"I am standing awkwardly by caterpillars

Over half of all Michigan's public university graduates leave the state within one year of graduation. Michigan Radio Intern Lauren Silverman will probably be one of them. Lauren has launched a new series for Michigan Radio called Generation Y Michigan that explores why young adults in Generation Y are or aren't leaving Michigan. You can hear them during Morning Edition (M-F, 5-9 am) and All Things Considered (M-F, 4-6:30 pm) throughout the following several weeks.

In addition to the on-air features, there's also a blog at GenerationYMichigan.org where listeners can discuss this issue, take part in polls, and view supplementary articles, photographs and essays on the topic. It includes great features like Where Generation Y Is Headed and Why They Leave. In addition to Lauren's posts, there are also some from guest bloggers. I thought it was pretty cool that I found a now generation Y student from my hometown asking provocative questions about whether you actually leave Michigan, even when you do:

...Exposure to other environments should not be confused with brain drain. Michigan needs people who care about it but who also have perspective about how things are done in other cultures outside of Michigan, no matter how close or far.

In my opinion, convincing native young minds to stay might not always work. But travelers from distant places should know that Michigan offers opportunity. I can’t put my finger on it, but I’ve sensed it more and more over the past few years. There’s a burgeoning energy here. The cost of living isn’t bad, and we have at least one of everything! If it’s intelligence you crave, Ann Arbor was named the 4th smartest city in the U.S. in 2008 by Forbes.com. If it’s natural beauty you want, we have 3,052 miles of Great Lakes shoreline. When you’re in Michigan, it’s hard to get more than a few hours away from any one of the lakes.

Furthermore, Michigan stays with you as you go. Everyone I speak to who leaves misses it. Michigan invites your return. Even if I leave after I graduate, Michigan will stay with me.

We'll close with a cool slideshow about why they leave and urge you to visit generationYmichigan.org for much more!

Pumpkin Patch by Larry the Biker

In his essay Threatening Agriculture, Michigan Radio's Jack Lessenberry says that it looks as if Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm will veto funding for agricultural extension programs after witholding the October payment for extension. He quotes dean of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Michigan State University Jeffrey Armstrong as saying this would be devastating to Michigan's second largest industry in a variety of ways including the loss of millions more in federal matching funds.

“The Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station system and MSU extension are providing the research, development, and education for Michigan’s emerging green economy,” Armstrong said.

If that funding is eliminated, or even if it is withheld, he says it would “destroy our ability to build the one economic sector in which Michigan has an advantage,” he says.

What that would mean is that MSU would have to shut down its 83 extension offices -- one per county - plus 15 agricultural and biological research stations and some other programs.

Jack notes that we're not just talking 4H here - we're talking after school programs in inner cities and a wide range of health and education issues that touch all aspects of our lives in Michigan.

I'll switch to italics to editorialize: This is about the most senseless thing I've ever heard of. Michigan is defined by what we grow and right now it seems like we're growing stupidity.

This Saturday the University of Michigan Wolverines travel to East Lansing to play the Michigan State University Spartans at Spartan Stadium. The rivalry between the two teams and their fans is intense and the Lansing State Journal takes note of this in their article "Rivalry ingrained in players from families - Intense feelings have bubbled up since childhood."

Wikipedia says that the Paul Bunyan-Governor of Michigan Trophy is awarded to the winner of the annual football game between the University of Michigan Wolverines and the Michigan State University Spartans. U of M holds the series edge at 67-29-5, and the trophy has been in Ann Arbor until last year when the Spartans defeated the Wolverines 35-21 and ended a five-game losing streak in the series. Relive the Spartan 2008 victory through this slideshow from the Detroit Free Press.

The game takes place at Noon EST and pits the 1-3 Spartans vs the No. 22 ranked 4-0 Wolverines. Although Michigan has the unbeaten record and the national ranking, the home team has won the last 12 out of 17 games and the Spartans are desperate for a win following a 3 game losing streak. That being said Michigan hasn't lost to Michigan State in consecutive seasons since 1967.

You can read a transcript of a live chat with Shannon Shelton and Mark Snyder, who will cover Saturday's game on the Detroit Free Press's website. Another transcript is available at mlive.com "Live chat: Join Michigan football beat writer Dave Birkett at noon to talk Michigan-Michigan State." Also at mlive.com you can listen to "The Press Box Podcast: There's pressure on Wolverines, Rodriguez to beat Spartans." The Lansing State Journal's Assistant Sports Editor, Barry Kiel and MSU beat reporter, Joe Rexrode discuss the upcoming match-up against Michigan in this streaming video.

MSU vs U of M Video Spirit Rally

Choose sides and get in on the discussion over at SpartanTailgate.com or MGoBlog. These are great resources with all the news and updates you need regarding MSU and U of M sports.

Michigan in Pictures has a couple of posts from awhile back about Spartan Stadium in East Lansing (where Saturday's game will be played) and Michigan Stadium aka The Big House.

