Can adding minerals to ocean curb climate change? Elon Musk backs UM grad’s research

MIAMI -- Laura Stieghorst was sitting in the back of a University of Miami classroom in November 2021 when she got the email that would change her life. As her professor lectured the class on sustainable development, Stieghorst, then a senior studying environmental science and policy, learned that Elon Musk — founder of Tesla and SpaceX, new owner of Twitter and the world’s richest man — was about to give her a $100,000 grant to fund her research proposal to fight climate change. “I just wanted to jump out of my seat,” said Stieghorst, who graduated from UM in December. She had applied for the...