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Dear friends of VTIPG and the Community Change Collaborative,
We share five articles each week that we find timely and meaningful that address concerns related to the state of our democracy and civil society. We aim to offer pieces that illuminate significant dimensions of our country's policy and governance challenges and the state of social norms that sustain the possibility of addressing those concerns. Please note, the views expressed in these essays do not necessarily reflect the perspectives of VTIPG faculty or staff or of Virginia Tech. We upload these articles and stories to our website. You may find that archive at News and Opportunities at http://ipg.vt.edu. Thank you to IPG's Community-Based Research Manager Lara Nagle for suggesting an NPR article for use this week.
If you would like to suggest an article for consideration, please contact the address below.
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Our first piece this week comes from Cardinal News. It described how Virginia Tech researchers are currently testing underwater vehicles (AUVs) for use ultimately to remove microplastics from the Chesapeake Bay.
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A second selection, from National Public Radio (NPR), examined how a second Trump administration will actively promote oil and natural gas as principal forms of energy, in line with previous Republican administrations.
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Reuters published our third story describing how President-Elect Donald Trump is planning to use the Justice Department to challenge diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies at companies and universities.
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A fourth article, from The New York Times, examined the radical Christian nationalist views held by Pete Hegseth, President Elect Trump's proposed nominee to serve as U.S. Secretary of Defense.
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Last, we feature a piece from the Associated Press that discussed the collapse of the Bashar Assad regime in Syria.
Brief synopses of these articles appear below. We hope the perspectives they offer encourage reflection and conversation!
Best wishes,
Billy Parvatam
VTIPG Communications Coordinator
pbilly97@vt.edu.
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Photo: Stephen Krauss (left) and Ben Biggs prepare an underwater autonomous vehicle in 2022, for launch at Claytor Lake, part of a Virginia Tech experiment to learn about microplastics. Krauss, then a doctoral candidate at the university, now is a research associate there. Biggs, who was also a doctoral candidate, is now a senior autonomy engineer at Johns Hopkins University. Credit to Virginia Tech. |
Virginia Tech drone sub fleet will search for microplastics in Chesapeake Bay
In this article, Tad Dickens of Cardinal News discussed Virginia Tech scientists from the Center for Marine Autonomy and Robotics preparations to use autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) to search for, and dispose of, microplastics in the Chesapeake Bay. In particular the 690 AUV, which began testing this summer at Claytor Lake in Pulaski County, Va, is equipped with satellite and radio frequency Wi-Fi and an acoustic modem to collect digital data that travels as sound waves underwater. The team expects to test two such AUVs at the Lake by the end of the year and to have them functioning in the Bay during 2025.
Dickens, T. (2024, December 5). "Virginia Tech drone sub fleet will search for microplastics in Chesapeake Bay." Cardinal News. https://cardinalnews.org/2024/12/05/virginia-tech-drone-sub-fleet-will-search-for-microplastics-in-chesapeake-bay/
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Photo: President-Elect Donald Trump. Credit to Wikipedia. | |
Under Trump, an 'all of the above' energy policy is poised for a comeback
This story, by NPR’s Camila Domonoske, reported that the incoming Trump administration will actively promote oil and natural gas exploration and use. Chris Wright, President-Elect Trump’s nominee to serve as Secretary of Energy, supports an "all-of-the-above energy policy," which assumes that oil and natural gas will serve as a primary energy source for the nation for the long-term. More generally, green energy will not be a priority for Trump, who has dismissed climate change as a hoax. However, Domonoske argued that alternative energy sources could still have a place in his administration for two reasons. First, they are produced domestically, thereby helping to keep the U.S. from becoming more dependent on foreign imports, an argument popular with many Republicans. Secondly, the wind and solar industries are quite important to the economies of several Red States, including Texas, Oklahoma, and North Dakota.
Domonoske, C. (2024, December 9). "Under Trump, an 'all of the above' energy policy is poised for a comeback." NPR. https://www.npr.org/2024/12/09/nx-s1-5220305/trump-energy-policy-oil-renewables
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Photo: Then-Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump at an election night watch party at the Palm Beach Convention Center, November 6th, 2024. Credit to Politico. | |
DOJ v. DEI: Trump's Justice Department likely to target diversity programs
This NPR article suggested that President-Elect Donald Trump is planning to use the Justice Department (DOJ) and other federal agencies to challenge diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies at companies and universities. His administration will likely launch investigations and bring lawsuits challenging these policies by arguing that they violate anti-discrimination laws. Trump’s plans include recasting the DOJ Civil Rights Division to advocate against policies designed to benefit Black people and other marginalized communities, the clear opposite of what the division was founded to undertake in 1957. Protracted legal wrangling is likely to thwart Trump’s efforts to secure radical change quickly.
Goudsward, A. (2024, December 10). "DOJ v. Dei: Trump’s Justice Department likely to target diversity programs." Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/doj-v-dei-trumps-justice-department-likely-target-diversity-programs-2024-12-10
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Photo: Pete Hegseth, President-Elect Donald Trump's nominee to serve as U.S Secretary of Defense. Credit to Wikipedia. | |
Pete Hegseth and his 'battle cry' for a new Christian Crusade
This New York Times article discussed Secretary of Defense nominee Pete Hegseth's Christian nationalist views and how those could affect his potential tenure. In particular, he has a fascination for the Crusades, in which Christian soldiers from western Europe embarked on military campaigns to seize control of Jerusalem and other areas then under Islamic rule. Hegseth’s radical views have long been a staple of the far right, which employed Crusades language and iconography at its August 2017 Unite the Right Rally in Charlottesville, Virginia and during its January 6th, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Baker, M., & Graham, R. (2024, December 5). "Pete Hegseth and his “battle cry” for a new Christian crusade." The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/05/us/hegseth-church-crusades.html
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Photo: Bashar al-Assad, who served as the 19th President of Syria from 2000-2024. Credit to NPR. | |
The fall of Bashar Assad after 13 years of war in Syria brings to an end a decades-long dynasty
This Associated Press article reported that Syrian President Bashar Assad had fled that country, concluding his tumultuous 14-year presidency. Although there was hope that he could be a reformer due to his western education when he assumed power following his father’s death, he instead ruled harshly and eventually turned to brutal tactics to crush dissent with support from Iran and Russia. Assad's fall ends decades of family dictatorial rule in Syria.
Karam, Z., & Sewell, A. (2024, December 8). "The fall of Bashar Assad after 13 years of war in Syria brings to an end a decades-long dynasty." Associated Press. https://apnews.com/article/syria-bashar-assad-war-1468a97ff95bb782f5933856d99c9a8d
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