Somewhere we have to note Whack-a-Wolverine from the Lansing State Journal and we definitely want to hear what YOU think about the rivalry and the game!

It also looks at the proposed elimination of the Michigan Department of History, Arts & Libraries (HAL). In a move that lies somewhere between shortsighted and Visigoth, Michigan's Governor has proposed eliminating HAL to save - drum roll please - 2 million dollars. As columnist Jack Lessenberry notes in his essay Saving Our Past from Politicians, that's roughly 1/10th of one percent of the money that is necessary to close our budget gap:

Our state has its own great library too, the Library of Michigan in Lansing, which has been around, in one form or another, since before we became a state. It contains 5.6 million priceless books, documents and records, all in a wonderful building in Lansing.

Any citizen can use the library and check out material from it. Additionally, thanks to federal matching funds, the state library system is able to subscribe to online databases that allow Michigan residents to access a vast array of resources from across the world.

...(Governor Jennifer Granholm) has issued an executive order transferring control of the library to the Department of Education. And that‘s not just a meaningless bureaucratic procedure. Along with it comes dramatic cuts, and a real chance that the library’s extensive collections will be scattered.

James Seidl, who directs a consortium of 49 libraries on southern Michigan was deeply appalled. “Distributing or removing these collections destroys 180 years of collecting, cataloging an preserving materials,” he told the Toledo Blade last week. (read article)

...What that would probably do is end all arts grants funding in the state, which means we would lose matching federal funds as well. The state librarian would be fired. The popular Michigan History magazine would stop publishing. The library would also stop allowing patrons to check out books, which, as respected Lansing columnist Susan Demas noted ironically (read her column), is sort of why libraries exist.

Michigan residents enjoy countless benefits from HAL. I strongly urge you to join the Save the Michigan Dept of History, Arts & Libraries Facebook group and share the link with your friends and urge them to apply some pressure to your Michigan representatives. History is a treasure that we hold for our children and as Jack notes, the lesson of Alexandria is too important to ignore.

Michigan Wine & Spirits Competition

Be among the first to try winning wines from the 2009 Michigan Wine and Spirits Competition and taste the breadth of quality from Michigan's vineyards. Sip a glass of wine while chatting with winning winemakers to learn more about their wines.

The Kellogg Hotel & Conference Center will host the 32nd Annual Michigan Wine and Spirits Competition, and a public Gold Medal Reception unveiling Michigan's top wines, on Thursday, August 6 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. This year marks Kellogg's ninth year hosting the competition, which will bring together wine experts to judge their way through nearly 400 Michigan wine entries. Best of Class wines will be perfectly paired with delicious foods prepared by the Kellogg Center's chefs. Other double gold, gold and silver medal wines will be available for sampling, along with a generous array of culinary treats. The Gold Medal Reception is expected to bring out an audience of 350 supportive consumers, industry members and industry associates. Tickets for the Michigan Wine and Spirits Competition Gold Medal Reception are $40 per person and are available through the Kellogg Center at 517-432-4000.

The festival encourages cross-cultural understanding of our diverse society through the presentation of musicians, dancers, cooks, storytellers and craftspeople whose traditions are rooted in their communities.

The festival includes nearly 100 musicians or dancers in groups, who perform at least twice and sometimes as many as four times over the weekend. Also featured are traditional and other food vendors, craft vendors and many other individual artists/demonstrators. There are five performance stages (including one with a 2,400 sq. ft. dance floor), a children's hands-on activity area, crafts demonstrations, and crafts marketplace. In addition there are special programs every year, which feature some aspect of traditional culture.

Observes GLFF founding director Marsha MacDowell, "The folk festival is a unique celebration of the histories, traditions, and cultures of the many peoples of the world, and while we have a focus on Michigan and the Great Lakes, we also present artists from around the nation and world. This is one of the few venues in the country to regularly showcase award-winning state and national artists, including recipients of the Michigan Heritage Awards and the National Endowment for the Arts' National Heritage Fellowship Awardees. "

This award-winning event is one of the region's premiere arts programs and a summer-time high note -- and is expected to draw more than 90,000 visitors throughout the weekend to celebrate culture, tradition and community. GLFF was named the state's top public humanities program by the Michigan Humanities Council and the event received an artistic excellence grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to help produce this year's activities.

Festival hours are: Friday, Aug. 7, 6 - 10:30 p.m.; Saturday, Aug. 8, noon - 10:30 p.m.; and Sunday, Aug. 9, noon - 6 p.m. For more information, call the MSU Museum at (517) 432-GLFF (4533) or learn more at http://www.greatlakesfolkfest.net and on Facebook and Twitter.

Admission to the MSU Museum's Great Lakes Folk Festival is free (donations are encouraged).

Get a feel for what the festival is like by checking out this flickr slideshow!

View Larger Map

urban hope by buckshot.jones

Throughout each month we post items of Michicentric interest to our Michitwitter page. In case you missed them here is a look back at just a few of the items for the month June. If you find these interesting there are plenty more for you to check out. We encourage you to add any news items, events, links to vids, podcasts or whatever you find interesting about the Great Lakes State!

