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2021 Press Releases

July 30, 2021
Climate change poses threat to ‘tuna dependent’ Pacific Islands economies
Shifting distributions of key tuna species could have serious economic impacts for island nations in the Western and Central Pacific, according to a new paper coauthored by Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies Katherine Seto.
July 29, 2021
Oakes Founding Provost J. Herman Blake receives lifetime achievement award
Professor Emeritus of Sociology and Founding Provost of Oakes College J. Herman Blake is being recognized by the American Sociology Association for his distinguished career spent advancing access and equity in education.
July 22, 2021
Dickens Universe celebrates 40th anniversary with ‘A Christmas Carol’
This summer, the Dickens Project at UC Santa Cruz—the largest multi-campus consortium on Victorian studies in the world—will present the 40th year of the Dickens Universe, a week of intense study and festivities.
July 22, 2021
Racial and colonial histories offer insights on refugee crisis in ‘The Black Mediterranean’
Assistant Professor of Sociology and Critical Race and Ethnic Studies Camilla Hawthorne coedited a first-of-its-kind new book called "The Black Mediterranean," which examines the African diaspora within the region.
July 21, 2021
UC Santa Cruz Foundation Board of Trustees has elected Richard Moss to serve as chair, and Linda Peterson as vice chair; Paul Simpson elected as new member
The UC Santa Cruz Foundation Board of Trustees has elected Richard Moss to serve as chair, Linda Peterson to serve as vice chair, Kamil Hasan to serve as immediate past chair, and re-elected Paul Hall to serve as parliamentarian.
July 20, 2021
Susana Ruiz awarded ACLS digital grant to develop VR documentary of 2011 Egyptian Uprising
UC Santa Cruz assistant film and digital media professor Susana Ruiz has received a 2021 Digital Extension Grant of $150,000 from The American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) for her project, Arab Data Bodies: Social Media in Mixed Reality.
July 20, 2021
Blazing a Slug trail to the Olympics
Rhythmic gymnast Izzy Connor will be the first UC Santa Cruz student to compete in the Olympics—the result of years of both personal struggle and success.
July 19, 2021
UC Santa Cruz admits fall class that reflects excellence, diversity
UC Santa Cruz anticipates welcoming about 6,100 new Banana Slugs this fall, concluding an admissions cycle that began with record applications and has yielded a new cohort that reflects the campus commitment to excellence, equity, and opportunity.
July 16, 2021
History professor wins prize for article on post-Civil War incarceration of African American children
Associate professor of history Catherine Jones has been honored with the 2021 Richards Prize for the best article published in The Journal of the Civil War Era in 2020. The journal explores how knowledge of the Civil War era informs our understanding of 21st-century politics and society.
July 15, 2021
Statistical analysis quantifies how chemistry undergraduates benefit from graduate student diversity
A study of chemistry lab courses at UC Santa Cruz suggests that diversity among graduate student teaching assistants may be among the most essential factors in retaining underrepresented minority undergraduates in STEM courses.
July 13, 2021
‘Precarity & Belonging’ captures insights from global discussion of citizenship, migration, socioeconomic mobility
A new book from an interdisciplinary group of UC Santa Cruz scholars culminates more than five years of collaborative research and discussion that positioned the university as a convener of global thought leaders.
July 12, 2021
Haziness of exoplanet atmospheres depends on properties of aerosol particles
A laboratory study of haze particles produced under different conditions helps explain why some exoplanets may be obscured by hazy atmospheres.
July 09, 2021
Seymour Center welcomes new executive director
After an extensive search, the UC Santa Cruz Seymour Marine Discovery Center has chosen Jonathan Andres Hicken to be its new executive director.
July 08, 2021
Model reveals interactions between rivers and fault lines
Researchers created a model that uses the movement at fault lines to understand river flow and vice versa.
July 06, 2021
Library’s new Community Archiving Program to broaden scope of Regional History Project
The University Library has announced the establishment of a new Community Archiving Program that will build on the foundation of its decades-old Regional History Project.
July 02, 2021
Unusual currents explain mysterious red crab strandings
New findings suggest that abnormal ocean currents cause the occasional appearance of pelagic red crabs outside their native range.
July 02, 2021
Quantitative ecologist Kai Zhu wins NSF funding for climate change research and education
Associate Professor of Environmental Studies Kai Zhu won an NSF CAREER award to support research and education focused on the interconnections between climate change and plant phenology.
July 02, 2021
New research on aquaculture feed will test alternative ingredients to help minimize water pollution
A new grant will support UC Santa Cruz’s ecological aquaculture lab in their efforts to increase the variety and quality of low-polluting aquaculture feed options available to fish farmers.
June 29, 2021
Jonathan Fortney garners Simons Investigator in Astrophysics award
The $500,000 award from the Simons Foundation will support Fortney’s research on planetary atmospheres.
