Students, faculty, and staff at Middlebury College and at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies now have access to al-Mandumah, full-text content of Arabic scientific conferences, dissertations and academic journals from 1921 to present day.

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Later this year, Japan plans to dump contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean, and then continue to do so for the next 40 years.

Unsurprisingly, this plan has troubled many, including scientist-in-residence Ferenc Dalnoki-Veress.

Over the past two years, the physicist has been working on team of scientists tapped to advise the leaders of 18 Pacific Island nations as they engage with Japan and TEPCO, the second most powerful nuclear company in the world.

In a way, Dalnoki-Veress’s involvement with this all started with a PowerPoint deck.

Japan was sending regular updates on the project to the Pacific Island Forum (PIF), an intergovernmental organization coordinating regional security and environmental issues. However, the PowerPoint presentations were inscrutable to all but experts in the field.

“A colleague has commented that science can be used to help, clarify, or obfuscate,” said Dalnoki-Veress, who has long chosen to work at the intersection of science, policy, and politics.

In this case, it clarified that the PIF needed help understanding the science in a way that could inform their entreaties to Japan. They had the wisdom to form a global panel of experts to advise them, including Dalnoki-Veress of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies. The five scientists all bring different expertise—nuclear engineering, the effect of radionuclides on marine organisms, ocean currents, nuclear regulations, ecotoxicology, and more.

“I feel humbled to be part of this team,” said Dalnoki-Veress, who led data analysis.

The project initially seemed straightforward. The PIF put in a request to know exactly what was inside the 1,000 tanks of water. Two months later, they received 19 messy spreadsheets.

“It’s like a student handing in a poorly written assignment with no effort,” said Dalnoki-Veress. “It was so upsetting. I found so many problems. Then when we met with TEPCO, they dumped a massive PowerPoint two hours before the meeting. I have a day job!”

The data raised concerns—especially the lack of data on which to base this major transboundary and transgenerational issue. In August 2022, the scientists took their private concerns much more public in an op-ed for the Japan Times. In January 2023, they spoke out in Science magazine, calling for more data and deliberation. The International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and the ​​National Association of Marine Laboratories have both come out against the plan. This spring, Dalnoki-Feress presented to the National Assembly of Korea.

“But we haven’t stopped it,” he said.

As of the publication of this article, Japan still plans to release the water.

What exactly do you do with 1,000 tanks of contaminated water?

When the Fukushima nuclear power plant was hit by an earthquake in 2011, three reactors melted down. The molten fuel debris continues generating heat. Workers prevent overheating by pumping 150 tons of water a day, which is stored in tanks on site.

“The accident did not end, in the sense that vast quantities of water are being generated,” said Dalnoki-Veress.

Now TEPCO has 1.3 million tons of contaminated water in 1,000 tanks with more water and claims to be running out of space.

The water volume is 110 cubic meters (110 meters is about the length of an American football field).

So what are the options?

The cheapest one is to dilute and dump the water. That is not unprecedented. Over 400 reactors worldwide release tritiated water into the sea, including in China, Korea, and the U.S.—the countries who have been most vocal against Japan dumping the water. 

“But this is not normal operations, and you can’t use the normal playbook,” said Dalnoki-Veress.

The volume of water is massive, and the timeline for release is long. Also, only one-quarter of the tanks have been tested. The dilution plan is focused on tritium, but there are many other compounds in the water. Most concerning is that the tritium doesn’t stay in the water—it gets concentrated as it moves up the food chain.

The scientists have proposed several alternatives. One is bioremediation: pumping wastewater through tanks full of oyster species that consume plankton and incorporate radionuclides into their shells, reducing the time needed for storage. Another is to make concrete for roads or bridges using the treated water. This has many benefits: accelerating water processing and removal from tanks, not impacting the fishing industry, and being entirely non-transboundary. This process helps to protect the environment by safely containing tritium inside the concrete, preventing external radiation exposure and saves a significant amount of fresh water, contributing to environmental conservation efforts.