The photo featured in this post is from the Absolute Michigan Flickr pool and was shot by the very talented buckshot.jones. He states:

This little garden is on the near west side of Detroit. The significance for me is it may very well be on an empty lot where one of my mother's childhood homes once stood. I also find it significant because it makes a statement about the resourcefulness of the folks in Detroit- a turning lemons into lemonade kind of a thing. Around the corner, right off Cass Avenue, sits a vacant corner lot. The locals have salvaged old couches and discarded auto bench seats and have fashioned a small park with the make- do seating placed under of the shade of a few low hanging maple trees.

A Sampling from Michitwitter June 2009

The folks attempting to save Tiger Stadium lost their fight in preventing the demolition and the Freep let us know in their article Detroit commission votes to level Tiger Stadium.

A Detroit city commission has voted to demolish the section of Tiger Stadium left standing after much of the historic ballpark was knocked down last year.

The city’s Economic Development Corp. board voted 7-1 today to authorize the complete demolition of the stadium.

We often talk about how the buy local revolution and urban farming is gaining popularity and that farming is once again becoming a viable career choice. The State News ran the article More students opting to take on farming opportunities in summer, as career choices.

Growing up in metro Detroit, Adam Montri, outreach coordinator for the MSU Student Organic Farm, didn’t consider farming to be a career choice. “I definitely grew up in the suburbs and thought of agriculture as something you did on the weekend or after school or that kind of thing,” he said. Now, Montri, who graduated from MSU in 2001, owns his own organic farm in Bath, Mich.

In our state's quest to harness the power of wind a report was released that the Thumb area is ranked #1. From Crains Detroit Business West Michigan, Thumb best for wind energy, report says

Three regions in West Michigan and one region in the Thumb area have the state’s highest potential for wind energy projects, according to a report released Tuesday by a state board.

We were shown a ray of light shining through the darkness of our current economic quagmire. The Freep reported Economist: Michigan to start to recover in 2010

Comerica Bank's chief economist predicted today that Michigan's battered economy will finally start to recover next year, aided by a rebound in the national economy.

In another positive story on Michigan's economic turnaround Michigan.gov announced Granholm Announces Companies Investing Over $247 Million, Creating More Than 11,000 New Jobs in Michigan

Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today announced that Michigan's aggressive strategy to diversify the economy and attract investment to Michigan has resulted in 15 job-creating projects, which will generate more than 11,125 new jobs, retain another 846 and bring more than $247 million in new investment to communities across the state.

One of the more interesting and unusual biit of news came from mlive.com in their story University of Michigan researchers find clues at bottom of Lake Huron to ancient hunters

University of Michigan researchers have found the first archaeological evidence of ancient human hunting activity preserved under the Great Lakes.

Using detailed government data on lake floor topography, a research vessel and a remote mini-rover equipped with a camera, scientists found what they believe are hunting pits, camps and rock structures called caribou "drive lines" on the bottom of Lake Huron.

Much discussion has been made of late that the revitalization of our auto industry would be to go back to square one and the inventors, entrepeneurs and small company jump into the game for some fresh thoughts. Wired.com brought us Tesla Motors Founder: Let Me Run Detroit

Elon Musk has tackled electric cars, space ships and modular renewable energy stations. Now he wants a real challenge: running Detroit.

“When the mess gets sorted out, I’d like to have a conversation with whoever’s in charge at the time — the car czar or whoever — and say ‘I’d like to run your plants, if you don’t mind,’” Musk said, starting that conversation Monday at Wired’s first-ever business conference, Disruptive by Design in Manhattan.

Last but not lease Detroit's art community received some huge support and encouragement. The Detroit News reported Kresge Foundation steps up gifts to Detroit causes

Call it an artist's jackpot, or a clever gambit to help Michigan hold on to some of its best creative talent.

Today, 18 Detroit-area artists officially will win $25,000 each, the first awards of an unprecedented no-strings-attached annual fellowship program designed to keep the area's top visual artists from leaving the state in search of greener pastures.

hold on, I'm thinkin' by buckshot.jones

Lansing's inability to execute compromises deprives many other agencies of the ability to plan properly as well.

So write the editors of the Detroit Free Press, who say that this week is a crucial week for Michigan lawmakers as they address next year's budget without any kind of agreement as to the cuts. Michigan Radio's Jack Lessenberry digs into the herculean challenge they face of filling an ever-widening budgetary sinkhole and says that:

We’ve all been used to getting services from the state that come so automatically we don’t think about them.

Except now we have to. We need our elected leaders to level with us, and offer us competing and honest visions for the future. There’s less money than there used to be.

There also ain’t no such thing as a free lunch. Do we want what we are used to having?

If so, we are going to have to raise taxes.

Unfortunately, with no agreement and (worse) no will on either site of the aisle to make difficult choices, it looks as if we may be in for another long summer as everyone waits for the legislature to make the tough choices.