June 24, 2021
Cosmic dawn occurred 250 to 350 million years after Big Bang
Cosmic dawn, when stars formed for the first time, occurred 250 million to 350 million years after the beginning of the universe, according to a new study.
June 23, 2021
Tracking data show how the quiet of pandemic-era lockdowns allowed pumas to venture closer to urban areas
During regional shelter-in-place orders, declining levels of human mobility emboldened local pumas to use habitats they would normally avoid out of fear of humans.
June 22, 2021
Nathaniel Deutsch’s ‘A Fortress in Brooklyn’ reveals provocative counter-history of American Jewry
A new book by UC Santa Cruz history professor Nathaniel Deutsch details how a group of determined Holocaust survivors survived in one of the roughest parts of New York City—reshaping the urban landscape of postwar Brooklyn.
June 21, 2021
New study shows how loss of drought-sensitive species could affect health of California grasslands
At a grassland site near San Jose, scientists studied experimental research plots to determine what might happen if the plants that ecologists expect to be hit hardest by drought actually disappeared.
June 18, 2021
Work in social justice pushes recent grad toward career in medicine
Isabella Bullock realized she wanted to be a physician assistant after UC Santa Cruz courses began to reveal how socioeconomic status and race factor into one’s health.
June 16, 2021
Hydrologist Margaret Zimmer wins NSF CAREER Award
Margaret Zimmer, assistant professor of Earth and planetary sciences, has received an award from the National Science Foundation to support her research on the role of Earth’s subsurface in regulating the water cycle.
June 10, 2021
Pulitzer Prize-winning UCSC alumnus Jeffrey Stewart gives keynote address at Humanities Spring Awards
UC Santa Cruz alumnus Jeffrey Stewart (Cowell College ’71, philosophy) delivered the keynote address at the annual event celebrating the achievements of students, faculty, and alumni of the Humanities Division.
June 10, 2021
UC Santa Cruz names Peter F. Biehl as new vice provost, dean of the Graduate Division
UC Santa Cruz has appointed Peter F. Biehl, professor of anthropology at the University of Buffalo, State University of New York (SUNY), as vice provost and dean of the Graduate Division.
June 09, 2021
Claire Max to retire as director of UC Observatories
Claire Max, director of the University of California Observatories (UCO) and the Bachmann professor of astronomy and astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz, will retire at the end of June.
June 09, 2021
Doctoral student wins Ford Foundation fellowship for work on gender, race, and policing
Uriel Serrano recently won a Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowship to support his research on how gender ideologies are formed in relation to carceral violence.
June 09, 2021
Research partnership will highlight STEM learning in local community garden
A grant from the Spencer Foundation will help UC Santa Cruz researchers document the many types of STEM learning taking place in a Latinx immigrant-led community garden in Watsonville.
June 07, 2021
Axions could be the fossil of the universe researchers have been waiting for
A new study suggests finding the hypothetical particles known as axions could mean finding out for the first time what happened in the universe a second after the Big Bang.
June 07, 2021
Snowflake morays can feed on land, swallow prey without water
While most fish need water to feed, the unique anatomy of moray eels gives snowflake morays the ability to grab and swallow prey on land.
June 07, 2021
Recipients of 2021 Excellence in Teaching Awards announced
The Committee on Teaching (COT) is delighted to announce the 10 recipients of this prestigious campus-wide award from all five divisions.
June 03, 2021
Biologist Roxanne Beltran wins funding from Beckman Young Investigator Program
New project aims to provide the first large-scale recordings of sound in the open ocean, using elephant seals as a platform for a novel acoustic recorder.
June 03, 2021
Feminist studies Ph.D. student receives Institute for Citizens & Scholars fellowship
Claire Urbanski, a Ph.D. candidate in feminist studies, has been named a Charlotte W. Newcombe Doctoral Dissertation Fellow by the Institute for Citizens & Scholars (formerly the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation).
June 02, 2021
Dead zones formed repeatedly in North Pacific during warm climates, study finds
Over the past 1.2 million years, marine life was repeatedly extinguished in low-oxygen ‘dead zones’ in the North Pacific Ocean during warm interglacial climates.
June 02, 2021
Social Sciences Division celebrates outstanding students
The Social Sciences Division is recognizing 21 students for excellence in scholarship and research.
June 01, 2021
Last chance to catch exhibit on Santa Cruz County naturalists
The Look-Act-Inspire exhibition, which features UCSC students, faculty, and staff, wraps up in June.
May 28, 2021
Professor Karen Holl wins MacArthur Foundation endowed chair to support work on natural climate solutions
Environmental Studies Professor Karen Holl has been awarded the MacArthur Foundation Chair at UC Santa Cruz for her work to increase the effectiveness of forest restoration efforts in combating climate change.
May 27, 2021
Exhibition explores the art of creating comfort in a year of unexpected hardship and isolation
Twelve of UCSC's most promising artists will have their work on display in the 35th annual Irwin Scholarship exhibition, beginning June 3, at The Mary Porter Sesnon Gallery.
