Opinion | Column
The Conversation: Tufts has been tough. Will you be?
By Evan Wang and Sadie Roraback-Meagher | May 16Sadie Roraback-Meagher: Heya Evan! Evan Wang: Hey, Sadie. How’s your semester winding down? Sadie: “Winding” doesn’t seem very fitting. A better question would be: How is it crashing down in flames? Evan: Wow, I sure am going to miss your pessimism this summer. What will I do ...
Ukraine at War: How Ukrainian businesses and students adjust to the war
By Mariia Kudina | April 28With the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine, businesses faced existential challenges and had to find ways to survive in the midst of the military aggression. Students pursuing careers in business found themselves navigating a world where traditional paths would no longer work, having to adjust to studying despite the Russian bombings. Yet, amid the destruction and uncertainty, according to Ukrainian venture investor Ruslan Tymofieiev, the startup ecosystem has emerged stronger than before, supporting students as they deal with the war threats. This article is based on the experience of Tymofieiev, who founded CLUST SPACE, a charity project of smart shelters for students at Ukrainian universities. It will explore how Ukrainian businesses and the next generation of entrepreneurs are adjusting to a radically changed economic climate.
Coffee Table Socioeconomics: Final remarks
By Linda Huang | April 22I’ve spent the past year being what my friends jokingly like to call a “professional hater,” writing columns where I rant about the bleak state of our world’s social and economic conditions, usually while drinking coffee, as my column name suggests. To be clear, there’s no shortage of issues worth addressing, and I can always think of more to critique. Maybe this makes me a cynic, a pessimist, a subscriber to realpolitik or all of the above. But beyond venting, I’ve come to realize that the true value lies in the process itself — the act of recognizing the significance, complexity and multidimensional nature of these problems. It has made me realize that — in a self-conceited way — the ability to critically think about social and economic issues is what’s the most important. That said, all I ask is for you to do three things.
Through Indigenous Eyes: Indigenous education
By Sorsha Khitikian | April 17On March 27, the Rapid City Area Schools district in South Dakota received a letter from the Trump administration’s Office of Civil Rights. Having concluded a 14-year investigation into school-based racial discrimination about a year ago, the district had finally agreed to provide equitable access to education for Indigenous students, who had disproportionately high disciplinary rates compared to their white peers. A civil rights agreement was settled, and an action plan was implemented to combat Indigenous discrimination. Now, President Donald Trump has nullified this agreement due to “DEI” and the district is no longer obliged to treat students equitably.
Coffee Table Socioeconomics: The rich should want to save the legal system
By Linda Huang | April 16One of the seven core principles of conservatism is the commitment to the rule of law. It’s a principle that ensures stability, predictability and fairness — the very conditions under which societies flourish and individuals thrive. Hand in hand with this is another value conservatives proudly uphold: the pursuit of economic growth and wealth accumulation through a free market economy. These principles intertwine because without a robust legal system that regulates the market, the ultimate goal of profit cannot be achieved.
Ukraine at War: A reflection on the deadly attacks in Kryvyi Rih and Sumy
By Mariia Kudina | April 15On April 4, I was co-moderating a discussion on risks and art at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University for the event “Arts and Society: Dialogues.” I was looking at my phone and going over the sample questions to ask the participants when I received a text from my mom saying, “We were outside with your brother and our dog, the explosion felt far but the ground was shaking.” Momentarily, I tracked back my thoughts to before the event. Right before the discussion, I saw a notification that there was an air raid alert in Kryvyi Rih, possibly due to the missile carriers being launched in Russia. I had a feeling that this was not a precautionary alert, yet never in a million years would I assume that the attack would be that deadly.
The Conversation: Are Democrats standing up to Trump?
By Evan Wang and Sadie Roraback-Meagher | April 9Sadie Roraback-Meagher: Heya, Evan. Evan Wang: Hey, Sadie. How’s your week been? Sadie: Oh, you know, the usual. This week has been too long, and this weekend has been too short. Evan: Speaking of short things, Cory Booker’s speech certainly wasn’t. Sadie: Somehow, I just know you have something ...
Through Indigenous Eyes: Indigenous invisibility is once again the norm
By Sorsha Khitikian | April 3President Donald Trump has been on a DEI purge since taking office — removing almost any content that remotely resembles support for diversity from government websites. Many aspects of life, from science to performing arts, have been affected. Now, to be sure, I expected a lot of vital data to disappear under the DEI banner. I did not expect the removal of data concerning murder and missing persons.
The Conversation: To paint or not to paint
By Evan Wang and Sadie Roraback-Meagher | March 26Sadie Roraback-Meagher: Heya Evan! How was your spring break? Evan Wang: Hey Sadie! Mine was good, I went to D.C. and saw a major protest on the National Mall. Sadie: Wow, a protest? In D.C.? Never heard of that happening. Wonder what they’re all riled up over. Evan: I ...
Coffee Table Socioeconomics: Workaholism
By Linda Huang | March 25“A workaholic will die before an alcoholic,” said Christina Maslach, professor emerita of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, whose research laid the foundation for the World Health Organization to declare burnout as an occupational phenomenon in 2019. While alcoholics endure a gradual, long-term deterioration of the liver, workaholics face the immediate risk of stress-induced blood clots or heart attacks — potentially striking just when life seems to be going well.
