In the English Department of the College of Arts and Sciences, Humanities Fellow Amber Aslaigh ’22 worked with Professor Elizabeth Petrino, PhD, on her project “The American Oceanic Sublime,” which studied how Lydia Sigourney and Emily Dickinson portray the experience of the sublime through an environmental lens. “My research project, in conjunction with my Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies capstone, encouraged me to consider different literary ideas through a more interdisciplinary approach,” said Aslaigh, whose work earned her a full scholarship for PhD studies at the University of Indiana. “The insights in critical thinking and analysis that I gained as an undergraduate continue to help me consider works of literature through various lenses at the graduate level.”
Dr. Petrino predicts that The Center for Climate, Coastal, and Marine Studies will offer even greater opportunities for students and faculty to explore unique approaches to literature and culture. “Fairfield University has demonstrated its commitment to understanding the human experience through the launch of this interdisciplinary center,” she said. “Students and faculty will be able to address major social and scientific concerns through a variety of lenses in exciting new ways.”
Diverse Disciplines to Tackle Climate Change
Headquartered in Donnarumma Hall on the North Benson campus, a primary goal of the Center for Climate, Coastal, and Marine Studies is to promote inter- and trans-disciplinary research that bridges the gaps between various fields of study. “I wear the hat of climate scientist and physical oceanographer at Fairfield,” said Dr. Nazarian, “but there are also faculty in anthropology looking at how climate change impacts migration. We have faculty in the School of Education and Human Development looking at climate anxiety and climate literacy. There are faculty looking at sea-level rise economics. It’s a cross-section of the whole university.”
The center will support the research of close to 30 full-time faculty members from diverse disciplines across all of Fairfield’s professional schools and the College of Arts & Sciences, according to a key collaborator on the initiative, Margaret McNamara McClure, PhD, associate vice provost for research and scholarship, and professor of psychological and brain sciences. “This interdisciplinary approach ensures that our research is comprehensive and impactful,” she said.
Alongside Fairfield students conducting summer research this year, Dr. Nazarian and Charles F. Dolan School of Business economics professor William Fernando Vasquez Mazariegos, PhD, collaborated with alumna Jennifer Trudeau ’09, PhD, on a climate science and economics project to analyze Connecticut beach-goers’ willingness to pay for adaptation and mitigation efforts to address rising sea levels at coastal state parks.
“Real-life problems are complex and their solutions don’t lie in a single discipline,” said Dr. Vasquez Mazariegos. “They require a good understanding of climate sciences, engineering, politics, and economics, among other aspects.”
From an economic standpoint, Dr. Vasquez Mazariegos noted that their project is important to coastal tourism and the recreational services provided to visitors and Connecticut residents. “Our research may yield support for protecting policies that provide low-cost access to beaches.”
Many of the new center’s initial research themes will concentrate on both the local and global implications of the effects of climate change on the Long Island Sound region — an area critical to environmental and community health. “By concentrating on the Long Island Sound,” said Dr. McClure, “we are not only helping to protect a vital ecosystem, but also providing valuable insights that can inform broader climate policies and practices.”
