Connecting Communities: Kalamazoo Earth Day

Ben Brown has made many significant choices to Ben's home and lifestyle to make Ben's footprint more sustainable. Between electric cars, misting showers, and rainwater collection, Ben has identified emerging and long-used technologies and applied the best ones to Ben's life.

In this episode, we delve into the story of a group of neighbors who are making a tangible difference in their urban environment. Their mission is simple yet impactful: to create an urban forest by planting in small spaces like curb lawns. Starting with one small tree, they are envisioning enhancements to their community, improvements in air quality, and space and food for local wildlife. Meet key...

How can religious or spiritual communities come together to address climate change? This is the question that the founders of Hope for Creation were asking when they planned the first set of meetings. Hear our guests, Joan Hauxhurst and Steve Bertman discuss their work to include environmental priorities into faith-based communities. Youtube: @hopeforcreationswmi5663 Facebook: https://www.facebook...

In this episode, our hosts, David Benac and Emily Demorest, dive deep into the conversations with a dynamic group of high school environmental activists who are concerned with how to make a positive impact on an individual level, as well as at the level of social policy. The KC Earth Changers are the environmental club at Kalamazoo Central. They are leading the way for youth to organize, to speak...

Tom Small is an octogenarian who has been encouraging the creation and conversation of native ecosystems for decades. He started the local chapter of Wild Ones, an organization dedicated to promoting landscaping with native plants. He writes books and teaches at Western Michigan University. In this episode, Tom shares some real knowledge and wisdom about coming together to literally save the world...

Jessica Thompson created Michigan's first Zero Waste Shop & Refillery in downtown Kalamazoo. Our hosts, Patrick Hershberger and Sharon Dever, sat down with Jessica, who may need to add storyteller to her resume. This episode is a lot of fun!

Arielle King and Bionca Stewart discuss environmental justice and creating opportunities for black people to lead in the environmental movement. They both will illuminate an exciting and intersectional approach to environmental solutions. Bionca Stewart IG Black Girl Environmentalist IG BGE Newsletter BGE Linkedin Justice 40 Grants Fresh Banana Leaves: Healing Indigenous Landscapes through Indigen...

Ryan Smith does some incredible work in the unhoused communities in Kalamazoo. He's got some great ideas of what social and structural changes could improve conditions for people, and you will look at the environment differently after hearing from Ryan. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent...

In this episode our guest, Mitch Lettow, dives deep into the concepts and practices of conservation. If you've ever been interested in habitat restoration and ecology, that is the daily work that Mitch does with the Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy. Learn about the history and science of this work, as well as how you can participate in ecological conservation at home and in community.

This is a very special episode using footage from the Earth Day Festival! Almost every exhibitor is a part of this episode, as well as behind-the-scenes stories and commentary from David Benac, Patrick Hershberger, Sharon Dever, and Dee Chauvin. This episode goes hand-in-hand with the video that can be found at www.publicmedianet.org.

Erin Middleton is the Director of Energy Equity at Carbon Solutions. She is passionate about helping stakeholders make informed decisions about which low-carbon energy technologies make sense for their communities while meeting local, state, and federal climate goals. Join host Bionca Stewart to explore and understand the emerging opportunities for combining science and advocacy.

If you could live in a home that was built in 1890 or one that was built in 1980, which would you choose? If you chose the house that was built in 1980, Luis Pena, Historic Preservation Coordinator for the City of Kalamazoo Department of Planning and Economic Development has some information that just might change your mind. Learn more about the value and integrity of older structures, and conside...

Steve Walsh and Ellen Nelson talk about the Vine way to celebrate Earth Day - with concerts and music. Self-declared as the Artistic Neighborhood, the energy in Vine speaks to a willingness to reach over the fence to collaborate to keep their outdoors fun and fresh. Specifically, they discuss their neighborhood assessment and how they protect and nurture the diversity on their board. The last epis...

There are so many fantastic musicians in Kalamazoo, but only some who will be performing at the 2023 Earth Day Festival! These musicians are thoughtful in their community engagement and activism. No one-trick-ponies here. For this episode, we hope you will discover some new exciting music, and fall in love with your favorite local artists a little more. Yolonda Lavender (00:00 - 48:00) Santino Jon...

How can one person make a lasting and meaningful difference? Chris Bartley has lived in the Oakwood-Winchell neighborhood for a long time. At one time, Woods lake was so overgrown, it didn’t look like a park at all. Chris wanted to revive the park, so she planted native plants there. Chris believed that native plants would do the most to preserve the park for future generations. Fast forward many...

The Edison Neighborhood has some awesome projects that are resident-led initiatives that improve the quality of life for those living in the Edison Neighborhood. These projects also have positive impacts for the environment. Stephen Dupuie, the Director of the Edison Neighborhood Association, joins the show to talk about those initiatives, how they function, and why they do so much to improve the...

Bet you don’t know the story of the first Earth Day. In this episode of Connecting Communities, David Benac tells the story of the first national Earth Day, and the ways that it changed this country.  David, who chairs the Connecting Communities planning committee, also talks about the more recent history of Earth Day in Kalamazoo - Including how people can celebrate Earth Day in 2023. Co-Hos...

Patrick Hershberger and Ellen Nelson are professional artists in Kalamazoo. If you have walked, driven, or taken the bus anywhere is Kalamazoo, you have probably glimpsed a mural they were a part of. Patrick and Ellen also volunteer their time and work for Earth Day in Kalamazoo every year. This conversation explores how art can be beautiful and powerful, and how artists can speak to people withou...