May 26, 2021
Visualizing global representation for Indigenous nations
A new book by Professor of Sociology and Legal Studies Hiroshi Fukurai shows how Indigenous “original nations” around the world are fighting for sovereignty and the ecological preservation of their ancestral homelands.
May 26, 2021
Somalia’s fight for God-given rights
The latest book from Politics and Legal Studies Professor Mark Fathi Massoud challenges Western notions of Islam and secular law-making by revealing how Somali Muslims have embraced Sharia as a force for progress and liberation.
May 25, 2021
Non-hallucinogenic psychedelic analog reverses effects of stress in mouse study
Free of toxic and hallucinogenic side effects, ibogaine-inspired tabernanthalog shows promise as a potential treatment for the detrimental effects of stress on the brain.
May 25, 2021
Growing heritage and healing through traditional Asian vegetables
Faculty, staff, and alumni are drawing upon and strengthening their cultural heritage and connection to Asian foodways to cultivate traditional vegetables.
May 24, 2021
‘We Are What We Eat’: Alice Waters to celebrate new book in live event with Michael Pollan
Renowned chef and food activist Alice Waters will be in conversation with bestselling author Michael Pollan at a live virtual event presented by Bookshop Santa Cruz and Extended Session, and co-sponsored by UCSC’s Humanities Institute.
May 20, 2021
Astronomers track down fast radio bursts to galaxies’ spiral arms
Mysterious flashes of radio energy that disappear in the blink of an eye originate from young, massive galaxies.
May 20, 2021
Survival of migrating juvenile salmon depends on stream flow thresholds
New understanding of relationship between stream flows and salmon survival provides a critical tool for balancing water needs in the highly managed Sacramento River.
May 20, 2021
Study shows which North American mammals live most successfully alongside people
Researchers analyzed camera trap data from across the continent to better understand how particular species of mammals respond to different types of human disturbance.
May 19, 2021
UC Santa Cruz names Celine Parreñas Shimizu new dean of Arts Division
UC Santa Cruz has appointed award-winning filmmaker and film scholar Celine Parreñas Shimizu as dean of the Arts Division, effective July 1.
May 19, 2021
Missing the middle: the importance of regional-scale field research
Regional-scale research networks such as the UC Natural Reserve System are ideal for documenting the impact of climate change on plants and animals.
May 18, 2021
Ancient horse DNA reveals gene flow between Eurasian and North American horses
New findings show connections between the ancient horse populations in North America, where horses evolved, and Eurasia, where they were domesticated.
May 17, 2021
Climate change sends tropical species racing to higher elevations while temperate counterparts lag behind
A new paper shows that, in mountain habitats, species' responses to rising temperatures vary by latitude, but researchers fear there may be no clear winners among these strategies.
May 14, 2021
Student-led mentorship program offers holistic support
The Kuya-Ate Mentorship Program is a student-initiated retention project targeted to, but not limited to, Pilipino/x students at UC Santa Cruz. In addition to providing mentorship opportunities, KAMP also offers academic and social and cultural support.
May 12, 2021
Alumna Reyna Grande wins Latino Spirit Award for Achievement in Literature & Advocacy
UC Santa Cruz alumna Reyna Grande (Kresge '99, B.A. creative writing, film & video) has received a 2021 Latino Spirit Award from the California Latino Legislative Caucus.
May 12, 2021
Virtual reality warps your sense of time
Psychology research demonstrates the unique "time compression" effect of virtual reality.
May 11, 2021
Ultrasensitive antigen test detects SARS-CoV-2 and influenza viruses
Novel chip-based diagnostic technology can detect individual viral antigens in nasal swab samples to identify the viruses that cause COVID-19 and flu with a single test.
May 10, 2021
New tools enable rapid analysis of coronavirus sequences and tracking of variants
Developed by the UC Santa Cruz Genomics Institute, UShER allows researchers to quickly see how a new viral sequence is related to all other variants of SARS-CoV-2, crucial information for tracking transmission dynamics.
May 06, 2021
Creating a soundtrack and adding a heartbeat to the struggle for prison abolition
UCSC’s Institute of the Arts and Sciences will present ‘Music for Abolition'--an artist panel featuring three-time Grammy-award winning musician Terri Lyne Carrington with a dozen prominent guest musicians.
May 05, 2021
Temperamental supernova appeared strangely cool before exploding
A curiously yellow star has caused astrophysicists to reevaluate the possible pathways that can lead to the explosion of a massive star as a supernova.
May 05, 2021
UCSC achieves fair-trade status through the work of students
UC Santa Cruz passed a fair trade resolution that reflects its commitment to join the efforts of the Fair Trade Colleges & Universities, a division of Fair Trade Campaigns.
