| Northeast-Midwest Institute Weekly Update |
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Asian Carp Capture and Hearings
On June 22, 2010 a bighead carp--a variety of Asian Carp--was found in Lake Calumet beyond the Electrical Barrier System designed by the Army Corps of Engineers. The discovery has not led the Army Corps to shut down the locks connecting the Great Lakes. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-Michigan) has called a hearing of the Energy and Natural Resources' Water and Power Subcommittee on the carp for Thursday (02:30 PM, 366 Dirksen). For more information see the article on E&E Daily. |
America's Inner Coast SummitOn June 22-24, America's Inner Coast Summit was
held in
Saint Louis, Missouri. The Summit brought together over 100
representatives from NGOs, Federal agencies, states, tribes, private
landowners, industry, academia and communities to discuss the future
ecological
sustainability of the Mississippi River watershed (the Summit web site
is here). The Summit was
sponsored by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, The Nature Conservancy,
Monsanto, Gulf Engineers and Consultants, Sand County Foundation, and
the
National Great Rivers Research and Education Center. The proceedings
built upon
the findings of a May 2009 action document developed by the Midwest
Natural
Resources Group: an 'Opportunity for Action' letter that was signed by the 14 Federal agencies that
make up the group. The Summit also grew out of the recommendations from
an August 2009 Visions of a Sustainable River Conference hosted by the National Great Rivers Research and Education Center. Both that letter and conference recognized the importance
of
the Mississippi River and its entire watershed, and represented calls to
action
for sustainable conservation and recovery efforts.
Summit speakers included representatives
of academia, Federal agencies, the NGO community, and associations. Mark
Gorman, Northeast-Midwest Institute Policy Analyst on water and
watershed
issues, presented a plenary session talk at the Summit on its first full
day,
entitled "Of Maps and Men - 17th Century Mapmaking and 21st Century
Sustainability." A transcript of the talk can be viewed on-line here. |
Brownfields Conference 2011: Call for Session Proposals, New Deadline July 30
The 14th National Brownfields Conference is coming to Philadelphia on April 3-5, 2011. Cosponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the International City/County Management Association (ICMA), the National Brownfields Conference attracts more than five thousand registrants and hundreds of exhibitors. The conference is the largest, most comprehensive event focused on cleaning up and redeveloping abandoned, underutilized, and potentially contaminated properties in the nation. Conference organizers are now accepting proposals for the more than 100 educational sessions. The planning committee wants to encourage more interactive educational sessions in hopes to have at least 60 percent using the always popular marketplace/roundtable format and the newly established public dialogue/debate format. To submit your session proposal by the deadline of July 30, 2010 go to www.brownfields2011.org. For more information please contact Julie Butler at jbutler@icma.org or see the conference website. |
10th Annual New Partners for Smart Growth Conference Call for Session ProposalsThe Local Government Commission (LGC) is conducting a formal Call for Session Proposals (CFSP) for the 2011 New Partners for Smart Growth Conference program from May 17th through June 30th. The submittal review process will take place from July through late-August 2010, and those selected for inclusion in the final program will be notified by early September, if not sooner. If you are interested in submitting a session proposal for consideration for the 2011 conference program, please carefully read the CFSP Instructions document. Then, complete the entire submittal form and submit it via email to mbarton@lgc.org. Incomplete submittal forms will not be considered. If you would like to submit more than one proposal, you will need to use a separate CFSP submittal form for each. All submissions will receive an email acknowledging receipt by the LGC. If you do not receive such an email within 72 hours of submitting your proposal, please contact Melissa Harper-Barton at mbarton 'AT' lgc 'DOT' org to confirm your proposal has been received. - Download Submittal Instructions Word | PDF
- Download Submittal Form Word | PDF
Fore more information contact Fritz Ohrenschall at the Northeast-Midwest Institute or Melissa Harper-Barton at the Local Government Commission. |
Testimony Available from Rep. Tsongas Field Hearing in Lowell, MA
Seven experts (below) provided oral and written testimony to Congresswoman Niki Tsongas at a Congressional field hearing in Lowell, MA on June 19, 2010. The event was convened by the Northeast-Midwest Institute and the Northeast-Midwest Congressional Coalition in coordination with the office of Congresswoman Niki Tsongas. The experts focused their remarks on the role of federal policy in advancing innovative land re-use and sustainability in mid-sized older industrial cities.
Experts and the topic of their remarks: Alan Mallach, Nonresident Senior Fellow, Metropolitan Policy Program of The Brookings Institution Reimagining land use in America's distressed older cities-the Federal Policy RoleThe Honorable Parris Glendening, Former Governor of the State of Maryland and President of the Smart Growth Leadership Institute The role of state and federal policy in advancing sustainability, livability and smart growthDr. Alan Hecht, Director for Sustainable Development, Office of Research and Development, at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) The role of EPA and the Office of Research and Development in promoting urban sustainability and sustainable developmentBob Van Meter, Executive Director of Greater Boston LISC (Local Initiatives Support Corporation) Building neighborhood capacity for community revitalization/climate change and the agenda for America's cities
Wendy Nicholas, Director of the Northeast Office, National Trust for Historic Preservation Historic preservation as a means of creating sustainable cities: greening of historic properties, rehabilitation and energy retrofit tax creditsAndre Leroux, Director, Massachusetts Smart Growth Alliance Enhancing local successes in smart growth and sustainability-considerations for federal policiesJohn Schneider, Executive Vice-President,Mass INC. A policy agenda for innovation and economic opportunity in "Gateway Cities." The written testimony and short bios of each expert can be found on the NEMW website. For more information contact Greg Lewis at the Northeast-Midwest Institute, 202-464-4005. |
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