Media Coverage

The December issue of National Geographic has an extended feature on the thousands of tigers kept in captivity in the United States, and Associate Professor of Environmental Studies is quoted about the history of the animals in the country. The article is headed, "Captive Tigers in the U.S. Outnumber Those in the Wild. It's a Problem: Some are in roadside zoos. Some are pets. Many are abused. A lack of regulation on big cats is putting animals and humans at risk." Full text of the article was published online Nov. 14

Several Colby students who will participate in the Greenlight Maine Collegiate Challenge Nov. 16 at Thomas College are featured in a WABI-5 television news article about their business plans, the upcoming competition for $25,000 in startup funding, and the coworking space they share. Four of the students featured are from Colby and are part of Jumpstart Maine, a group that fosters business ideas for college students working together in the Bricks Coworking & Innovation Space in Waterville's Hathaway Creative Center. Nick Rimsa '13, also featured, is a founder of Jumpstart. At the statewide competition, Christian Krohg ’22 and Katie Dougherty ’22 will pitch their business Easy Eats, a food delivery system where students can place orders from local restaurants to be delivered to their dorm rooms by other college students. Torsten Brinkema ’22 will compete with Weart Apparel that he founded to support and share works of young artists through apparel items. Lastly, Joshua Kim '22 will present Sklaza, an online market place specific to each college for students to exchange items.

In connection with the 550th anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev's birth, India's largest independent news service quoted Crawford Family Professor of Religion Nikky-Guninder Kaur Singh about celebrations. On OutlookIndia.com the IANS story relates Singh's observation that Sikhs and non-Sikhs are increasingly coming together to celebrate Guru Nanak, the first Sikh. Such celebrations, including when Colby's valedictorian recited Guru Nanak's hymn at a baccalaureate service, are moments of "collective effervescence"and are enormously meaningful, she said. In a quote from her book The First Sikh: The Life and Legacy of Guru Nanak, Singh says "the feeling here is not a simple tolerance of people of other faiths, or adding aspects from different faiths into a syncretic blend; to the contrary, it is real respect for and rejoicing in the difference and distinctive richness of our shared humanity."

Infobae.com, a major news website based in Argentina, interviewed Professor of Government Anthony Corrado about the 2020 U.S. presidential election one year out from the vote. In the story Corrado discussed differences between Democratic candidates Joe Biden and Elizabeth Warren as well as issues dividing Republicans and Democrats. Corrado also considered potential effects of the impeachment inquiry on voting. Infobae.com is publish in Spanish and is primarily viewed in Argentina, Mexico, Peru, Colombia, Spain, and the United States.

Assistant Professor of Government Laura Seay is quoted discussing China's role in Africa and the development of self-governance in African countries during the Cold War in an online article in theatlantic.com. Published in August 2019, the piece begins, "No belief in the history of the United States has been more threatening to democracy than the certainty that only white people are fit for self-government."

One hundred twenty-four students from 10 colleges and universities gathered on Mayflower Hill Nov. 9 to examine how they might work together to mitigate the effects of climate change. The inaugural Maine College Climate Action Summit highlighted the power of youth and the need for collaboration to implement change, the Central Maine Morning Sentinel reported.

When Safiya Khalid, an immigrant from Somalia, was elected to the Lewiston, Maine, city council with 70 percent of the vote Nov. 5, the Lewiston Sun Journal interviewed Catherine Besteman, Colby's Bartlett Professor of Anthropology and author of a book about Somali Bantus who sought refuge and established a substantial community in Lewiston. Khalid, 23, drew national attention as a candidate in part because of uncivil online comments by Internet trolls during her campaign. Besteman told the newspaper that Khalid's victory, "happened for a political reason: She is the future of Lewiston and most people in Lewiston see that.” Somali refugees have stepped forward in the larger community, Besteman said, in part because Somali culture values participatory democracy.

When Today on NBC compiled its list "Five Things Introverts Can Teach People," the show quoted Associate Professor of Psychology Christopher Soto on knowing when to say "no" and on not oversharing. “Extroverts are more at risk of … just dumping things on people and disclosing too much information and not having a filter,” Soto said for the Nov. 7 online feature.

In its "Connections" feature, the Nov. 1 Boston Globe Magazine published an essay by Lloyd Benson '73 about a dozen friends who regularly get together now a half century since their arrival at Colby. "These men have beaten the odds to stay friends for 50 years," the headline announced. "The resulting friendships have seen them through life's ups and downs."

Central Maine’s economy is trending upwards, and Colby has a lot to do with it, the executive director of FirstPark writes in a Central Maine Newspapers oped. Colby is leading the way with $1.5 billion in statewide economic output linked to the College over the last five years, and "local businesses are following suit, developing new, cutting-edge ideas and seeing them through to produce real-world benefits," writes Jim Dinkle. The Community Compass column was published Nov. 4 in the Morning Sentinel and Kennebec Journal newpapers.