There's plenty of evidence that American popular culture takes an off-kilter view of who cares about the environment and belongs in the outdoors. On the first night of MEC's recent annual meeting in northern Michigan, members gathered around a stone fireplace in a cozy riverside lodge surrounded by woods to explore that concept with geographer and author Carolyn Finney.

John Austin and the Michigan Economic Center at Prima Civitas (a new and exciting player in Lansing policy discussions that we jokingly refer to around here as the "other MEC") recently launched the new "Michigan Dream At Risk" project that's worth a look. In short, it showcases in images, words and numbers the uncomfortable but unsurprising reality of Michigan's perpetually beleaguered economy.

Springtime in a high school student's senior year is full of exciting rituals: the last day of school, the graduation ceremony, the open house.

A golf course employee spilled insecticide on his wet shoes. He awoke in the middle of the night, vomiting with a headache and a numb right foot.

Should a property owner know if a contractor is placing a four-foot thick bed of toxic industrial waste below their businesses' new parking lot? Should a homeowner know if the same industrial waste is going underneath the road in front of their home? Should you be informed if industrial byproducts are present on a parcel of property you are buying?

Panelists discussed the merits of proposed changes in Michigan's speed limit laws at Wednesday's forum hosted at the Michigan Municipal League and moderated by Tim Fischer of Transportation for Michigan and the Michigan Environmental Council. Concerns about restricting methods of setting speed limits to the 85^th percentile rule were expressed by several panelists, while consensus emerged that engineering and planning fixes are the best way to ensure safe and efficient roadways for all users.

Tuesday linkaround!

If it's links--(not lynx)--you're after, a good place to start is this piece from Grist, which will connect you to a host of stories about how the solar energy industry is making serious headway.

That's good news because--as the deepening drought emergency in California attests--the continued availability of the massive amounts of water required for conventional electricity is no sure thing. The Golden State is far from alone in experiencing water scarcity, and a column in Forbes makes a strong case that the water intensity of fuels must be a consideration when planning our energy future: