Northeastern-Led Effort Restores Back Bay Fens
A three-year restoration effort at the Back Bay Fens, led by a Northeastern University graduate serving as park steward, is pulling invasive plants to give native species room to grow, one of several hands-on campus projects documented across the city this week.
COMMUNITY & ARTS
Jonathan Bacdayan, a Northeastern graduate now working as a park steward, is directing the Fens restoration as part of a three-year partnership among Northeastern, the Boston Parks and Recreation Department and the Lawrence and Lillian Solomon Foundation. On July 27, co-op student Natalie Curtis helped clear invasive purple loosestrife and porcelain berry vine from the Fens to let native plants take hold, according to Northeastern University's news office.
The same week, Northeastern highlighted two other campus projects with a local bent: Ph.D. biology student Samantha Finkbeiner's work studying the regenerative properties of axolotls in the Mugar Life Sciences building, and NextTile, a startup co-founded by mechanical engineering students Nicolas Bejar and Mason Kim that aims to teach kids electronics through a hands-on, visual approach, built out of the university's EXP Makerspace.
ELSEWHERE IN THE NEWS
"DOJ drops criminal case against ex-Olympian charged with damaging Reflecting Pool" — federal prosecutors have dropped the criminal case against a former Olympian accused of damaging a Boston reflecting pool, WCVB reports (read it at https://www.wcvb.com/article/doj-dismiss-criminal-case-ex-olympian-reflecting-pool/73321504).
"Senate unanimously passes amendment to protect journalists' sources" — the Massachusetts Senate voted unanimously to advance an amendment shielding journalists from being forced to reveal their sources, according to the Boston Herald (read it at https://www.bostonherald.com/2026/07/31/senate-unanimously-passes-amendment-to-protect-journalists-sources/).
"Red Sox get promising Roman Anthony update" — 98.5 The Sports Hub reports an encouraging update on Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony (read it at https://985thesportshub.com/2026/07/31/red-sox-get-promising-roman-anthony-update/).
Compiled from official town feeds, community organizations, and local press. Outside reporting is attributed inline.