So we present to you:

Be A Tourist In Your Own Town brought to you by the fine folks at the Greater Lansing Convention and Visitors Bureau. Consider organizing one in your area!

About Be A Tourist In Your Own Town

Fifteen years ago, the Greater Lansing Convention and Visitors Bureau created this event to increase community awareness of it's attractions and the tourism industry's impact on the area. So once again the doors are open for you to explore culture and creativity in mid-Michigan.

As Lansing celebrates its 150th anniversary, take this opportunity to enjoy attractions that highlight both Lansing’s unique history as well as its innovative and progressive future. This year they have included old favorites such as Impression 5 Science Center, Potter Park Zoo and the Michigan Historical Museum, and added new hot spots like the FRAG Center, MSU’s Breslin Center, WKAR Studios and taste the new “Capital City Sundae” ice cream flavor at the MSU Dairy Store. You can view a complete list of the participating places to go and things right here.

How it Works:

For only $1 you can purchase a “passport” which allows you FREE admission to more than 60 area attractions, local businesses, and special activities on May 30, 2009 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. **Ages 3 and under do not require a passport. Get from place to place with CATA. For only 50 cents you will receive a stamp which will allow you to ride the Be A Tourist routes for the rest of the day for no extra charge.

Check out a slideshow of the Lansing area from the Absolute Michigan Flickr pool!

• 230 artist exhibitors from all over the U.S. and Canada
• 8 emerging artists affiliated with Michigan universities, colleges or art schools.
• Free performances on two stages highlighting a wide variety of music.
• Free arts activities for children and families.
• An international-style food court offering flavors from around the world.

East Lansing is a charming University town with a wide variety of shops, restaurants, galleries and the beautiful Michigan State University campus across the street. The East Lansing Art Festival is produced by the Art Festival Board of Directors under the auspices of the East Lansing Arts Commission/City of East Lansing.

The East Lansing Art Festival is held the weekend preceding Memorial Day weekend. The festival operates 10am-6pm on Saturday and 10am-5pm on Sunday.

Michigan State University Arts and Crafts Show

Celebrate spring at the Michigan State University Arts and Crafts Show on May 16th and 17th. In its 45th year, the show has more than 325 artists from across the nation and offers something for everyone.

The MSU Arts and Crafts Show is one of the largest arts and crafts shows in the state. This year’s show includes many returning favorites as well as brand new artists. There will be a broad range of exhibitors selling handmade items. Items include; candles, furniture, jewelry, home and yard décor, aromatherapy, clothing, children’s toys, painting, photography, pottery, sculpture and much more.

The Arts and Crafts Show is held outside on the grounds of the MSU Union. This show is held on Saturday and Sunday with over 300 exhibitors displaying items in a park-like setting on the MSU campus. Most exhibitors utilize portable structures for their displays. The UAB office can provide current booth fee prices. The East Lansing Art Festival is staged one block north of campus with over 225 exhibitors. More than 60,000 people annually attend these two outdoor shows.

The show takes place on the grounds of the MSU Union, near the corner of Grand River Ave. and Abbot Rd. in East Lansing. The show hours are Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and Sunday 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Admission to the show is FREE!

cseeman (Corey) is the Library Director at the Kresge Business Administration Library at the University of Michigan (Corey's homepage)

You'll definitely want to check this photo out background bigalicious or in his cool Tulip slideshow. His sets include Birds of Saline, Fiddlers Restrung (not to be confused with the Saline Fiddlers) and Lighthouses of Michigan (slideshow) that is helpfully broken down into Lighthouse of Lake Michigan, Lighthouses of Lake Huron, Lighthouses of Lake Erie and Lighthouses of Lake St. Clair.

You can also check out his Flickriver.

Planet Detroit by paulhitz

National Public Radio's "Morning Edition" is currently running a series titled "Remaking Michigan, Retooling Detroit" which explores Detroit's struggle to regain vitality in the face of seemingly insurmountable economic conditions. It shows that there is beacon of hope out there if approached with creative, innovative thought mixed thoroughly with a good dose of bold entrepreneurship and commitment.

Once in a while
you get shown the light
in the strangest of places
if you look at it right

~Robert Hunter

Michigan, the national leader in recession, depends on an auto industry that will never be as big as it was. So how does the Detroit area diversify? Who's hiring, or investing in something new? Morning Edition reports on Detroit's desperate race to replace the jobs that the automakers eliminate.

Features in the NPR series include:

Kalamazoo: A Potential Beacon for Detroit?

Detroit Industry: The Murals of Diego Rivera

Scholar: It's Time For The Post Automotive Era

Smaller Firms May Come To Michigan's Rescue

Michigan, Detroit Prep Themselves For A New Era

Waves Of Fire by siskokid

Students For Sustainable Living, Students Against Sulfide Mining and other Northern Michigan University student organizations invite you to attend the Superior Water Festival in Marquette this weekend (April 3-5, 2009).

