Annie Chen (BRDD 2023, Behavioral Decision Science & Biology, Industrial Design) and Matthew Derry (BRDD 2022, Mechanical Engineering, Industrial Design) are members of the team of Industrial Design students and professors who have developed The BioCycles Project, which imagines a circular design system for recycling RISD's food waste into art and biomaterials.

Kate Reed (BRDD 2021, Social Innovation & Entrepreneurship, Industrial Design) is one of 10 RISD students and recent alums serving this summer as Maharam Fellows.

The Maharam Fellowship program supports projects that aspire to advance social progress and safeguard the environment. As an artist-in-residence at biotech-focused BosLab in Cambridge, MA, Kate is using the bacterium Violacein to create environmentally-friendly textile dyes.

Read more from RISD Media

Artist and product designer Nikolas Bentel (BRDD 2017 Industrial Design, Modern Culture & Media) explores the world of fashion with a capsule collection inspired by Sandro Botticelli's iconic painting The Birth of Venus.

Read more from Artnet and see information about the project on Nikolas' website

Upon learning that Providence’s annual Pride Month festivities were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other factors, Justin Li (BRDD 2025, Undeclared, Industrial Design) stepped up to lead a team of volunteers in organizing a month-long series of events including virtual workshops & performances and a Pride parade through downtown Providence.

Read more on News from Brown

A member of the Narragansett tribe, Sherenté Mishitashin Harris' (BRDD 2023 Painting, Ethnic Studies) practice of the Fancy Shawl Dance at powwows honors their cultural heritage while defying gender stereotypes and pushing for acceptance of two-spirit individuals. “I think taking an act as simple as dance and turning it into an act of rebellion is something that surprises people but speaks a universal language,” Harris says.