“The idea that we are in a climate upheaval isn’t really lost on us but the context of it all is: that its man-made and can be ‘man-fixed.’”
Headlining the Michigan Sustainability Policy Issues Forum in Grand Rapids was Naomi Davis, founder of Blacks in Green, a network focused on self-sustaining black communities in walkable villages where neighbors own their own businesses and land and live a conservation lifestyle.
She calls it the “sustainable square mile.”
“Produce your own energy. Grow your own food. Clean your own water. Recycle your own waste. You can make money and create a whole new life for yourself.”
Davis lives in what’s becoming a model neighborhood near Chicago and shared lessons that could be adopted by other communities.
“Good old-fashioned organizing. Good old-fashioned making something and selling it. Good old-fashioned knowing who your neighbors are and caring. That’s what the sustainable square mile system is grounded in.”
Neighbors can use the concepts to develop their own unique communities in cities like Grand Rapids.
The event also included a panel discussion with U.S. Representative Hillary Scholten, State Representative Carol Glanville and Michigan Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks discussing issues impacting Michigan’s economy such as the new clean energy standards and federal initiatives to protect the Great Lakes.
