Who: Carolyn Rafaelian, founder, creative director, and CEO of R.I. company Alex and Ani, LLC.

What: A new $1 million donation to URI that will result, among other things, in the naming of a lab supporting natural product research, and the discovery of plant-based molecules to improve human well-being.

When: Announced Fall 2014.

Where: The Alex and Ani Impact Lab, a research lab in the $75 million, state-of-the-art College of Pharmacy building, which opened in 2012 on the Kingston campus.

Why: “The University of Rhode Island is one of the crown jewels of our state,” says Rafaelian. “We are honored to be able to support important initiatives that will positively impact not only URI students but the people living in our beloved state as well.”

Positively: “This will expand the scope and quality of the research being done here,” says Biomedical Sciences Professor David Rowley, who researches the beneficial compounds in cranberries and will lead the newly renovated lab. “The discoveries made by researching these molecules could have far-reaching effects.”