May 04, 2021
Strauss Foundation award recognizes student’s work with families affected by incarceration
Legal studies undergraduate Matt Sioson recently won $15,000 in funding from the Donald A. Strauss Public Service Scholarship Foundation.
May 04, 2021
Preserving the legacy of Watsonville’s first Filipino immigrants
In partnership with the university, the community-led Tobera Project will develop an oral history archive and digital exhibition to be housed at McHenry Library.
May 04, 2021
Long-term monitoring shows successful restoration of mining-polluted streams
Despite differences in aquatic life and toxic metals in streams across a broad region of the western United States, scientists found common responses to cleanup of acid mine drainage.
April 29, 2021
Project to read genomes of all 70,000 vertebrate species reports first discoveries
A bold project to read the complete genetic sequences of every known vertebrate species has reached its first milestone, publishing new methods and the first 25 high-quality genomes.
April 29, 2021
Fellowship win supports doctoral candidate’s research on national security policy
Cesar Estrella, a Ph.D. candidate in Latin American and Latino studies, won an American Council of Learned Societies fellowship to support his study of the ideologies that drive U.S. national security policy.
April 28, 2021
2021-22 Dickson Emeritus awards support faculty research in history, literature, and psychology
Karen Yamashita, professor emerita of literature; Dana Frank, research professor in history; and Thomas Pettigrew, research professor in psychology, were each awarded Edward A. Dickson Emeritus Professorships in recognition of their outstanding achievements in scholarship and teaching.
April 27, 2021
Faculty experts share pandemic-era lessons for the future of K-12 education
UC Santa Cruz researchers who have studied the pandemic’s impact on K-12 education share lessons they hope will be remembered for the future.
April 27, 2021
UC Santa Cruz named No. 3 public university for ‘making an impact’
Underscoring a reputation of pushing for positive change, UC Santa Cruz has been named the No. 3 public university in the nation for students focused on making an impact on the world in the Princeton Review’s latest college rankings.
April 23, 2021
Three UCSC professors elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Angela Davis, distinguished professor emerita of history of consciousness and feminist studies; James Estes, professor emeritus of ecology and evolutionary biology; and Barbara Rogoff, distinguished professor of psychology, are among the newly elected fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
April 23, 2021
Professor Anne Kapuscinski will speak at upcoming Nobel Prize Summit
Environmental Studies Professor Anne Kapuscinski, director of the UC Santa Cruz Coastal Science and Policy program, will present recommendations on strengthening sustainability education during the “Our Planet, Our Future” Nobel Prize Summit next week.
April 23, 2021
Researchers rescue endangered black abalone buried by debris flows
Massive quantities of sediment washed onto the Big Sur coast from the Dolan Fire burn scar, burying black abalone in their rocky intertidal habitat.
April 21, 2021
UC Santa Cruz and United Way partner to empower youth through research in local communities
A research partnership between UC Santa Cruz and United Way of Santa Cruz County will offer local youth and UCSC undergraduates new leadership platforms and support college-readiness and success.
April 19, 2021
Live reading of The Comedy of Errors to benefit new scholarship for theater students
UCSC’s Arts Division will present a live virtual reading of Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors on Friday, April 23, to honor Theater Arts professor Danny Sheie, who is retiring this year after three decades at the campus.
April 19, 2021
James Webb Space Telescope program aims to map the earliest structures of the universe
COSMOS-Webb is slated to be the largest program in JWST’s first year of operation.
April 16, 2021
Alumna Terri McCullough, chief of staff to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, will make a virtual campus visit for Alumni Week
This year’s Alumni Week will feature a virtual fireside chat with Terri McCullough, an Oakes '91 politics alumna who is now chief of staff to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
April 15, 2021
Coral reefs prevent more than $5.3 billion in potential flood damage for U.S. property owners
A new study reveals how valuable coral reefs are in protecting people, structures, and economic activity in the United States from coastal flooding during storms.
April 15, 2021
Baked meteorites yield clues to planetary atmospheres
The gases released from meteorite samples heated in a high-temperature furnace can tell scientists about the initial composition of the atmospheres of rocky exoplanets.
April 15, 2021
Two UC Santa Cruz arts professors receive 2021 Guggenheim Fellowships
Film and digital media professor Irene Lusztig and art professor Elizabeth Stephens were among the 184 artists, writers, scholars, and scientists selected this year from nearly 3,000 applicants to receive Guggenheim Fellowships.
April 13, 2021
Study warns of ‘oxygen false positives’ in search for signs of life on other planets
Oxygen in the atmosphere may not be an entirely reliable ‘biosignature,’ but there are ways to distinguish false positives from signs of life.
April 13, 2021
Study of U.S. tuna fisheries explores nexus of climate change, sustainable seafood
A new study by researchers at UC Santa Cruz and NOAA examines traditional aspects of seafood sustainability alongside greenhouse gas emissions to better understand the carbon footprint of U.S. tuna fisheries.