The latest in the ongoing Water Festival takes place on the campus of Northern Michigan University in beautiful Marquette on the shore of the world's largest freshwater body, Lake Superior. The weekend will feature regional water luminaries, local legends, world-class Michigan musicians, students from Northern and all over the state and people who care about water issues gathering for a weekend of music, food, community, panels, workshops, dances and celebration to honor & protect our water locally and address global challenges.

Friday's activities will include guided hikes throughout the day. Saturday will mark the start of on-campus festivities at 10:00 a.m. and will continue until 5:00 p.m., to be followed by an evening potluck, a film showing by Jeff Gibbs and a concert featuring Seth Bernard, Daisy May, Michael Beauchamp, Brandon Foote, Susan Fawcett, Frank Youngman, Hawks & Owls and Grassmonkey. Sunday's schedule will feature more activities and music.

Panels, workshops, films and presentations will cover topics including the spirituality & symbolism of water in different cultures & religions; food systems, ethics and their impact on our environment; Great Lakes/Lake Superior watershed discussions; case studies on the past, present and future of dams; Native American/First Nations unique perspective on and relationship with water; health and social justice issues pertaining to water; and the legacy of mining in the U.P. and its impact, among others.

There will be many family-oriented activities throughout the weekend including music by the Earthwork musicians, NMU students and Michigan performers, the Marshland kids' parade, story-telling, poetry readings, Native American dance and a community sing.

Please join our coalition to celebrate the water and culture of the Great Lakes Basin and the U.P. For more information, please email us at cyoungma@nmu.edu.

The event is free and open to the public and you can get more information by contacting Callie Youngman, from The Water Festival web site and also on Facebook.

Here's a little pickin' on Old Man at the Mill from Hawks & Owls:

Michigan State's mens cagers earned their eighth trip to the NCAA Sweet 16 in the last 12 years. The Spartans will face Kansas in the Midwest Regional semifinal TONIGHT (Friday, March 27 @ in Indianapolis, Ind). If you're stuck working or something, I think that the Basketball Gods will forgive you if you watch the game online. As the tale of the tape explains, there's a bit of grudge match element to tonight's game (and you can bet Izzo will be watching the clock!):

Kansas defeated Michigan State, 96-86, in overtime in the 1986 Sweet 16 in a controversial finish. With 2:20 left in the game and MSU leading, 76-72, the clock did not run for approximately 15 seconds. MSU led 80-74 with just over a minute to play, but KU scored six straight points, the final basket came on a tip-in from Archie Marshall with :10 seconds left - 10 seconds that should never have happened.

Fresh off a surprising but convincing upset victory over Duke, the Michigan State women's basketball team heads to California this afternoon in preparation for the NCAA Tournament Berkeley Regional and a date with No. 4-seed Iowa State on Saturday at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN. Was it really an upset though? The Spartans' have laid down the D this year:

The 2008-09 Michigan State team has a chance to finish the season as one of the greatest defensive teams in program history. Currently this year's team has allowed the fewest points per game (54.9) since 1974-75 and owns the lowest field goal percentage defense (34.5%) since records were kept for the 1976-77 season. Since the addition of the 3-point line to the women's game for the 1987-88 season, the Spartans' 26.5% is second to only the first year of the line. Also, this year's squad has the best rebound margin (+7.7) since opposing rebounds were kept in 1987-88.

Go Green, Go White!

ballin' by Beth☮♥♬

With the 2009 Final Four taking place in Detroit, it's probably fitting that both the University of Michigan Wolverines and Michigan State Spartans have received NCAA Basketball Tournament bids

It's the first NCAA tournament bid for the Wolverines since 1998, a #10 seed in the South Region with a draw of Clemson (23-8). UM takes a record of 20-13 into the 6:10 PM game on Thursday (Mar 19).

The Spartans (26-6) secured the #2 seed in the Midwest region. This is the 12th consecutive bid and they will face Robert Morris in the opener. Despite a disappointing loss to Ohio State in the Big Ten tourney, they are expected to do well after playing one of the toughest schedules in the country.

More UM & MSU Links (add more in the comments below!)

• Green & White from the Lansing State Journal and mLive's UM Wolverine's page.
• University of Michigan and Michigan State at rivals.com
• Michigan State & University of Michigan and at ESPN's Clubhouse
• The blogs: MGoBlog & Spartan Tailgate
• YouTube: Michigan State Spartans opening video & University of Michigan team celebrates with fans on Selection Sunday

windmill (sepia) by idiot_girl

In Training Turbine Installers: A Michigan First, the blog Got2BeGreen tipped us off to:

A school in southwest Michigan called Kalamazoo Valley Community College is launching a first-of-its-kind program to train people to install wind turbines. If you want to get one of those green jobs that Van Jones and the others keep talking about, you might want to sign up.

...the KVCC Wind Turbine Technician Academy program is set to begin in October. It will run for 26 weeks, be based on a European certification standard and train people in the installation, commissioning, operation and maintenance of commercial-scale turbines, according to the Kalamazoo Gazette.

