London-area cathedrals. The tour includes concerts at…

Burnout among the nation’s physicians has become so pervasive that a new paper published today by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, the Harvard Global Health Institute, the Massachusetts Medical Society, and the Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association (MHA) has deemed the condition a public health crisis. The paper includes directives aimed toward…

The strains of Bach, Stravinsky, and jazz aren’t the only sounds coming from the Music Department and the Eda Kuhn Loeb Music Library lately.  On most Friday afternoons the sound of knitting needles and can be heard clattering away. The weekly knitting circle, currently composed of graduate students, staff, and anyone affiliated with the department…

Martin Luther King Jr. would have turned 90 this year. While his name and his contribution to the U.S. Civil Rights Movement are revered, some wonder if King’s legacy is in jeopardy amid a resurgence of racism, xenophobia, and hate crimes in the United States. Moreover, while the African-American church was the foundation for King’s activism and organizing,…

In two recently released papers, a pair of scholars affiliated with Harvard Kennedy School’s Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation take a close look at how urban leaders are grappling with the quick pace of technological and regulatory change in America’s cities today. In “Reforming Mobility Management: Rethinking the Regulatory Framework,” Stephen Goldsmith, Daniel Paul…

Harvard’s students were still on break, but from Jan. 7-11, class was in session. Harvard University Dining Services (HUDS) took advantage of a rare downtime on campus to host 226 hourly employees and 44 managers for a first-of-its-kind week-long training. “We’re a large department,” noted David Davidson, managing director for HUDS, “and also an extremely busy…