Another option is to simply wait. Tritium has a 12.3-year half-life for radioactive decay, so in 40 to 60 years, more than 90 percent of it will be gone.

As soon as you bring living creatures into something, everything becomes much more complex.

— Ferenc Dalnoki-Veress, Scientist-in-Residence

A very public scientist

If you’ve tuned into the media in Japan or Korea lately, you might catch Dalnoki-Veress breaking down the issue and sharing the panel’s concerns. He’s been featured and quoted in over 20 media stories since January.

The past year has been unusual, but then again, little has been typical for Dalnoki-Veress, whom Physics journal called a “physicist dressed as a policy wonk.” 

A Dutch citizen, he started his career as an experimental physicist, working in labs in Germany and Italy. 

Then came the Bush White House’s claims of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) in Iraq and the war.

“I was frustrated with how science was not communicated well,” said Dalnoki-Veress. “There’s a reason why physics is important besides a tenure track position.”

The world was reminded of this when the Fukushima power plant melted down in 2011.

“Every meeting during that time was about Fukushima, asking ourselves: what can we do to prevent this from ever happening again?”

He joined as scientist-in-residence at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies in 2010, where he focuses on ensuring elected officials have the information they need to make informed decisions and teaches courses on science and technology for policy students.

“I love my job because I learn something new every day,” he said.

Questions lead to more questions

Whatever Japan ultimately decides to do, Dalnoki-Veress has been left with much bigger questions.

In his training as a physicist, the problems were approached mathematically. If you know certain factors, you can calculate others, whether that is the increased incidence of cancer from radiation or how much dilution will be needed to meet a safe threshold.

“If you think about the ocean as a bucket of water and you add a bit of contaminated water, it will be diluted like cream in coffee. That’s kind of how I came into it, thinking about the problem,” he said. “However, as I’ve learned from my colleagues on the biology side, as soon as you bring living creatures into something, everything becomes much more complex.”

The phytoplankton absorb the tritium, the zooplankton eat the phytoplankton, then baby tuna eat the plankton, on up the food chain, which becomes a very different long-term problem for fisheries and people across the region.

“It’s much more complicated and nuanced than I ever thought,” said Dalnoki-Veress.

Follow that line of thought, and you will start to question the standards themselves. The International Atomic Energy Agency currently supports Japan’s plans to dump the water, as it complies with current regulations.

“There is a need to revisit the standards on the effects of radiation. Because hundreds of reactors are already dumping this stuff,” said Dalnoki-Veress, who notes that time is not on their side.

The team of scientists have offered to design the experiments Japan and TEPCO need to understand the biological uptake, trophic transfer, and bioaccumulation on key radionuclides in marine organisms and sediments. So far, that offer has been declined.

“In the end, we will continue to advise the PIF secretariat as best of our ability and as honestly as we can based on the science we know,” said Dalnoki-Veress. “We deeply hope that Japan will change course and change their mind to release this contaminated water into the sea.”

Oracle HCM offers opportunities to update your personal contact information as well as your emergency contacts.

Contact info includes your work and home/cell phone, mailing, and email addresses.

Family and Emergency Contacts is information HR can use to reach out to person(s) you indicate if there is an emergency that involves you while at work.

Contact Info

All contact information is kept confidential. Your contact information is used to reach out to you for employment purposes and for our Emergency Notification System (RAVE). These must be listed in HCM to receive these notifications.

Phones – Below is how each phone type is used in our Emergency Notification System.

• Cell/Mobile: receives a text and recorded message call when Emergency Notification System sends alert.
• Campus/Work: Landline, receives recorded message call when Emergency Notification System sends alert.
• Home Phone: Landline, receives recorded message call when Emergency Notification System sends alert.

Addresses
Do you work in a state other than your work location? In order to have the correct taxes deducted, you may need to let HR know so your record can reflect this status as Working from Home. “Working from Home” flag can be found in Me (tab) > Employment Info > listed under Assignment; Working at Home

• Campus/Work: Includes the name of your department and your office or mail stop location.
• Mailing: Add Mailing address if Physical/Home is not where you have your mail delivered. Must contact HR to indicate if this is Primary.
• Physical: This is currently your home mailing address.
• Resident Tax Address: For those working in a location other than the HCM assignment location and not in the Physical location.
• Student Campus Mail Box: Student employee’s campus mailing address.