From the Gazette's article:

There is a similar program to it in Alberta, Canada, but when this program launches in October through KVCC's Michigan Technical Education Center, it will be the only one like it in the United States, said Jim DeHaven, vice president for economic and business development for KVCC.

"People are going to be coming from all over the country to get into this class because the waiting list is so long in Alberta," DeHaven said.

"It's going to put us on the national and international map," he said.

The article also notes that KVCC will be offering a program starting this summer to teach people to service commercial-grade wind turbines and Got2BeGreen called out a similar program that Delta College in Bay County is working on.

The 49ers were after gold but it looks like the 09ers will be after wind!

People and Land (PAL) is an organization focused on growth and change in Michigan, funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Every day, decisions made by local officials and state leaders about how Michigan’s land is used have great impact on both regional quality of life and our state’s economic future. Those decisions are often chaotic and damaging.

PAL is focused on Six Pillars for Prosperity, an agenda to reinvent Michigan as a global economic player. With this agenda as a guide, Michigan needs to carefully plan how communities and regions grow so they will develop in ways that create outstanding quality of life and economic prosperity, and strategically position those communities and regions as contributors to the New Economy.

You can click over to see events & exhibits in Michigan relating to Abraham Lincoln, including the cool " This Week in the Life of Lincoln" feature and an essay contest. Check out a video of Lincoln's only Michigan appearance, on August 27, 1865 at a rally for the first-ever Republican presidential candidate, Charles C. Fremont, in Kalamazoo:

Untitled by susiej35

The Detroit News takes a look at what Governor Granholm is likely to propose in tonight's State of the State address to address Michigan's $1.6 billion deficit. It's not pretty:

Gov. Jennifer Granholm wants to eliminate the 160-year-old Michigan State Fair, slash elected officials' pay by 10 percent and slim down state government from 18 departments to eight.

The proposals, to be outlined in her seventh State of the State address Tuesday, underscore the gravity of Michigan's budget crisis, and the impact of the national recession on this state...

Lt. Gov. John Cherry will lead a year-long commission charged with reducing the number of state departments in future years, but Granholm will propose scrapping the 226-employee, $52.2 million Department of History, Arts and Libraries this year.

Michigan public television stations will broadcast the address and the Detroit Free Press will be streaming the State of the State online.

Tune in here at 6:30 or so tonight and we'll be live-blogging the State of the State and hope you'll add your comments to the mix!

You'll also want to check out Martin Luther King's Wikipedia entry and Martin Luther King's birthday at the Library of Congress.

Here is an excerpt from the text of Dr. Martin Luther King's December 18, 1963 address at Western Michigan University:

The world in which we live is geographically one. Now we are challenged to make it one in terms of brotherhood. Now it is true that the geographical oneness of this age has come into being to a large extent through man's scientific ingenuity. Man through his scientific genius has been able to dwarf distance and place, time and change. Our jet planes have compressed minutes into distances that once took months and weeks and days. I think Bob Hope has adequately described this new jet age in which we live. He said "It is an age in which it is possible to take a non-stop flight from Los Angeles, California to New York city--a distance of some three thousand miles--and if on taking off in Los Angeles you develop hiccups, you will 'hic' in Los Angeles and 'cup' in New York City." You know it is possible because time difference to take a non-stop flight from Tokyo, Japan on Sunday morning and arrive in Seattle, Washington on the preceding Saturday night and when your friends meet you at the airport and ask when you left Tokyo, you will have to say, I left tomorrow.

Now this is a bit humorous but I'm trying to laugh a basic fact into all of us. It is simply this, that through our scientific genius, we have made of this world a neighborhood. Now through our ethical and moral commitment, we must make of it a brotherhood. We must all learn to live together as brothers or we will perish together as fools. This is the great challenge of the hour. This is true of individuals. It is true of nations. No individual can live alone. No nation can live alone.

...or state. We have a lot of work before us, and I hope that Michigan can be an active and engaged part of reshaping our naton and world for a changed future. I think that everyone might need to watch this speech every so often. When I hear it, I think about people who are still battling discrimination through race of course, but also through where they happen to live and who they choose to love. It's always the time to make real the promises of Democracy.

MSU College of Human Medicine by Eridony

Going up

The New York Times reports that in the midst of the darkest economic times Michigan has seen in decades, the University of Michigan is spending billions to grow with nearly three million square feet new buildings for science, medicine, health, art, business, sports, food service and student housing under construction and five others  in the design stage.

wizardkitten at Blogging for Michigan packed a lot of positive economic stories for Michigan into a post about how Obama's "Green New Deal" can create jobs, ease global warming and lessen our dependence on foreign oil all at the same time. She links to a nice article about Michigan-based Hemlock Semiconductor and also to related stories in the Freep and LA Times and notes that when added to our burgeoning movie industry, those folks out on the west coast might start to think that we are OK after all. Especially if - as she reports elsewhere - Gov. Granholm is tapped for the post of Queen of England.

