African American-Led Grocery to Open Soon in Detroit
The Detroit People’s Food Co-op – projected to open in February at 8324 Woodward Ave. in Detroit’s North End – is an African-American-led, community-owned grocery cooperative. It seeks to address the issue of food insecurity, educate the community about nutrition and sustainability, support local businesses, and pump investment back into the area. Malik Yakini is the […]
Interconnected Set of Greenways and Blueways to Create New Southeast Michigan Trail
There’s the Appalachian Trail in the East, the Pacific Rim Trail in the West, and the Continental Divide Trail in the Rocky Mountains. Now, Southeast Michigan will have its own regional trail called The Great Lakes Way. Over the past several years, the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan (CFSEM) has convened a group of organizations, […]
Recycling Rates in Michigan Are At an All-Time High
According to a recent press conference from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE), recycling in the Great Lakes Region is now at an all-time high. The total amount of residential recycled materials being reported for fiscal year (FY) 2022 was 620,494 tons – that’s over 66,000 tons more than the previous […]
SEMCOG Working to Develop Plan to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions
The Detroit-Warren-Dearborn Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) recently was allocated $1 million to develop a plan for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other harmful air pollution through the US-EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) program. The plan will cover the MSA’s six counties – Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, St. Clair, Livingston, and Lapeer – as well as […]
DTE Energy’s Agenda for Mitigating Climate Change
SHAWN PATTERSON, VP, ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT AND SAFETY, DTE ENERGY, AND MEMBER OF THE SBND LEADERSHIP COMMITTEE, SHARES HIS PERSPECTIVE ON MITIGATING CLIMATE CHANGE AS A TOP PRIORITY. When you’ve been in business a while, you come to understand that there is no such thing as “just business.” What we do impacts our communities, our customers, […]
Improved Green Loan Access for Detroit Small Businesses, Nonprofits, and Residents
In 2009, the State of Michigan created the nation’s first nonprofit “green bank” called Michigan Saves. The organization provides credit enhancements for credit unions and other lenders that reduce their loan default risk. In exchange, the lenders lower interest rates to help homeowners to pay for home improvements that reduce fossil fuel use, such as […]
The Inflation Reduction Act – How Small and Medium-Sized Businesses Can Benefit
The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 includes $500 billion in new spending and tax breaks targeted toward climate change, clean energy, training, and workforce development, the development of clean infrastructure, and more. It puts the U.S. on a path to 40% emissions reduction by 2030 with these desired impacts: Lower energy costs Increased energy security […]
Sustainability Progress in Oakland County
Erin Quetell became Oakland County’s first chief environmental sustainability officer in 2021 after working for four years as the City of Ferndale’s environmental sustainability planner. Quetell received a bachelor’s degree in Biology from Grand Valley State University and a master’s degree in Public Administration in Environmental Science and Policy from Columbia University in New York. […]
Small Business Role in Sustainability is Largely Untapped
WAFA DINARO, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, OF THE NEW ECONOMY INITIATIVE, AND A LEADERSHIP COMMITTEE MEMBER FOR SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS NETWORK DETROIT During an internship with a recycler in New York in 2020, entrepreneur and environmental scientist Madeline Miller watched as the waste materials from textile companies were being processed in the facility, and something entrepreneurial clicked. In […]
Eastern Michigan University – Steam Heat, Solar Panels, and a Recent Bronze STARS Rating
Eastern Michigan University approaches sustainability through a systemized framework and a community-derived mindset that together drive several sustainability initiatives and sustainable infrastructure endeavors on campus. For its sustainability framework, EMU uses the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) and its Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS) system and has developed a President’s […]
