Great Lakes Now Michigan

Great Lakes Moment: Connecting people to nature through The Great Lakes Way

6 min read

Great Lakes Moment: Connecting people to nature through The Great Lakes Way

A recent Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan report documents substantial progress in creating The Great Lakes Way — an interconnected set of greenways and water trails stretching from Port Huron, Michigan on southern Lake Huron to Toledo, Ohio on western Lake Erie.

In 2000, the Community Foundation polled metropolitan Detroit communities about obstacles to building greenways.

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Food Great Lakes Now

Winter Wellness Pantry: Elderberry Elixir

5 min read

Winter Wellness Pantry: Elderberry Elixir

Part of “A Year in the Wild Kitchen of the Great Lakes,” a series in partnership with expert forager Lisa M. Rose, with the mission of nurturing a deeper connection with the natural world through foraging. To get started with your foraging journey, begin here with our “Framework to Sustainable and Safe Practices” and check out Part 1 of “Winter Wellness Pantry” for tips and tricks to stay healthy this winter with wild herbs of the Great Lakes. 

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Great Lakes Now Ohio

Cuyahoga Valley National Park celebrates 50 years of environmental stewardship

3 min read

Cuyahoga Valley National Park celebrates 50 years of environmental stewardship

By Zaria Johnson, Ideastream Public Media

This story was originally published by Ideastream.

Cuyahoga Valley National Park is turning 50, and celebrating the milestone by highlighting decades of expansion, development and environmental preservation.

In September, the park kicked off hikes, happy hours and scavenger hunts — events that will continue through the end of 2025 — to showcase how far Northeast Ohio’s national park has come since its founding in 1974.

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Agriculture Great Lakes Now

Agricultural runoff damages our water and kills wildlife. Could a simple drainage stopper be the solution?

11 min read

Agricultural runoff damages our water and kills wildlife. Could a simple drainage stopper be the solution?

The sight of the first snow on the horizon of Bill Wiley’s 500-acre farm in Shelby County, Ohio, is a welcome relief. The 2024 growing season has been incredibly dry.

“We are about eight inches behind regular precipitation for the year,” he said.

But Wiley, who farms corn, soybeans, wheat, pumpkins and gords, has installed two inline water control structures that control the flow of drainage water from two of his fields.

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Great Lakes Now Lake Ontario Ontario

The past, present and future of a changing Lake Ontario | Great Lakes Now

12 min read

The past, present and future of a changing Lake Ontario

By Daniel Macfarlane

This story is an excerpt from Daniel Macfarlane’s book The Lives of Lake Ontario: An Environmental History.

The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS, Michigan Public and The Narwhal who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.

Read Now at Great Lakes Now.

Great Lakes Now Lake Ontario Ontario

The past, present and future of a changing Lake Ontario

12 min read

The past, present and future of a changing Lake Ontario

By Daniel Macfarlane

This story is an excerpt from Daniel Macfarlane’s book The Lives of Lake Ontario: An Environmental History.

The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS, Michigan Public and The Narwhal who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.

Read Now at Great Lakes Now.

Great Lakes Now Lake Superior Michigan

Waves of Change: Meet Protect the Porkies founder Tom Grotewohl

2 min read

Waves of Change: Meet Protect the Porkies founder Tom Grotewohl

Waves of Change is an online interview series highlighting the diverse faces and perspectives shaping the environmental justice movement throughout the Great Lakes region.

This month, we spoke with Tom Grotewohl, a resident of Wakefield Township in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and founder of the Protect the Porkies campaign.

Read Now at Great Lakes Now.