Ukraine at War: How private initiatives help Ukrainian universities adjust to the war
By Mariia Kudina | March 13Russia continues its attacks on Ukraine despite the attempts of peace talks. Meanwhile, the rocky relationship between President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin diverts the media’s and, consequently, the international public’s attention from the ongoing war. At the same time, Ukrainians continue to adjust to the dreary realities, finding ways to go on with a semi-normal life. In the realm of education, one example of such an adjustment is a charitable initiative by the venture builder CLUST, focused on creating smart shelters for students at Ukrainian universities.
Coffee Table Socioeconomics: Enhance our business education
By Linda Huang | March 11With its highly educated workforce, business-friendly legal system, strong sense of interconnectedness between universities and government and businesses that drive continuous technological breakthroughs, the United States is arguably one of the best places for industries to succeed. However, none of this would be possible without a foundation of strong business education. Business literacy is essential in the private sector, where startups thrive and hands-on engagement with business ideas is key — it’s also an area where Tufts falls short.
Through Indigenous Eyes: What’s in a name?
By Sorsha Khitikian | March 6For weeks, a battle between the administration of President Donald Trump and The Associated Press has raged over Trump’s executive order that changed the name of the “Gulf of Mexico” to the “Gulf of America.” The AP has stated that it would continue to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as such and has since been barred from White House press briefings. Now, the issue is being brought to court, with the AP suing Trump administration officials for violating the First and Fifth Amendments. But in that same executive order, another name was changed — one that the AP Stylebook has been updated to reflect.
The Conversation: Mayor mayor on the wall, who’s the fairest of them all?
By Evan Wang and Sadie Roraback-Meagher | March 4Sadie Roraback-Meagher: Evan, what’s the difference between an expired pie and this year’s New York mayoral election? Evan Wang: What? Sadie: Nothing, they’re both full of rotten apples. Evan: I’m going to quit the column. Sadie: Jokes aside, a probable Cuomo-Adams off seems like just ...
Through Indigenous Eyes: The colonial history of Greenland and why it matters
By Sorsha Khitikian | February 21Greenland is a relatively new player on the global stage. Only gaining autonomy from Denmark in 1979, the region is known for fishing, ice and being the largest island that isn’t considered a continent. However, the history of colonialism and the Indigenous fight for sovereignty in Greenland is largely unknown outside of Greenland and Denmark. While this serves historically colonial powers, examining Greenland as a case study is vital to contextualizing Indigeneity within global politics. As U.S. President Donald Trump explores buying Greenland, it’s important to not only consider the opinion of European powers, but also the Indigenous people Trump’s proposal would immediately affect.
Ukraine at War: Russia targets Chernobyl nuclear plant as potential peace talks approach
By Mariia Kudina | February 20My dad turned 9 years old on the day of the Chernobyl disaster. Two years later, his father was sent to the city to clean up the contaminated area and manage the consequences of the catastrophe. He spent around five months maintaining the station, managing a team of people and ensuring that safety protocols were followed. Back then, everything was covered in radioactive dust, and even eating an apple from a tree or sitting on a park bench could be deadly. The radiation deteriorated not only the environment but also people’s physical and mental health. Some of his fellow liquidators lost their minds after getting lost in the Red Forest, a strip of greenery around the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. My dad, a physician, explains that everyone reacted to the radiation differently.
The Conversation: Musk, the apprentice
By Evan Wang and Sadie Roraback-Meagher | February 19Sadie Roraback-Meagher: Heya there Evan! Evan Wang: Hey Sadie! Sadie: I hope your week has been good so far. I don’t know about you, but for me, looking at the news this past week has been … what’s the word? Panic inducing? Nauseating? Just flat-out horrifying? But hey, at least that ...
Coffee Table Socioeconomics: Invest more in our human capital
By Linda Huang | February 18In the field of development economics, there is a prominent view that education and investment in human capital are key for improving social organization and economic mobility, bringing about effective economic development. For an already-developed country like the United States, this view on development may not always manifest in economic terms — it could also pertain to both social progress and innovation. Having been able to compare the relationship between education and development in a developing country like China and a developed country like the United States, I have seen firsthand how access to and quality of higher education play a crucial role in shaping a nation’s trajectory.
Lay of the Leagues: The search for quality, long-term player development in the NFL
By Brian Becker | February 14The NFL has entered a phase of expansion, where its leadership is determined to spread the market to destinations deemed unreachable just 10 years ago. The highest-grossing revenue league has cemented its gritty and purely American presence in settings across the globe. Becoming more worldwide than ever before and with the 2025 Super Bowl in the books, the league trails in building an effective player development model. Many teams feel burdened to fast-track their own rebuilding process, leaving a scarcity of “complete” teams league-wide.
Adventures of an A-Lister: What if Cupid was a killer?
By Odessa Gaines | February 11What happens when you blend a romantic meet cute, a murder mystery and a killer of love into one 90-minute film? You get “Heart Eyes,” a new romantic-comedy/slasher starring Olivia Holt and Mason Gooding. From the producers of the Scream franchise, “Heart Eyes” is a campy ride, with a few interesting plot twists.
