The University of Michigan is leading research, analyzing new technologies, and convening and expanding programs and partnerships around critical topics pertaining to sustainable business practices, environmental policy and climate action, and emerging economic trends.
From helping Michigan communities plan for renewable energy use to examining the broader discourse between climate change and national politics, U-M experts are assessing innovative environmental policies, business practices, and economic trends. Some of our key partnerships and initiatives include: the Erb Institute, the Center for Local, State and Urban Policy, the Urban Collaboratory, and the Urban Energy Justice Lab (UEJ). Find U-M experts in sustainability and environmental science, across fields and academic units.
As Michigan utilities look to meet clean energy regulations and transition to renewables, a new guide is available to help communities across the state address solar-energy-system, or SES, siting within their planning policies and zoning regulations.
A coaster minibusiness grew from a U-M course that brought together students of business, engineering and art and design. The class worked closely with Cass Community Social Services, a Detroit-based nonprofit dedicated to providing food, housing, health services and job programs, to brainstorm and set up the business. It uses materials that would otherwise enter the waste stream, like rubber, glass and wood.
Nearly 30 students from the Ford School and SEAS recently got a view of Michigan that will become increasingly familiar, visiting a 239 MW solar energy installation in Shiawassee County and a 150 MW wind park in Middleton. As the state moves toward its goal of carbon neutrality by 2050, more sites like these will dot the landscape—especially in rural areas.
While the move from petroleum fuels to biofuels is not as environmentally drastic as a complete transition from diesel to electric motor power, switching to vehicles run with biofuels is a more immediate solution. Even though it is estimated that half of new cars sold will be electric in the year 2030, it will still take many more years after to make a significant dent in greenhouse gas emissions.
Municipal takeover policies are often presented by supporters as rational, apolitical and technocratic responses to municipal financial distress. But a U-M researcher and colleagues found that a city’s level of financial distress is an unreliable predictor of the likelihood of state takeover, while the race and economic status of residents, as well as a city’s level of reliance on state revenue sharing, were better predictors.
Taking a walk in the park or just going outdoors could help youth feel better, and promoting public health policies that actively support time spent outside could help promote overall well-being among teens and young adults, according to a new U-M survey.
