From the Publisher, Summer 2026

Dear Loyal Readers,

It is a pleasure to send you this Summer issue of Princeton Magazine. Summer may finally be here, after a spring that seemed to have no end of wintry nights.

It seemed appropriate to have on our cover Carolyn Jones’ story of the father of modern climate prediction, Syukuro Manabe. Princeton, the University, and Princeton, the Town, were fortunate to welcome Manabe from Japan to the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory at the University’s Forrestal campus, where he developed the calculations predicting how the increase of the levels of carbon dioxide would drive global warming. He shared the 2021 Nobel Prize in Physics for this important work.

Of course, with summer, we have Summer Stock theater which, when I was a kid, was performed in tents around Lambertville and New Hope, Pa., just far enough from New York to avoid Actors’ Equity control. Donald H. Sanborn III has written a wonderful article about historic waterfront theaters in our area and their upcoming productions. That said, don’t lose sight of what will be happening right here in Princeton, at McCarter Theatre, the Lewis Arts Complex, Theatre Intime, and Princeton Summer Theater, right on the Princeton campus.

Moving on to films, Matthew Hersh’s “On Location in New Jersey” delves into how the statewide Film Ready New Jersey initiative helps prepare municipalities for on-location filming, like Oppenheimer in Princeton, while capturing the economic benefits of the rapidly expanding entertainment industry.

As always, Ilene Dube does not disappoint with her fascinating story on “The Journey of Your Donated Clothing.” The numbers in this story will blow your mind: every second a truckload of clothing is burned or sent to landfill, clothing produces one fifth of global wastewater and 10 percent of carbon emissions, and textiles of synthetic fibers can take 200 years to decompose. You will feel good about all of the local efforts to give used clothing a second or even a third useful life.

We all know New Jersey as the “Garden State” — did you ever think of it as the “Fishing State?” Anne Levin’s story will give you this new perspective on the state as an “Angler’s Paradise.” I can personally vouch for its accuracy. In my younger days I would get up at dawn and fish for bass in the irrigation ponds throughout the Plainsboro potato fields, and on weekends I would join my mom fishing for flounder on the rocky wave breakers south of Asbury Park. We never came home empty-handed. I’ve never tried fly fishing, but the story opens with a beautiful photo that might tempt you to try the sport yourself. You might also take your kids out on a “party boat,” which goes out to deeper waters where the bigger fish can be found.

Everyone I know in Princeton is overcommitted, stressed out, and flirting with possible disabling health conditions. Stress no longer! Just read Sarah Teo’s article on “Yoga for All.” You will be surprised to learn the statistic that one in six Americans practices yoga regularly. More importantly, you will also learn that yoga is and should be more than just exercise — it is also a philosophy and mental medicine for the body, the brain, and your emotions.

I close this letter with a note that the Women’s College Club of Princeton is celebrating its 110 years of existence. Wendy Greenberg’s article points out that its mission has been to encourage education for women and, to that end, the club awards about 20 college scholarships every year. It now has 112 members, down from a high of 500 members. Today’s membership is composed of many women who had exciting and professional careers.

My hope is that the club will think about ways to attract younger college graduates into membership, so it lasts another 110 years. My family has contributed two named scholarships, and I have made estate provisions that will fund those scholarships for as long as the Women’s College Club of Princeton exists.

As you go through this issue, please visit Sarah Teo’s very artistic “A Well-Designed Life” pages featuring products from regional artisans. Also don’t miss my favorite, Stuart Mitchner’s “Book Scene.”

The entire Princeton Magazine staff wishes you a wonderful summer along with the hope that you will shop at our advertisers, without whom you would not receive this magazine.

Respectfully yours,