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Maura Brennan and Elizabeth Dell co-lead what they say is the largest Michigan chapter of the Citizens Climate Lobby, a national group sharply focused on a very specific goal: Convincing Congress to enact a carbon tax on coal, oil, and natural gas and distribute the money to all American households. The market-based logic is simple: Raising fossil fuel prices will push the country toward ever-cheaper, renewable, clean power sources such as wind, solar, and energy efficiency, cutting the greenhouse gas emissions warming our planet....
A quick Google Maps satellite image reveals the inefficiencies of one of the area’s busiest intersections. ...
Earlier this week the Traverse City Record-Eagle published a story about this region’s growing interest in freight rail and its potential to revitalize small town economies. And even though we’re just outside the Toronto to St. Louis trade area, this region is well positioned to revive its rail connection to the rest of North America....
Cotton candy and elephant ears are typical fare at fairs, but locally grown fruits and vegetables have become a new tradition with the Taste the Local Difference: Cooking with Kids at the Fair event at the Northwestern Michigan Fair....
A few weeks ago, the farmers market doubled in size. Summer had truly arrived and all of the stands were overflowing with new produce—local cherries in particular. All the farmers offered free samples, and there were few shoppers who didn’t give in. Cherry season had begun. To celebrate the occasion, MLUI’s Communications Manager James Russell and I decided we wanted to learn more about the cherry harvest. So we traveled up to Johnson Farms on Old Mission Peninsula to see it first-hand....
On all of my rides, I’ve passed many farm stands, fields, orchards, and vineyards that cover the peninsula, and I decided that I should learn more about them....
The Michigan Land Use Institute honored Senator Debbie Stabenow with its Helen Milliken Legacy Award at a July 27 dinner in honor of the former first lady and Gov. William Milliken. MLUI created the award to recognize those who carry forward Helen Milliken’s legacy of environmental advocacy and civil discourse. Stabenow is the first recipient. ...
Local Motion, a new northwest Michigan program for improving transportation choices in the Grand Traverse region, is rolling out a series of fact sheets to outline our current transportation habits. This first sheet reveals the current reality: Most commuters in the Grand Traverse area drive very long distances to get to work....
Interest in alternative energy options is growing in the northwest corner of Lower Michigan and solar power, in particular, is gaining more recognition as an exciting opportunity for homeowners....
Trying to get around the Grand Traverse area without a car is no small task. But it’s getting easier every day....
Srinergy has joined the U.S. Department of Energy’s nationwide Race to the Rooftops contest. The firm and the partners it is recruiting will compete for part of a $10 million prize. It will be shared among the first three teams that install 6,000 smaller-scale solar systems on homes or businesses while keeping their “soft costs”—everything but the panels and other hardware—at or below $1 per watt....
Over the weekend I explored another BATA route and how it also makes a connection with a TART trail. ...
On July 14, about 400 people gathered at the north end of the Mackinac Bridge and listened as speakers warned about the aging oil pipeline that lies west of the bridge, beneath the Straits of Mackinac’s sparkling, cobalt-blue waters....
There’s little doubt among lawmakers that Michigan must come up with new ways to pay for maintaining its broad transportation network. What’s unclear, however, is whether or not the new money would be invested in repairing our crumbling roads, or on building new and wider highways....
Even on “The Jetsons,” hapless George would still get stuck in traffic jams on the way to work. Instead, says the Michigan Land Use Institute, what we need is a new vision for the future of commuting. MLUI wants to begin with a program called Local Motion, a community effort with local businesses, and a new website.
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Taste the Local Difference (TLD) has had a decade of success connecting farmers with consumers. The TLD Food & Farm Guide is the iconic symbol of our small-farm community in northwest Michigan. In annual, pocket-sized, editions, it has listed a growing number of farms and food system partners. This year, we’re taking the successes of TLD and giving them an upgrade....
Organizers are rallying at Bridge View Park in St. Ignace to warn that there’s a 60-year-old oil pipeline beneath the Straits, operated by the same company responsible for the Kalamazoo pipeline oil spill, and that it’s putting the Great Lakes ecosystem at serious risk....
James Bruckbauer gave an overview of the new Bike-n-Ride program when it debuted on July 1, and now I’m here to share my personal experience....
Everyone in the MLUI office is deeply saddened and frustrated by the violent hit-and-run that occurred in Traverse City last week that resulted in the death of a 29-year-old woman. The Traverse City resident was biking to her neighborhood home near F&M Park when she was struck by a large vehicle and dragged for more than a block....
On June 25, President Barack Obama stepped up to the podium at Georgetown University, and truly stepped up to the plate on climate change, wowing even the most ardent and committed advocates with his remarkably frank comments about global warming—and what he will do about it....