Email:

• Campus/Work: Assigned by Middlebury, official business email address.
• Home Email: Personal email address.

Estate planning is incredibly important, and it’s something that often gets overlooked or delayed because people don’t like to think about their own mortality. But the truth is, estate planning is not just about preparing for the inevitable; it’s about ensuring that our loved ones are taken care of and our wishes are respected. 

MSA Money Coaches can help employees understand the financial aspects of estate planning and the various options available. Estate planning provides peace of mind, knowing that we have taken the necessary steps to protect our loved ones and our legacy. 

Take a break, enjoy some ice cream and explore all that this corner of campus has to offer!

Thursday, June 22  3 pm – 5 pm

In front of Peterson Family Athletic Center

Consider taking time to:

• Connect with a colleague
• Take a walk on the O’Neil Trail of the TAM
• Relax & enjoy the views of our beautiful campus from the deck of Kirk Alumni Center
• Visit the Museum at the Mahaney Arts Center (open until 5 pm)
• Get in your workout at the Fitness Center
• Play Reproductive Justice Mini Golf, Created by Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies and the Feminist Resource Center at Chellis House (open until 7 pm)

Local lu-lu ice cream being served – made from scratch in Vermont

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It has been a spring of milestones for Scott Pulizzi MAIPS ’97: The longtime visiting professor was appointed to the regular faculty, named program chair for the International Policy and Development, MPA, and International Trade programs, and honored with the Institute’s Faculty Excellence Award for 2022–23.

“The Faculty Excellence Award selection committee felt that Scott struck a great balance between different teaching strategies and demonstrated a deep commitment to student-centered learning,” said Vice President for Academic Affairs Jeff Dayton-Johnson.

Highlighting Pulizzi’s extensive preparation for each class session and skillful use of learning technology, one selection committee member noted that “the students are front and center, asking great questions and engaging with each other. Everyone seemed relaxed and joyful.” Another said “He cares so much about his students. He did a great job involving students online and in person. It was seamless.”

The Zone of Proximal Development

Pulizzi said his career in teaching started with his very first job as a 13-year-old teaching kids to swim. He remembers telling kids to swim towards him and then just backing away slowly. They’d end up swimming the full length of the pool without realizing it.

“That’s the rush I keep looking for,” said Pulizzi. “I love just being outside of the zone of comfort for the students and bringing it in closer and closer, and then saying, ‘Look what you did!’ at the end of the semester.”

Professor Pulizzi will receive a cash award and be the faculty speaker at the Institute’s Winter 2023 Commencement ceremony in December. Dayton-Johnson and the committee also commended the other two finalists for the award, Max Troyer (Associate Professor and outgoing Program Chair of Translation and Localization Management) and Pablo Oliva (Associate Professor and Program Chair of Language Studies).

I want my students to be able to understand complex problems from multiple, and at times competing, perspectives… learning to appreciate, evaluate, and act upon these complex dynamics is the arc of my teaching.

— Professor Scott Pulizzi MAIPS ’97

Pulizzi started as an adjunct professor in 2009 and was named a visiting professor in 2017. He earned a Ph.D. in International Development Studies from University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa, an MA in International Policy Studies from the Institute and a BA in International Relations from Seton Hall University.

“I want my students to be able to understand complex problems from multiple, and at times competing, perspectives by putting problems into an ecological context,” says Pulizzi. “The reasons that an adult cannot read, that a child is malnourished, or a community cannot access clean water is often because of social, political, and economic and other factors. Taking a holistic view opens more possibilities to turn a barrier into a solution. Therefore, learning to appreciate, evaluate, and act upon these complex dynamics is the arc of my teaching.”

His professional experience includes positions in international development with organizations including Education Development Center, American Institutes for Research, and UNESCO, and he is known widely for his toolkits and presentations addressing topics such as health education, gender rights in education, assessment and action planning processes, and education for sustainable development.