April 12, 2021
Sharing insights from more than six decades of social psychology research
New book by Professor Emeritus Thomas Pettigrew distills themes across his storied career
April 09, 2021
Inaugural Hayden White lecture to explore the afterlife of slavery with author Saidiya Hartman
Award-winning literary scholar and cultural historian Saidiya Hartman will be the featured guest at the inaugural Hayden V. White Distinguished Annual Lecture, a virtual event that takes place on April 19.
April 08, 2021
NASA selects two UCSC scientists to join Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter mission
Ian Garrick-Bethell and Mikhail Kreslavsky are among the nine participating scientists who will join the KPLO science team.
April 08, 2021
UCSC climate change conference focuses on food security issues
‘Confronting Climate Change: Food Security in a Changing World’ will be held virtually April 28-29, featuring a panel of experts and a series of short films.
April 06, 2021
UC Santa Cruz to launch new support center to advance the university’s innovation, industry engagement
UC Santa Cruz is launching a new support center to advance innovation, entrepreneurship and business engagement that will leverage the campus’s innovative spirit and be guided by its deep commitment to environmental and social justice.
April 06, 2021
Alumni Week 2021: Bringing the festivities to you!
UC Santa Cruz's all-virtual Alumni Week will offer both Slugs and the community a wide menu of smart, interesting, and just-plain-fun events, wherever you may be on the globe.
April 06, 2021
Research shows physical appearance affects career success in economics
Economics Professor and Center for Analytical Finance Co-Director Galina Hale is uncovering how appearance affects career success for economists.
April 02, 2021
Event to focus on the case for Black reparations
“Reparations for Black Americans: The Road to Racial Equality in California and Beyond,” hosted on April 15 by the Institute for Social Transformation, will feature a discussion with leading experts and advocates of reparations.
April 01, 2021
UCSC awarded three 2021 VOICE grants from UC National Center for Free Speech
UC Santa Cruz has received three awards from the UC National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement's Valuing Open and Inclusive Conversation and Engagement (VOICE) Grant Program.
March 31, 2021
Seymour Center plans for physical reopening as virtual programs continue to expand their reach
Seymour Center Outdoors!, a new in-person outdoor education program, is scheduled to open to the general public on April 24.
March 31, 2021
Postdoctoral fellowships support planetary science research
Emily Martin and Melodie Kao have won 51 Pegasi b Fellowships to support their research on exoplanets.
March 30, 2021
Marking fifth year, Center for Innovations in Teaching and Learning plays vital role in campus mission
The center will celebrate its fifth anniversary April 14 with a convocation featuring Estela Bensimon, professor of higher education at the University of Southern California Rossier School of Education and director of the Center for Urban Education, which she founded in 1999.
March 29, 2021
Teens describe their gender and sexuality in diverse new ways, but some are being left behind
Psychology Professor Phil Hammack’s latest research shows how regional differences and other social factors can either hinder or support expression of diversity in sexual and gender identity among teens and young adults.
March 25, 2021
Changes in ocean chemistry show how sea level affects global carbon cycle
A new analysis of strontium isotopes reveals how the global carbon cycle has responded to changes in climate and sea level through geologic time.
March 25, 2021
Staff member guides students on path to higher education
Osiris Ortiz has spent nearly two decades helping the regions high school students pursue four-year degrees through her work at the Educational Partnership Center.
March 25, 2021
UC Santa Cruz faculty recognized for excellence in ecology
The Ecological Society of America announced its 2021 Fellow and Early Career Fellow awards, and UC Santa Cruz’s faculty were the most decorated of any university on this year’s list.
March 25, 2021
UCSC ecologist Erika Zavaleta appointed to California Fish and Game Commission
Governor Gavin Newsom has appointed Erika Zavaleta, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at UC Santa Cruz, to the California Fish and Game Commission.
March 22, 2021
Founding UC Santa Cruz professor and revered literary and cultural critic Harry Berger Jr. dies at 96
Harry Berger Jr., professor emeritus of literature and art history at UC Santa Cruz, died on March 12, 2021, at age 96. An internationally recognized scholar and founding UCSC faculty member, Berger was known for a wide-ranging and interdisciplinary approach that goes far beyond traditional academic boundaries.
March 18, 2021
UC Santa Cruz joins new consortium to ensure future of SlaveVoyages database
UC Santa Cruz has joined a newly formed consortium of institutions to ensure the preservation, stability, and future development of what has become the single most widely used online resource for anyone interested in slavery across the Atlantic world.
March 18, 2021
UCSC professor contributes to new study showing how parts of the US will ‘tropicalize’ as climate changes
Environmental Studies Professor Michael Loik is a coauthor on a new paper describing how warming winters are allowing some tropical plants and animals to replace temperate communities in southern portions of the country.