Fallen by jnhkrawczyk

Going down

Unfortunately, it's not all (or even mostly) good news. Comerica Bank's preliminary November Michigan Business Activity Index (28k PDF) fell 4 points to 79 - the lowest level in 16 years. The November reading was down 13 points from November 2007 and 27% from its October 2003 peak of 108. That decline rivals the largest previous peak- to-trough decline of 33% between September 1978 and June 1980.

Michigan Radio's Jack Lessenberry notes that while Washington doesn’t have to live within its means and can borrow and borrow and borrow - hello $11,000,000,000,000 national debt - state governments are not so lucky (also check out his interview with Chris Christoff, the Freep's Lansing Bureau chief). Jack notes that every few months, Michigan has a "revenue estimating conference" wherein budget controllers assess expected revenues as compared to budgeted expenditures. When revenues fall short, it's time for cuts. A round of cuts is expected this month, and it likely won't be the last. He says that our elected officials can go to their usual strategy of blaming each other (and solving nothing) or steal a page from the past:

Back in the 1970s, Governor Milliken used to convene regular weekly meetings of what he called the “quadrant,” the majority and minority leaders in the House and Senate. They would get together and discuss how best to solve state problems.

Governor Jennifer Granholm should try that. She is in a position to serve as an honest broker. She can’t run again. These are desperate times, and saving the state needs to take top priority.

In a move that seems oddly desperate, General Motors is selling about 200 vehicles from its collection of 1000 vintage GM cars & trucks. They will be sold at Barrett-Jackson's 2009 Scottsdale Auction and could raise as little as $5 million.

And speaking of roller coasters...

Reports suggest that the Tigers are no closer to filling the roll of closer. Rollercoaster Jones, where are you?

Kids, I think you can get extra credit for showing this to your teacher.

Timber Harvest from Seeking Michigan on Vimeo.

To read an excerpt from the book visit newsstand.com.

Fore more information regarding the author Michael Rosenberg visit his website www.michael-rosenberg.com. Dig a little deeper into the following articles and reviews on these websites: The New York Times, Chicago Tribune and mlive.com.

The Michigan Notable Books program annually selects 20 of the most notable books published in the year. The selections are reflective of Michigan's diverse ethnic, historical, literary, and cultural experience. You can click to view more Notable Books featured on Absolute Michigan and learn more about the program at www.michigan.gov/notablebooks.

Social! The Detroit Pistons have launched a new social network called Posting Up. It's a place where fans can network and share blogs, photos, videos and their love of the Pistons.

Antisocial! The annual UM/Ohio State game has lost some if its luster (OK, most of its luster) thanks to the Wolverines' lackluster season. The Michigan Archives November Image of the Month might make you feel a bit better. It shows & tells the story of how Peter Fletcher altered the 1978 Michigan Department of Transportation highway map to take a dig at Buckeye Nation. You can tune into the game next Saturday at noon (line is OSU by 19) and also check out The Game: Michigan Wolverines vs. Ohio State Buckeyes for a history of the rivalry and some cool video and links. An interesting twist is that Spartan fans need to have UM win to get a Big Ten title - oh the irony!

YouTube Group Crowd Scene by paulhitz

Social! We've launched a new page we're calling Michitwitter. The idea is that folks will drop a quick comment about what they're doing, Michigan related stories they've read or toss off a cool Michigan link. So far "folks" has been us, but you can change that.

Antisocial! You can register your home or mobile number for free with the National Do Not Call Registry. Most telemarketers should not call your number once it has been on the registry for 31 days and if they do, you can file a complaint at that link. If you add your number, that addition is now permanent, making this site worth the couple minutes it takes to add your numbers!

Social! Connect with us on Flickr, YouTube, Facebook & MySpace using the buttons below! Of course we also love your comments and your email!

What are your favorite Michigan social networks? Post them in the comments!

Fallen Beauty by lorainedicerbo

Welcome to 'The Week' for October 20-26. This is where we will be posting comments such as news items, interesting blog posts, cool video and media, coming events, new web sites added to Absolute Michigan and other items of note.

We invite you to do the same!

Temps are dropping and most areas have already experienced their first frost with snow coming up in the forecast. With this change in weather it is a great week to check out the The Michigan Story Festival in Mt. Pleasant on October 24 - 25. The two-day Michigan Story Festival offers a complete showcase of the power of storytelling in all its art forms. Michigan Story Festival is one of the only storytelling festivals to integrate the stories of many cultures and traditions. There is also the History, Mystery & Haunting: THE WHITNEY RESTAURANT in Detroit on October 25th for an evening to be remembered! First enjoy a three-course meal at this beautiful, 5-star restaurant. Later, Kathleen Tedsen and Beverlee Rydel, authors of "Haunted Travels of Michigan" will tell the Whitney story and, in association with paranormal team HIGHLAND GHOST HUNTERS, will share their experience and evidence collected during a two-night investigation. You may be in for a surprise! Photographs, Video & Audio Presented. A ghost hunt will follow.

Also be sure to check out our massive Michigan Haunted Houses, Mazes & Attractions page that features all kinds of haunted houses, corn mazes and scary attractions from all across Michigan.

