SUMMER 2025
In THE ISSUE
In
THE
ISSUE
Sustainability Theme Introduction
The Future We Sustain
The climate crisis is no longer a distant threat. Rising temperatures, extreme weather, water insecurity, and other climate consequences endanger the future we once imagined.
But the Leaders and Best refuse to accept a future dictated by inaction. In labs, classrooms, and communities, on campus and around the globe, Wolverines have taken up the mantle — engineering change, fueling answers, and transforming systems for sustainable solutions.
Their actions — and our own — shape the future we sustain.
Feature
Michigan has been tagged as a potentially safe climate location in an uncertain future.
Plus, learn how a U-M and Michigan State cooperative program supports sustainability and conservation efforts for the lakes surrounding Michigan in “Michigan Great Assets.”
Feature
Through advocacy and public service, former Boulder mayor Zan Jones, MS’90, pushes Colorado toward a more sustainable future.
Plus, check out the Detroit-based nonprofit that supports sustainable food systems in “Feed People, Not Landfills.”
Feature
U-M is charging full steam ahead with the AI revolution, but students, professors, and researchers remain concerned over the sustainability issues of the technology.
Plus, meet the student organization that’s combating fast fashion at home and abroad through a crafty, sustainable nonprofit in “Crocheting for Conservation.”
Feature
Two U-M graduate researchers study the unintended environmental consequences of the Big Ten Conference expansion.
Plus, see how an annual on-campus event allows students to explore sustainability organizations, information, and opportunities in “30 Years of Earthfest.”
Guest Column
Ayanna McConnell
Inspiration in the Midst
A campus colleague once reminded me of the many transitions that often occur within a university, including highly visible leadership changes. We are now in the middle of one of those transitions as President Santa Ono has decided to leave the University of Michigan to take the same role at the University of Florida.
Around THE U
Around
The U
Feature
Just as some will occasionally flock from Michigan to Florida, eager to replace shoveling snow with palm trees, millions of Americans could be poised to do just the opposite: flee the rising tides and temperatures, taking shelter from climate disasters in the very cities their parents or grandparents once vowed to leave behind.
Feature
One day in 2013, Suzanne “Zan” Jones, MS’90, got a call from the outgoing director of Eco-Cycle, the Boulder, Colorado, nonprofit that manages the city’s recycling, asking if she would consider applying for his position.
Feature
The University of Michigan was the first university to offer custom artificial intelligence (AI) tools to its community of professors, researchers, and students.
Feature
According to a recent study by two graduate students at the School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS), the 2024 expansion of the Big Ten Conference will more than double. . .
All
Features
Your
Association
The world is on a strong transition path to renewable energies and people are increasingly looking for meaningful work in green careers that contribute to improved sustainability and livability of
Where in the World is Blue?
Show your
As you travel around the world or around the block, show us your Michigan pride! Don your Maize and Blue or Block M, snap a photo, and submit it to Michigan Alum for the chance to appear in a future issue.
Alumni
news+notes
Around Town
Decarbonizing
In 2020, Ann Arbor, Michigan, set out with an ambitious goal: to become carbon neutral by 2030. Set by Melissa “Missy” Stults, PhD’16, Ann Arbor’s first sustainability and innovations director, city leaders are working with residents to make A2Zero a reality.
Michigan Alum
SUMMER 2025
Editorial Team
CHAIR Mary Kay Haben, MBA’79 | CHAIR-ELECT Kurtis Wilder, ’81, JD’84 | TREASURER Thomas W. Hawkins, ’83 | EX OFFICIO Ayanna McConnell | SECRETARY Gabriela Teran, ’96 | Wendall Brooks, ’87 | Wayee Chu, ’97 | Salene Hitchcock-Gear, ’84 | Monica Howard Douglas, ’94 | Joseph Giles, ’96, MBA’01, JD’01 | Li Li Leung, ’95 | Prakash Patel, ’89 | Anup Popat, ’95 | Emilie Rubinfeld, ’96 | John Sabat, ’95| Charles F. Schwartz, ’90 | Rajiv Shah, ’95 | Steve Shindler, ’85 | Paul Viera, ’81 | Rick Wallace, ’82 | Sophie Wong, ’97 | Lynn Wooten, PHD’95 | Linda Zhang, ’96, MSE’98, MBA’11