March 18, 2021
New analysis shows potential for ‘solar canals’ in California
UC Santa Cruz researchers and their partners published a new study that suggests covering California’s water delivery canals with solar panels could be an economically viable means of advancing renewable energy and water conservation.
March 18, 2021
UC Regents approve UC Santa Cruz plan to increase student housing, expand child care
Recognizing the critical role housing plays in supporting student success, the University of California Board of Regents reapproved a project that will significantly increase the number of current UC Santa Cruz students who are able to live on campus.
March 17, 2021
For migrating elephant seals, ‘lightscapes of fear’ shape feeding, resting strategies
A new tracking study shows how elephant seals balance predator avoidance and the need to feed, shifting strategies as their body condition improves during a 7-month foraging migration.
March 16, 2021
Campus holds first Sexual Violence Sexual Harassment Research Symposium
UC Santa Cruz will hold its first-ever research symposium — and a first for a UC campus — highlighting research by campus scholars on issues of sexual violence and sexual harassment Friday, April 2.
March 12, 2021
'Staycation,' all I ever wanted
With travel restricted because of COVID-19, UC Santa Cruz aims to keep on-campus students entertained with a spring break 'staycation' featuring themed dining nights, scavenger hunts, kayak tours, and more during the week of March 20–27.
March 11, 2021
How to live like Shakespeare
A new series of conversations about Shakespeare that explore different aspects of human experience and the human condition kicks off April 5, co-hosted by Sean Keilen, director of UCSC's Shakespeare Workshop, and Julia Lupton, co-director of the New Swan Shakespeare Center at UC Irvine.
March 11, 2021
Disrupting harmful food systems to prevent future pandemics
Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies Maywa Montenegro de Wit is exploring how lessons from the abolition movement could help agroecology combat the agro-industrial complex to prevent future pandemics.
March 10, 2021
Low-temperature supercapacitors could power missions to moon and Mars
UCSC researchers developed 3D-printed porous carbon aerogels for electrodes in ultralow-temperature supercapacitors, which could reduce heating needs for future space and polar missions.
March 09, 2021
A little squid and its glowing bacteria yield new clues to symbiotic relationships
A small molecule produced by bioluminescent bacteria as they colonize the light organ of the Hawaiian bobtail squid may play a key role in establishing the symbiosis.
March 08, 2021
Sea otters maintain remnants of healthy kelp forest amid sea urchin barrens
While kelp forests have declined dramatically along the California coast, sea otters in Monterey Bay are maintaining patches of healthy kelp forest, according to a new study.
March 08, 2021
Return to Rat Island: Conservation strategy leads to ecosystem rebound
Hawadax Island's birds and seashore ecosystem have returned to a natural balance after the removal of invasive rodents.
March 05, 2021
Focused on student success and equity, UC Santa Cruz seeks reapproval to build more housing and child-care facilities
In an effort to provide students with more housing security amid an unrelenting housing crisis, UC Santa Cruz will seek reapproval for a project that will significantly increase the number of current students who are able to live on campus.
March 05, 2021
The collapse of Northern California kelp forests will be hard to reverse
Most of Northern California’s kelp forest ecosystem is gone, replaced by widespread ‘urchin barrens’ that may persist long into the future, according to a new study.
March 03, 2021
UCSC leads multicampus initiative on coastal resilience and climate adaptation
A UC-funded initiative will bring together researchers at the Santa Cruz, Santa Barbara, and San Diego campuses to address pressing issues for California’s coastal communities.
March 03, 2021
Girl activists are more visible than ever. Is this progress?
In the past decade, there’s been an explosion in media coverage of girl activists. Professor Jessica Taft, a leading expert in youth activism, sees opportunity in this visibility, but her research has also identified many troubling trends in how girl activists are portrayed.
March 01, 2021
Scientists describe ‘hidden biodiversity crisis’ as variation within species is lost
Many of the benefits people receive from nature depend on diversity within species, but this intraspecific variation is poorly understood and declining rapidly.
February 26, 2021
Massive debris flow swamps Big Creek Reserve as heavy rains follow summer wildfire
Boulders the size of vehicles and decades-old redwoods were ripped from the banks of the Big Creek drainage when an atmospheric river inundated the Landels-Hill Big Creek Natural Reserve on the Big Sur coast in late January.
February 26, 2021
Deep Read to present Tommy Orange in conversation with literature professor Micah Perks
Award-winning novelist Tommy Orange will be featured in conversation with literature professor Micah Perks, director of UCSC’s Creative Writing Program, in a free virtual event on Wednesday, March 3, at 6:30 p.m.
February 25, 2021
Forest monitoring efforts contribute to new understanding of climate change impacts
Data collected by student interns at UC Santa Cruz’s Forest Ecology Research Plot recently contributed to a breakthrough in understanding how climate change affects forests.