“It’s a great feeling when students respond positively to a class activity, or working on a project together,” says Pulizzi of his time at the Institute. “Every year, the commencement ceremony is a highlight—a celebration of accomplishment, a time to deepen connections, and to share joy with friends and family.”

Focus on Climate Action, Security, and Intercultural Communication

In conjunction with his promotion to associate professor, Pulizzi has also been appointed program chair for the International Policy and Development, MPA, and International Trade programs.

His priorities are expanding enrollment, especially with the available flexible hybrid and asynchronous options. He also wants to deepen how climate change, global security, and intercultural communication are leveraged in pursuit of human development and social change.

“Our programs instill knowledge, develop skills, and introduce networks so that our graduates can effect change in society and improve lives, whether they do that in Nairobi, Jakarta, Paris, Mexico City, or Salinas,” said Pulizzi.

If you’re interested in exploring a different culture and making a new international friend, come join Middlebury College’s Friends of International Students (FIS) host program. International Student & Scholar Services (ISSS) is now recruiting hosts for the fall term and we invite all staff and faculty to experience this wonderful opportunity.

Established in September 2001, the FIS host program (a friendship program) has successfully matched over 800 students with local hosts. Our population of international students includes some U.S. students who have lived abroad as well as international exchange students. Don’t worry, your international student won’t live with you but rather, you’ll have the opportunity to host them on visits to your home or trips around the local area. This is a great chance to bond over shared interests, learn a new language, or even cook together. The possibilities are endless!

Wondering how to get involved?

ISSS will hold a series of information sessions about the program on Zoom throughout the summer. Every potential new host family is expected to attend one of these sessions so we can meet you and share important information about the program. If you’re an experienced host, you’re only required to submit a questionnaire but you are welcome to join us as your stories and insights are vital to friends who are new to FIS and trying to decide if they would be a good fit for the program.

 Join us for one of our June information sessions (more summer dates TBD):

• Monday, June 26, 12:30-1:30 pm
• Tuesday, June 27, 5:30-6:30 pm

Kindly register to attend a session via email at isss@middlebury.edu (subject line: FIS Host Program) or by phone at 802.443.5858. Once you have registered, we will send you the Zoom link for your session.

Learn more about the FIS Host Program on our website at: https://www.middlebury.edu/office/international-student-and-scholar-services/students/friends-international-students-program.

If you decide to participate this fall, new & experienced hosts must submit a questionnaire by
September 1. You can find the questionnaire at: https://middlebury.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3xBQfpcmsVQY6fI

When do I meet my student?
If you’re matched with a student, you will meet them either at our main matching event, planned for Saturday, September 30, 2023, during Fall Family Weekend, OR at an alternate match event (TBD) later in the fall.

Feel free to share this information with friends and family who do not work at the College. We’re always eager to have new hosts!

Hi, language lovers! Here’s the library’s best advice for finding books, articles and films for summer studies.

We are thrilled to announce that Middlebury College has been selected to receive the 2023 Governor’s Excellence in Worksite Wellness Silver award! This award recognizes Vermont workplaces that have made significant efforts towards improving employee wellness.

The college is proud of our continuing commitment to supporting and improving employee wellness in all areas.

For more information on available resources, please visit Middlebury Well-Being, view the 2023 Well-Being Resource Guide, and check out the resources available on the GMHEC Well-Being page.

Come enjoy some mid-day yoga with Joanna Colwell, long time yoga teacher and Director of Otter Creek Yoga in Middlebury. Joanna teaches people of all ages and abilities how to strengthen the body, calm the mind, and restore the spirit. Her classes are fun, nurturing, illuminating, and accessible to people with plenty of yoga experience – or none at all!

Dates:

• June 21st & 28th
• July 5th & 12th
• August 2nd & 9th

Location: McCullough Mitchell Green Lounge

Time: 12:15 – 1:15pm

Some mats, blocks, and straps will be available for use or you may bring your own.

If interested, please sign up here.