by Zhang | Jun 10, 2025 | Academic year 2024/2025
While evidence of fish pain perception accumulates, regulatory responses vary dramatically by region. The EU requires by law that fish be spared unnecessary pain during slaughter. Norway banned carbon dioxide stunning, a particularly painful method, more than a decade ago, with 80% of their fish facilities now using less harmful stunning methods instead. The UK has scientific committees specifically focused on fish welfare at slaughter. America? Complete silence on the issue. The most frustrating part is that we already have better methods that are entirely practical.
by Zhang | Jun 9, 2025 | Academic year 2024/2025
In February, the Trump administration announced a plan to eliminate over 90% of USAID’s foreign aid contracts and $60 billion in assistance. A month later, Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared that 83% of USAID’s programs would be cancelled, without offering a rationale for the figure change. Out of 6200 contracts appropriated by Congress in the last budget approval, Rubio said that the 1000 that remained would be transferred to the State Department. Within the first few months of the administration, programs have been suspended, reinstated, and terminated multiple times.
by Zhang | Jun 6, 2025 | Academic year 2024/2025
President Donald Trump began his second term in January of 2025, and has since taken multiple measures to increase deportation, the revocation of visas, and the detainment of noncitizens–regardless of status, criminal background, or legality. In light of how these measures present a threat to universities, this conversation offers an unfiltered space for the emotions, opinions, and reactions of one student on a F-1 visa, a primary demographic target of Trump’s authoritarianism and ideological control. They will be referred to as Student X for their safety. A conversation between two college friends, this interview is filled with personal anecdotes, hot takes, and the occasional banter. The interview was conducted on April 17, 2025.
by Zhang | Jun 4, 2025 | Academic year 2024/2025
Together, these stories reflect a hard truth: no money, no mission. As Christa Velasquez, nonprofit lecturer at the University of Chicago, puts it: “If [nonprofits] don’t have the money, they can’t do their work.” Diversifying funding is no longer optional— it’s a strategic imperative.
by Zhang | Jun 4, 2025 | Academic year 2024/2025
Many IFA grants are now jeopardized by President Trump’s sweeping federal freeze mandates from earlier this year. The order drafted by the Office of Management and Budget mandated freezes across trillions of dollars in federal grants. Although the initial decision was subsequently rescinded in response to a legal and public backlash, these developments upended the lending sector. For the non-profit sector working with the IFA, it meant disruptions and uncertainty across a range of climate-related projects.