February 22, 2021
LASER talk to feature research by UCSC deans of the humanities and social sciences
The event will feature research presentations by Jasmine Alinder, Dean of the Humanities (“Representing Japanese American Incarceration”), and Katharyne Mitchell, Dean of the Social Sciences (“Sanctuary Space and Insurgent Memory”).
February 21, 2021
Bringing physical engagement into the online teaching and learning environment
A new series of videos is now available to UCSC students, faculty, and staff to help offset the increasingly sedentary lifestyle generated by the Covid-19 pandemic.
February 18, 2021
Computer scientist Yang Liu wins $1M grant for research on fairness in AI
Liu’s research aims to achieve more equitable outcomes from decision-making tools based on automated machine-learning algorithms.
February 17, 2021
Oldest DNA sequences reveal how mammoths evolved
Analysis of ancient DNA sequences recovered from mammoth teeth reveal North American mammoths were descended from two earlier mammoth lineages.
February 16, 2021
Hope, mutual aid, and abolition
Activist and organizer Mariame Kaba offers a blueprint for mutually supportive communities during the 37th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Convocation
February 11, 2021
Annual Jewish Studies Diller Lecture to feature award-winning author Sarah Stein
This year’s Helen Diller Distinguished Lecture in Jewish Studies will feature guest author and scholar Sarah Abrevaya Stein—in conversation with UCSC’s Neufeld-Levin Chair of Holocaust Studies, Alma Heckman—on Wednesday, February 17, at 5 p.m.
February 10, 2021
Genentech Foundation grants support UCSC STEM diversity programs
Three academic support and mentoring programs at UC Santa Cruz have received funding from Genentech’s 2020 Diverse Future of STEM Fund.
February 09, 2021
Astronomer J. Xavier Prochaska honored for top research paper in Science
J. Xavier Prochaska, distinguished professor of astronomy and astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz, and his coauthors of a landmark paper describing a fast radio burst from a massive galaxy have been chosen to receive the prestigious AAAS Newcomb Cleveland Prize.
February 05, 2021
Troupe dynamic
UC Santa Cruz's African American Theater Arts Troupe, which is celebrating its 30-year anniversary, has not only staged plays but also taken up works that deal with issues of race, injustice, and discrimination; brought its performances into the community; and awarded more than $100,000 in scholarships.
February 04, 2021
Healthy oceans need healthy soundscapes, say marine scientists
A global team of researchers has documented the pervasive impacts of noise on marine animals and ecosystems and identified actions to return to the soundtrack of the healthy ocean.
February 04, 2021
Three UCSC film alumni recognized by International Documentary Association
Three alumni from UCSC’s Film and Digital Media Department received nominations for this year's prestigious International Documentary Association Awards (IDA).
February 04, 2021
Rob Fairlie testifies before Congress on inequality in pandemic economic impacts
Rob Fairlie testified before the House Committee on Small Business to share his latest research on the economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, including the disproportionate hardships faced by minority-owned businesses.
February 01, 2021
Noncoding RNA has surprising effects on immune response and sepsis, study finds
A long noncoding RNA regulates the expression of inflammatory genes and has a surprising effect on vulnerability to septic shock in mice.
February 01, 2021
Anthropologist Savannah Shange wins book award for insights on race and education
Anthropology faculty member Savannah Shange received one of the most prestigious honors in the field when she was awarded the 2020 Gregory Bateson Book Prize from the Society for Cultural Anthropology.
February 01, 2021
Green New Deal architect Rhiana Gunn-Wright will make a virtual campus visit
Gunn-Wright previewed some of the insights she'll share on climate policy and environmental justice during her February 10th event with the Institute for Social Transformation.
January 29, 2021
In Memoriam: Robert Shepherd (1938-2021)
Robert Shepherd, a teaching professor emeritus from the UC Santa Cruz Economics Department, passed away at 82 years old. Shepherd taught at UC Santa Cruz for more than 30 years and was instrumental in the development of both the accounting path and the business management economics major.
January 29, 2021
Sociology researcher seeks solutions for Public Safety Power Shutoffs
Sociology researcher Les Guliasi’s most recent paper shows how “microgrid” technologies could reduce the impact of outages, if regulatory challenges can be resolved.
January 28, 2021
UCSC awarded National Endowment for the Humanities grants to support faculty research
UC Santa Cruz has received two grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) to support faculty research and writing leading to book projects.
January 26, 2021
Digital NEST founder to serve as external adviser to chancellor
Jacob Martinez is bringing his insight on economic opportunity, community empowerment and digital innovation to UC Santa Cruz as an external special adviser to Chancellor Cindy Larive.
January 25, 2021
Energy spent avoiding humans linked to smaller home ranges for male pumas
New research shows that fear of humans causes mountain lions to increase their energy expenditures as they move through the landscape, and this can ultimately limit the size of the home ranges they’re able to maintain.
January 25, 2021
A year of generosity
In 2020, UCSC donors demonstrated how giving can make a positive difference even in a period of turmoil.
