Keeping Nico's passions alive

There were few things Nico loved more than bringing together the people he cared about. He never missed an opportunity to play host, inviting friends and family across his diverse networks to share a meal, an urban adventure, or a wild all-night dance party at his house. If you were lucky enough to get roped into Nico's plans for an evening, you knew you were in for something magical. More than anything else, Nico believed in the power and beauty of human connections, and he relished every opportunity to build and strengthen bonds of friendship and love.

And so I was not surprised by the overwhelming response to his death, as communities of friends, family, and lovers gathered in cities across the country to support each other in navigating this loss. At his memorial service, as I looked out over a sea of more than 600 souls, each one roped into Nico's massive extended network in a different way, I couldn't help but think that he'd be moved by how well the bonds of love he crafted had endured, even in the face of unspeakable tragedy.

Eight months later, those bonds are still holding strong, and there is no greater proof of that than the Nico Linesch Boundary Crossing Scholar's Award we are launching this month. Dozens of Nico's family, colleagues, mentors, lovers, students, and teachers have all had a hand in shaping and supporting this project, and I am proud of what we have built together. Thanks to the thoughtful input of ideas, dollars, connections, and labor from literally hundreds of people, we've created a powerful vehicle for change that I know will amplify the core values that guided Nico's professional work.

Nico sat at the intersection of public health, urban planning, community organizing, and computer science, and he floated between these separate worlds with ease. When he died, he was building models and methods that tied together hard data from the public health and urban planning fields with local community input he gathered in a series of workshops. His goal was to influence urban policy in a way that encouraged active, healthy lifestyles, particularly in under-served regions of the Los Angeles metro area. 

To that end, the Nico Linesch Boundary Crossing Scholar’s Award will provide financial support to graduate students who are pursuing the kind of radical, interdisciplinary work that defined Nico's short but impactful professional career. We're looking to fund the next generation of innovative urban thinkers: grad students who are willing to break down barriers and build bridges across disciplines and agencies, specifically during the time of their internships or practicums. Given the constraints of traditional academic funding sources, we know that students often are forced to shy away from their bolder ideas, and we want to free them to dream big. If you know any grad students who fit that description, have them check out the application. 

Importantly, these awards will be administered by the California Student Sustainability Coalition, an organization that networks student organizations working to support environmental sustainability on university campuses across California. Nico played an important organizing role in the early days of the Coalition, and many current leaders in the network were Nico's friends and colleagues. With so many staff, board members, and volunteers at CSSC invested in honoring Nico's legacy, we know they'll be able to attract the kind of innovative students Nico would have loved to work with. Awards will be selected by a committee composed of Nico's family, CSSC leaders, and Nico's professional mentors and colleagues.

Funds for the annual awards will be housed at the Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles, which distributes tens of millions of dollars every year to thousands of nonprofit organizations on behalf of the Jewish community. Nico felt a deep sense of connection to his Jewish heritage and was a committed and joyous member of numerous Jewish spiritual and cultural communities. Having this fund housed at a Jewish organization that spreads Jewish resources across religious lines seems only fitting.

Every facet of this Scholar's Award and associated fund is a testament to the work, culture, community, values, and human connections that Nico so passionately believed in. If you have the capacity to do so, I encourage you to make a contribution. You can donate here, and all donations are 100% tax deductible. All of us who have poured our love and energy into creating this award are grateful for whatever you are able to give to honor Nico's work and memory.

For those looking for other organizations to support in Nico's memory, I encourage you to consider a donation to Keshet and JQ, two leading LGBTQ Jewish organizations that are working to create a world where no one has to choose between being gay and being Jewish. It is only because of the work of these organizations that I was able to stand on the bima of a major synagogue during Nico's memorial and publicly declare my love for another man in front of several rabbis and the wider Jewish community without fear. I am deeply grateful to both organizations for the personal, professional, and emotional support they've provided me, Nico's family, and his beloved community of LGBTQ Jews in these challenging months.

Nico built a radically diverse, complex, and powerful network in his life. Over the last eight months, I've been touched by the love, support, and generosity that has continued to flow freely through that network, and I know these connections will only grow more powerful now that he has moved on to his next adventure.