Emma Atkinson

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University of Denver Magazine

University of Denver Magazine •

From Classroom to Community Farm

Katie Ketchum (BA ’18) has farmed fields from Long Island, New York, to Boulder, Colorado—and, while crops and climates may change with each location, her commitment to doing meaningful work and building community has remained steadfast.
After graduating with a degree in geography and international studies, she dove headfirst into urban agriculture following graduation, starting as a farmer for the Denver Botanic Gardens. Seven years later, she serves as field and harvest man...
University of Denver Magazine •

Art as Diplomacy

“All good art is political,” said acclaimed author Toni Morrison.
Historical events are often accompanied by works of art—like Beyoncé’s defiant song “Formation,” which is considered an anthem for the Black Lives Matter movement. The same goes for times of international social and political upheaval, like Ukrainian artists’ murals on bomb-blasted buildings or the graffiti on the Berlin Wall.
At the Sié Chéou-Kang Center for International Security and Diplo...
University of Denver Magazine •

All Access Pass: Newman Center

It’s 1:30 in the afternoon, and by the time I arrive backstage at Gates Concert Hall, the guys have already been there for at least an hour.
By “guys,” I mean a troupe of lighting and sound experts, all dressed in black, who are busying themselves with their respective pre-show tasks—taping down wires, setting up microphones and instruments and chairs. The expansive stage floor, also black, is bathed in lavender and gold light. Seven black microphone stands and a dozen equipm...
University of Denver Magazine •

Through the eyes of a student photographer

Born and raised in Hawai‘i, physiology and art student Lauren Tapper says that when she came to the mainland, she noticed a discrepancy between what outsiders believe about the Hawaiian Islands and what she knows to be true. So she chose her home state as the subject of her undergraduate research project, which she presented at the annual Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Showcase last spring.
The black and white photos of “Hawai‘i, Uncovered,” Tapper says, are meant to...
University of Denver Magazine •

Research at 14,000 Feet

On a sunny but chilly 54-degree August day, Velotta and his team set out at 7 a.m. for the summit of Mount Blue Sky. It’s the first day of their week-long stay at the base of the mountain near the Echo Lake Campground, where they sleep in dark wooden cabins reminiscent of summer camp.  
Their research began the day before at dusk, when the group hopped into a white pickup displaying a DU logo and slowly wound their way along the highest paved roadway in North America. As the...
University of Denver Magazine •

Up close and personal with Washington's diplomats

Boettcher Scholar Colton Arciniaga (BA ’24) says his summer internship in Washington D.C. was an experience that every Korbel student dreams of.
“It’s the one that everyone's always talking about and wants to get,” he says. 
Before his senior year, Arciniaga landed an internship with the U.S. Department of State in the Office of Mexican Affairs and spent several months in the district rubbing shoulders with foreign service officers, a group of U.S. diploma...
University of Denver Magazine •

The story of sobriety isn’t black and white

On Matt Ziebarth’s first day of law school in 2019, an orientation leader said something that stuck with him for years to come.
“Look to your left and right,” the leader said. “Out of the three of you, one of you will have a problem with alcohol or substance abuse.”
Ziebarth remembers thinking, “Yeah, right, that's somebody else. That will never be me.”
But when the pandemic hit, Ziebarth realized that his relationship with alcohol wasn...
University of Denver Magazine •

Sounds of Hope

On a brisk, sunny day in February, a group of students from the Lamont School of Music hauled their musical instruments into the bustling atrium of the Children’s Hospital of Colorado.

The musicians were surrounded by the buzz of activity that is the lobby of any hospital; doctors hustled through the large room, their white coats flapping, and nurses in colorful scrubs stopped to check their pagers before continuing to their destinations, their sneakers squeaking against the floor.

But this is
University of Denver Magazine •

Are libraries the new Netflix?

While Nick Iwanicki may not consider himself a detective, he does love sleuthing.

And that’s what he says is the best part of his job as the university archivist at the University of Miami, which is about much more than shelving books.

“Everybody asks me if I know the Dewey Decimal System, which is really weird,” he says. “I'm much more like, ‘I'll help you solve the mysteries.’ And it’s not just solving the mysteries, but maybe solving the mysteries and then helping people tell stories with w
University of Denver Magazine •

Ethics courses teach students how to ‘walk the walk’ in business and life

Teaching college ethics can be murky. There are no shortcuts, nor formulas for evaluating how well students are grasping the material. It’s all sensitive to the context. And when there is an ethical aspect to almost every decision, an ethics course can quickly seem overwhelming to even the most conscientious students.

Naomi Reshotko, a University of Denver professor of philosophy, teaches a course on feminist ethics. She contends that every aspect of our lives has an ethical dimension.

“You ca
University of Denver •

New Research Explores the Ramifications of a Rising China

As China has grown its economy and international influence over the last half-century, it has become known as a major world power, working alongside—and sometimes against—the U.S. to advance its interests.

Now, new research from the University of Denver’s Frederick S. Pardee Center for International Futures suggests that China may overtake the U.S. as the world’s greatest power sometime in the next 20 years. If that happens, it will mean a very different world.

To get a handle on that differen
University of Denver Magazine •

Inaugural Denver Dialogues event models civil discourse

The Josef Korbel School of International Studies and the Scrivner Institute of Public Policy convened the first Denver Dialogues event on Oct. 4, bringing together leaders from prominent think tanks for a discussion on the importance of civil discourse, diverse perspectives and the role of disagreement in a healthy democracy.

“It’s hard to think of a more important issue in this country and, indeed, around the world, than the deterioration of the civic culture on which democracy depends,” said
University of Denver Magazine •

The Hampden Art Study Center aims to diversify DU’s collections

The University of Denver’s Hampden Art Study Center just got a new fridge.

But instead of housing leftover Indian food or canned energy drinks, this fridge will be home to delicate photo negatives, a recent addition to the University Art Collections.

“Right now, we’re working on finishing a grant project where we’re rehousing negatives,” explains interim collections manager Nathalie Carlo.

Carlo opens the fridge, clean and gleaming white, and points to a little thermometer. There aren’t any p
University of Denver Magazine •

Research finds that attending festivals can make us better people

When was the last time you attended a mass gathering? Lollapalooza perhaps, or Burning Man? Did you come away from the event feeling more connected to other humans, or perhaps more willing to do good deeds?

Kateri McRae, associate professor and head of DU’s Affective, Social and Cognitive (ASC) program in the Department of Psychology, contributed to a recent study that found attending such festivals can make us better people. She fielded some questions from the University of Denver Magazine abo
University of Denver Magazine •

A green roof brings beauty and eco benefits to the Community Commons

Green roofs—idyllic retreats located at the top of buildings—have become a popular way to beautify urban spaces and provide environmental benefits to structures and the spaces around them. Not to be left out, the University of Denver incorporated a green roof into the design of its new Community Commons building. The expansive green space on the fourth-floor exterior deck nods to the beauty of Colorado’s native plants and the University’s sustainability goals.

The Community Commons’ green roof

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