Also, this Saturday the Michigan State University Spartans travel to Ann Arbor to play the University of Michigan Wolverines at The Big House. Check out our Michigan vs Michigan State Football Rivalry page for a ton of information on this much anticipated annual football game!

Mama's gunna knock you out by Kcjacoby

Last night at the Creative Cities Summit, author and MacArthur Fellow Bill Strickland delivered one of the boldest and bluntest talks about what can and should be done to re-energize our cities and nation. The video below offers a little taste of Bill - you can get more at his web site.

As the video implies, he is helping to get a project going in Grand Rapids (can't find anything about it online - if you have information, please share it in the comments!). There's a great feature on Bill in Pop City and another from Pittsburgh Magazine that talks about Strickland and his book Making the Impossible Possible:

His "how-to" book on achieving success is no ordinary 10-steps-to-your-Mercedes and summering in Mykonos. It's a definition of success that anyone can achieve. It requires "owning up to our responsibilities as citizens of the planet, even in modest ways, [which] generates a sense of purpose and power in our life that is the real engine behind genuine success."

For Strickland "true success" comes from "the point where your passions, values, talents and dreams fall into alignment with the genuine desire to make the world a better place to live for all of its inhabitants."

As founder and head of Manchester Bidwell Corp., Strickland describes himself as "a guy who never forgot where he came from, and who knows first-hand how the realities of race and circumstance, and poverty and lowered expectations, can crush human dreams." His job is to rekindle those dreams and allow people to lead successful lives.

ReEvolving to Green by mdprovost

It seems as if there's a wave building, one that could help to float Michigan out of our long economic doldrums. All across the state, businesses that leverage wind, sun and alternative energy are starting or expanding. Adding to the momentum is a recently approved Renewable Energy Package that raises rates but also provides incentives to offset that increase through purchase of compact fluorescents and other energy saving devices.

There is justifiable concern that we're raising energy prices at a time when we can ill afford it, but this is balanced by concern that we can't afford to fall any further behind in efforts to attract next-generation businesses to Michigan or to keep exporting our energy dollars out of Michigan. The Michigan Energy Overview from the Michigan Public Service Commission explains that:

Michigan imports 97 percent of its petroleum needs, 80 percent of its natural gas and 100 percent of coal and nuclear fuel from other states and nations. These imports account for about 70 cents of every dollar spent for energy by Michigan's citizens and businesses. Michigan spent a total of $37 billion on all forms of energy in 2007 and of that amount $26 billion was for the energy resources imported from other states and nations.

Events & Action

Green Jobs Now has designated Saturday (Sep 27) as a national day of action in support of jobs in renewable energy and other green industries. Here's a list of Green Jobs Now Events in Michigan.

You might also be interested in the Conference on Michigan's Future which will be held November 14-16, 2008 at Crystal Mountain Resort. It explore how rising oil and energy prices are crippling Michigan's economy and propose solutions to prepare Michigan for the economy of tomorrow.

Links & Beyond

• In addition to listing events, the Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association has an amazing list of links to educational & scientific resources and organizations.
• Michigan GREEN (Group for a Renewable Energy Efficient Nation) is a non-profit group comprised of energy companies and consultants, governmental agencies, schools & individuals that champion renewable energy and energy efficiency in Michigan.
• The Michigan Alternative and Renewable Energy Center (MAREC) in Muskegon is a research and development facility that is exploring new technologies and applications including an offshore wind energy pilot project.
• NextEnergy is a Detroit-based nonprofit that research catalysts and business accelerators for alternative and renewable energy
• The Michigan Energy Office manages state programs like Green Lodging, Rebuild Michigan, Biomass and Clean Cities.
• The Michigan Advantage from the MEDC is a site created to help companies seeking to relocate or invest in Michigan and alternative energy is one of their targeted industries for expansion.
• Urban Options has some Michigan Renewable Energy Success Stories that you might want to read.
• TEACH Great Lakes at the Great Lakes Information Network has a lot of resources for alternative energy education.
• Absolute Michigan keywords like wind energy, alternative energy and solar are great places to find articles and companies.
• As always, we need you to share links to companies, organizations, web sites and stories that we've missed in the comments!

gothic splendor by dnj_Brian

Nathan Bomey of the Ann Arbor Business Review has an interesting piece showcasing how Michigan's three research universities have a direct and significant impact on our state's economy.

One of every $50 earned in the state of Michigan can be attributed to the economic impact of the state's three research universities, according to a new report.

"The economic impact of them is growing even at a time when the wages in the state are declining and the state budget support is declining," said Patrick Anderson, CEO of East Lansing-based Anderson Economic Group, which conducted the study.

The University Research Corridor - which consists of the University of Michigan, Michigan State University and Wayne State University - registered a net economic impact of $13.3 billion in 2007, up 3.5 percent from 2006, the report concluded.

Continue reading: State's universities drive economic development in the Ann Arbor Business Review at mlive.com