Updates and Articles

2021 Environmental Stewardship Institute

by Sophie Downey, by Laura Mann Hill, by Ashley O'Neill Prado

August 1, 2021

FMR's third year of the Environmental Stewardship Institute, themed Resilient Waters: Building Community and Connection, wrapped up with spectacular projects from our high school-aged fellows — everything from comic books to interactive websites on topics ranging from composting to pollinators. >>

2021 ESI guest post: Balloons and the environment

July 30, 2021

Environmental Stewardship Institute fellow Brenda drew a cautionary tale to show the impact stray balloons can have on wildlife. >>

2021 ESI guest post: Biodiversity loss in urban areas with a focus on the Twin Cities

July 30, 2021

Summer Environmental Stewardship Institute fellow Holly researched the reasons for biodiversity loss in the Twin Cities and gave solutions for city planners and individuals with environmental justice in mind. She offered up Bridal Veil Open Space in Minneapolis as an example of restored biodiversity in an urban area. >>

2021 ESI guest post: Pollinator potential

July 30, 2021

Environmental Stewardship Institute fellow Fiona researched the potential for pollinator habitat to grow alongside solar farms, as well as her own potential future in the field. >>

2021 ESI guest post: The benefits of composting and how to do it

July 30, 2021

Summer Environmental Stewardship Institute fellow Lydia set up organics recycling at her church and put her design skills to work creating an infographic to explain how and why to compost. >>

2021 ESI guest post: A comic on the symbiotic relationship between the coyote and American badger

July 30, 2021

Summer Environmental Stewardship Institute fellow Mateo's comic imagines those in conflict over water resources learning from Native knowledge around the cooperative hunting strategies of coyotes and badgers. >>

2021 ESI guest post: A marginalized river — The Hatgyi Dam on the Salween in Myanmar

July 30, 2021

ESI fellow Cho Wah Paw shares her final project, a stereoscope showing the human rights issues and biological and cultural diversity at risk due to the proposed hydropower Hatgyi Dam on the Salween River in Southeast Asia. >>

Field days provide a Forever Green respite from this dry summer

by Peter LaFontaine

July 30, 2021

This summer has been droughty (and recently, smoky), leaving some conventional crops in trouble. But there are plenty of green growing fields and exciting developments when it comes to some of FMR's favorite clean-water crops. Here's a recap of a few field visits that make us hopeful for our state and our river. >>

What's missing from the Upper Harbor Terminal environmental review

by Colleen O'Connor Toberman

July 28, 2021

We're anticipating several key Minneapolis city council votes on the Upper Harbor Terminal development project this fall. Next up is the project's environmental review. Here's what we think is missing from this report and how this important, mile-long riverfront redevelopment in North Minneapolis could be better. >>

2021 Legislative session wrap-up

by Trevor Russell

July 20, 2021

Here’s where major water-related environmental bills and issues stand at the long-delayed conclusion of the 2021 legislative session, including future water train proposals, PFAS and more. >>