-
Housing and transportation account for 50% of all greenhouse gas emissions, so changing to electric vehicles won't help slow the climate crisis on its own. The manner in which we build and retrofit our residential and business communities is vital to environmental sustainability. The nation's lead expert on this is Reid Ewing, Distinguished Professor of City and Metropolitan Planning at the University of Utah and this week's guest on "Issues of the Environment" with WEMU's David Fair. Later this month, Dr. Ewing will be a featured panelist in Ann Arbor on the interplay between housing and transportation when it comes to reducing our carbon footprint.
-
As we move towards a more sustainable energy and transportation future, one of the methodologies is an increased focus on hydrogen. The University of Michigan has created a hydrogen roadmap meant to help the state's response to new funding opportunities because of Michigan's climate action plan. WEMU's David Fair takes a look at what that means now and moving forward with the director for the Center of Sustainable Studies in the U-M's School for Environment and Sustainability, Greg Keoleian.
-
A stretch of West Stadium Blvd. is set to be rezoned to include more multi-level residential and commercial properties. The second reading passed during Thursday night’s Ann Arbor City Council meeting on a 7-3 vote. WEMU’s Josh Hakala has more.
-
Ann Arbor voters will decide a long-term tax question in the mid-term elections. The city is asking for a 20-year, one-mill tax increase to fund its Community Climate Action plan. It’s a lofty ask, and, as WEMU’s Cathy Shafran reports, not everyone is on board.
-
It has been 41 years since the US Congress held its first hearings about “global warming” and 25 years since the Kyoto Protocol was approved It committed the nations of the world to address the climate crisis. For decades, the fossil fuel industry’s stranglehold on US politics kept action at bay. In mid-August, the Inflation Reduction Act was signed into law committing $369 billion toward climate emission reduction efforts. WEMU's David Fair checked in with Mike Garfield from the Ann Arbor-based Ecology Center to get early analysis of the benefits and shortcomings of the measure and what it may provide to Washtenaw County and Southeast Michigan.
-
If you’ve ever wondered how to create greater environmental sustainability in your own home, some new perspectives are available to you Friday evening as part of the Ann Arbor Mayor's bi-annual Green Fair. WEMU's Cathy Shafran reports.
-
A stretch of West Stadium Blvd. is set to be rezoned to include more residential and commercial properties. WEMU's Josh Hakala has more.
-
Project Grow in Washtenaw County is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2022, and we’ll look back on five decades of community gardening and advocacy for sustainable gardens in Ann Arbor and beyond. WEMU's David Fair is joined by Project Grow managing director Kirk Jones to discuss the lessons learned in the first 50 years and what the immediate and longer-term future holds.
-
Ann Arbor City Council on Tuesday night passed a resolution to begin a feasibility study to explore ways to reach the city’s carbon neutrality goals. One of those options includes buying out DTE and creating a municipal utility. WEMU’s Josh Hakala explains.
-
The new school year has begun. 13-year-old Izzy Sutton is starting her freshman year at Ann Arbor Pioneer High School with a push for greater awareness of sustainable practices. She's been an environmental advocate throughout her middle school years and is now making the push to improve sustainability through increasing options for fashion-forward, environmentally responsible clothing. And she's winning support in a variety of ways. Izzy joined WEMU's David Fair for a conversation that offers great hope for a new generation of environmental stewards.