Yale MacMillan Center

Did you graduate on May 18? 🎉

Send the MacMillan Center your graduation photos!

We would love to celebrate our Class of 2026 graduates.

Featured:
🎓 Lydia Smith — European & Russian Studies
🎓 Kira Johansen — East Asian Studies

Images can be sent to [email protected].

This Memorial Day, we reflect on Yale’s role in global education during World War II.

In 1944, officers from OSS Detachment 101 learned Burmese from Yale linguist Dr. William S. Coryn and Maung Shwe-Waing as part of wartime language training efforts that prepared servicemen for work abroad.

The Army Specialized Training Program also brought hundreds of servicemen to Yale during the war — a history remembered decades later when program participants reunited on campus in 1995.

Today, as the MacMillan Center continues to advance international understanding and global engagement, we honor those who served and remember the lasting connections between language, learning, and service.

During a weeklong campus residency, Ecuadorian Chef Rodrigo Pacheco shared his environmentally friendly approach to (delicious) cuisine with the local community.

Chef Pacheco aims to use his culinary skills and creativity to promote sustainable cuisine and environmental conservation and generally be a force for positive change.

Read more: https://news.yale.edu/2026/05/19/forest-table-chef-rodrigo-pacheco-brings-sustainable-culinary-vision-yale

Forest to table: Chef Rodrigo Pacheco brings sustainable culinary vision to Yale During a weeklong campus residency, Ecuadorian chef Rodrigo Pacheco shared his environmentally friendly approach to (delicious) cuisine with the local community.

Happy Commencement Day! 💙🎉

Congratulations to all graduating Yalies and the MacMillan Center 2025-2026 graduate class, which includes more than 35 students who earned their bachelor's, master's, and/or certificates in translation and languages.

Meet our newest alumni: https://macmillan.yale.edu/macmillans-2025-2026-graduates

St. Paul’s University partnered with the Project on Religion and Society in Africa to host the AI and Theological Education Workshop in Nairobi.

The landmark consultation convened senior leadership and faculty from several prominent theological institutions.

Together, these academic leaders gathered to collaboratively map the future of artificial intelligence within African theological education.

Read more: https://macmillan.yale.edu/stories/navigating-future-st-pauls-hosts-landmark-ai-and-theology-workshop

The Portuguese Ambassador to the United States, Francisco Duarte Lopes, visited MacMillan for a public talk on U.S.–Portugal relations.

The event brought together students, faculty, and members of the Yale community for a discussion on diplomacy, global challenges, and Portugal’s evolving role on the international stage.

Ambassador Duarte Lopes framed Portugal’s modern trajectory through what he described as the country’s three defining “Ds”: decolonization, democratization, and development.

Following the talk, the ambassador presented K. David Jackson – chair of the Council on Latin American & Iberian Studies (on leave, Spring ’26) and professor of Portuguese – with the honor of Comendador of the “Order of Camões,” which is awarded for distinguished service to the Portuguese language and culture and is conferred by the president of the Republic.

📸: Eve Gaciarz

Read about his visit: https://macmillan.yale.edu/stories/macmillan-welcomes-portuguese-ambassador-francisco-duarte-lopes-discuss-portugals

📸 The Summer 2026 Photo Contest is LIVE!

Heading abroad this summer for study, research, work, or adventure?

Bring us along through your lens!

Whether you are pictured with an iconic landmark, conducting fieldwork, interning at an organization, exploring a new city, or capturing an unforgettable everyday moment, we want to see your summer activities.

➡️ From May through August, we will select one winning photo each month.

➡️ Winners will receive a MacMillan-themed vegan leather padfolio and have their photography featured across MacMillan’s social media channels.

➡️ Submissions will be accepted on a rolling basis beginning May 1.

➡️ The winning entry for each month will be selected on the 23rd of that month.

Submit your photo here: https://yalesurvey.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_a67VEYtOSnsFX2m

🌎🍽️ From April 9–16, Yale welcomed renowned Ecuadorian Chef Rodrigo Pacheco as the fourth fellow in the Global Table program.

A collaboration between Yale MacMillan Center, Yale Schwarzman Center, and Yale Hospitality, Global Table explores the connections between sustainability, health, culture, and community—with food at the center of the conversation.

Designed to literally bring people to the table, the program connects Yale’s campus, the New Haven community, and cultures around the world through shared meals, stories, traditions, and values.

During each residency, fellows train Yale Hospitality staff on their regional cuisines, engage with students through class visits, and present public talks followed by a special dinner featuring a menu curated by the chef.

Global Table fellows are selected for their commitment to environmental and social impact, culinary innovation, and the communities they represent.

Thank you, Chef Pacheco, for educating our community about indigenous wisdom, ecosystem conservation, and gastronomy!

Photos: Eve Gaciarz and Daniel Vieira

On Friday, April 24, we hosted a virtual seminar, “From Immigration to Climate Action: Global Challenges and Opportunities,” bringing together our 2025–2026 Fox Fellows, alumni, and the broader Yale University community.

The seminar featured presentations from outgoing Fox Fellows reflecting on urgent global challenges across migration, identity, conservation, and climate justice, offering comparative insights into how communities around the world are responding to complex, interconnected issues.

We were especially honored to witness Joshua Amponsah debut a moving original poem on belonging, community, and the meaning of “home” across oceans.

An environmental justice scholar, climate scientist, writer, and filmmaker, Joshua’s work—grounded in fieldwork across Ghana and Kenya—reflects a deep commitment to reconciling ecological sustainability with social justice. His words, echoing “an architecture of belonging” and “my compass, my home,” beautifully captured the spirit of the Fox International Fellowship and the Yale MacMillan Center as a space of global connection and exchange.

As part of our 2025–2026 outgoing cohort, Joshua is currently at the University of Cape Town advancing research on sustainability and justice in Southern Africa.

Learn more about Joshua and his research on our website: https://lnkd.in/evWFEu6N.