Protecting Water Quality in the Great Lakes: Signature Investments of 2023
Michigan Sustainable Business Forum is hosting a green stormwater infrastructure and rainscaping summit for local business leaders, municipal partners and other stakeholders on Monday, November 13 at John Ball Zoo.
The summit will provide an opportunity for networking, an update on expected state and federal funding opportunities, and a panel discussion featuring local and regional project highlights, including:
- Chicago’s Sustainable Square Mile: As a project of Blacks in Green, the leading environmental justice and community development organization in Chicago, the initiative is designed to be the “gold standard for Black community development,” a whole-system approach for whole-system problems designed to increase the community’ wealth and wellbeing in the context of a changing climate. David Yocca, Green Infrastructure Director for Blacks in Green, will introduce how the pilot project concept builds on the “Grannynomics” values of the proud, hard-working Great Migration families who started businesses, bought homes, and kept dollars circulating in the West Woodland on Chicago’s southside. Blacks in Green and other partners were recently awarded a $10 million Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Center grant to scale the concept and provide technical support for communities throughout the Midwest.
- Friends of Grand Rapids Parks and C4: Executive Director Stacey Bare will discuss how a partnership with the Community Collaboration on Climate Change and the cities of Grand Rapids, Wyoming and Grandville will be utilizing a $9.5 million grant to plant 15,000 new trees and make substantial investments in trails and habitat restoration.
- BlueTriton Brands and the Evart Green Infrastructure Project: BlueTriton Brands Natural Resources Manager Arlene Anderson-VIncent will introduce how the public-private partnership and its investments in the Twin Creek Nature Area are improving water quality and advancing conservation as part of the City of Evart’s stormwater management plan and the corporation’s sustainability commitments.
- Allendale High School: Chris Kelly, winner of the 2022 Community Sustainability Leadership prize from the C.R Evenson Foundation, will share how the school is utilizing recent GSI improvements to support middle-school curriculum.
The event will also include an optional tour of the John Ball Zoo. Lunch will be provided.
Non-point source pollution is the most common threat to water quality in the region and state, a key concern of local watersheds, sustainable business practitioners and regulators. Rainscaping is a method of watershed restoration that promotes green infrastructure by managing stormwater as close as possible to where it falls, the most effective means for the private sector to voluntarily address water pollution in their communities.
Speakers Include:
- David Yocca, Blacks in Green
- Stacy Bare, Friends of Grand Rapids Parks
- Arlene Anderson-Vincent, Blue Triton
- Chris Kelly, Allendale Public Schools