January 25, 2021
Seymour Marine Discovery Center offers new marine science virtual expeditions
“Scientists Saving the Oceans” program begins with a behind-the-scenes look at how marine mammal researchers are working to protect dolphins and whales from ocean noise.
January 22, 2021
New book by arts professor takes fresh look at controversial photographer Robert Mapplethorpe
UCSC history of art and visual culture professor Derek Conrad Murray offers the first dedicated book-length critical study of Mapplethorpe's lesser-known still life flower photographs.
January 20, 2021
Italian newspaper ranks sociology professor among top women of the year
Camilla Hawthorne is being recognized for shedding light on emergent Afro-Italian identities and activism during a time of racial reckoning in Italy and beyond.
January 19, 2021
UC Santa Cruz economic impact provides foundation for thriving region
When adjusted for the size of the Monterey Bay regional economy, UC Santa Cruz’s economic impact is second only to UC Davis in the Sacramento/Tahoe region and ahead of UC Santa Barbara in what is defined as the Central Coast of California.
January 19, 2021
Grant funding will advance aquaculture research in UCSC’s new state-of-the-art facility
Researchers won a USDA grant in support of their efforts to develop ocean-friendly feed formulas for farm-raised rainbow trout. This work will take place in the team's new aquaculture facility at the UCSC Farm.
January 14, 2021
Humanities Institute launches 2021 Deep Read with Tommy Orange’s novel ‘There There’
Following the success of last year’s Deep Read with guest author Margaret Atwood, The Humanities Institute at UC Santa Cruz has announced the second installment of its new program that invites the campus and community to think deeply about literature, art, and the most pressing issues of the day.
January 13, 2021
UCSC’s Osterbrock Leadership Program goes national
The National Osterbrock Leadership Program provides experiences and opportunities for astronomy graduate students to develop leadership and management skills.
January 12, 2021
Study of flowers with two types of anthers solves mystery that baffled Darwin
Some flowers use a clever strategy to ensure effective pollination by bees, doling out pollen gradually from two different sets of anthers.
January 11, 2021
UC Santa Cruz offers virtual tours of Younger Lagoon Natural Reserve
Prompted by the temporary suspension of in-person tours due to COVID-19, the new virtual tours are available in English and Spanish.
January 08, 2021
Two UCSC geophysicists honored by Royal Astronomical Society
Thorne Lay and Emily Brodsky, both professors of Earth and planetary sciences, are receiving the Gold Medal for Geophysics and the Price Medal, respectively.
January 08, 2021
New analysis highlights importance of groundwater discharge into oceans
A global assessment of the impact of groundwater on ocean chemistry is important for understanding the weathering of rocks and its effects on climate.
January 08, 2021
UCSC’s Living Writers Series a place to shelter in the storm
“Shelter and Place” is the theme of the 2021 winter installment of the Living Writers Series at UC Santa Cruz. Curated by Micah Perks, professor of literature and director of the Creative Writing Program, the now virtual series will run from January 14 through March 4, on Thursday nights throughout the winter quarter.
January 08, 2021
Professor recognized among the art world’s top influencers for 2020
Anthropology professor Anna Tsing won international acclaim for an interdisciplinary project that documents drivers of the Anthropocene in creative new ways.
January 07, 2021
Students, staff, faculty contribute nearly 160,000 meals through Holiday Food and Fund Drive
UC Santa Cruz students, staff, and faculty contributed nearly $40,000 to the 2020 Holiday Food and Fund Drive sponsored by the Staff Advisory Board, enough to provide nearly 160,000 meals to local residents.
January 07, 2021
UCSC imagines campus 20 years from now, releases roadmap for its future and accompanying environmental review
The draft 2021 Long-Range Development Plan (LRDP) and accompanying draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) released today lays out a framework for the campus’ evolution and reflects years of collaboration with campus and community members.
January 07, 2021
Graduate student advances university access for Latinx students
Valeria Alonso Blanco wants to do anything she can to help Latinx transfer students have a successful experience at UC Santa Cruz.
January 05, 2021
Friends of Lick Observatory helps fund wildfire recovery efforts
The group has designated $75,000 for the emergency support of wildfire relief efforts at Lick Observatory, where telescopes were saved but infrastructure was damaged.
January 04, 2021
UC Santa Cruz scholar of Chinese American history Judy Yung dies at 74
Judy Yung, a pioneering author and scholar of Chinese American and women's history, died on December 14, 2020.
January 04, 2021
Uncovering the social factors lurking within diabetes risk
Assistant professor of sociology James Doucet-Battle's new book challenges assumptions about race within diabetes research and delves into the issue through the lens of African American experience.
January 04, 2021
Shedding light on one of environmental policy’s most under-the-radar strategies
Associate professor of environmental studies Sikina Jinnah studies the environmental provisions contained within trade agreements and wants to help policymakers better navigate this space.