Lakes Chat

This week marks national volunteer appreciation week, and on this Lakes Chat episode, we’re chatting about volunteering to help the Great Lakes. Guests included: Olivia Reda – the Alliance for the Great Lakes Volunteer Engagement Manager Eileen Ryan is a long-time Alliance Ambassador and an Adopt-a-Beach volunteer Novem Cheng, a volunteer with the Alliance Ambassador and Adopt-a-Beach programs

We chatted with Andrea Densham, Senior Strategic Advisor to the Alliance for the Great Lakes, about plastic pollution and how we can stop it at the source.

Temperatures this winter have been warmer than usual, leaving the Great Lakes nearly devoid of ice cover. In this episode, we chat with Physical Scientist James Kessler of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory and dig into big-picture trends, and what this all means for the lakes.

We’re discussing some new research on the cost of reducing runoff pollution from agricultural lands and preventing harmful algal blooms in western Lake Erie with Tom Zimnicki, the Alliance’s Agriculture and Restoration Director.

In a previously recorded webinar, Alliance policy staff discussed their top 5 federal Great Lakes policy priorities They focus on stopping invasive species, fixing our failing water infrastructure, stopping plastic pollution, preventing harmful algal blooms, and ensuring funding for Great Lakes restoration. During the webinar, our panel answered several questions submitted by listeners around the region.

In late January, our policy team here at the Alliance for the Great Lakes released their top 5 Great Lakes policy priorities for the new Congress and the Biden administration. Our policy team focused on stopping invasive species, fixing our failing water infrastructure, stopping plastic pollution, preventing harmful algal blooms, and ensuring funding for Great Lakes restoration. It’s a big list. Over the coming weeks, our policy experts will meet with lawmakers to urge them to take action on these critical issues. On this episode, we spoke with Don Jodrey, the Alliance’s Federal Government Relations Director, who talked us through this list of priorities and gave us a big-picture view of what’s happening on Great Lakes issues in Washington, DC.

In this episode, we chat with Joel Brammeier, the Alliance’s CEO, and Don Jodrey, the Alliance’s Director for Federal Government Relations, about what the results of the midterm elections mean for the Great Lakes. *Note: We recorded this conversation at midday on Monday, November 14. Therefore, information may well have changed by the time you listen to this podcast. Also, the Alliance for the Great Lakes is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, which means that we cannot and do not endorse candidates for office. However, we can – and do – educate candidates about Great Lakes issues.

In this episode, we chatted with two experts: Fred Stonehouse, a maritime historian, author, and lecturer, and Carl Lindquist, founder and executive director of the Superior Watershed Partnership and Land Conservancy. Lindquist and Stonehouse discuss the history of the Stannard Rock Lighthouse in Lake Superior and the future of the lighthouse as a climate research hub in the middle of the world's largest freshwater lake.

In this episode, we chatted with Drew Youngedyke a native Michigander with a deep love for the lakes, and a volunteer with the Northern Michigan Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation. In his day job, Drew is Director of Conservation Partnerships for the National Wildlife Federation Great Lakes Regional Center. Youngedyke talked about Great Lakes surfing, the mission of Surfrider and a few of their campaigns, including their work to shut down the Line 5 pipeline and efforts to keep plastic pollution out of the lakes.

In this episode, we chatted with Joel Brammeier, Alliance President & CEO, about the big picture of Great Lakes health, how Great Lakes protection has evolved, and where the clean water movement needs to go from here.

REPLAY: In this episode, we chatted with Ramiro Berardo, an associate professor of environmental policy at Ohio State University. He’s written, directed, and produced a new documentary titled “…And Water For All,” which premiered on World Water Day in late March. The documentary takes on the issue of water affordability in Ohio but has lessons for the Great Lakes region and beyond. It examines the challenges governments and communities face to ensure access to clean, affordable water now and in the coming decades.

An important conversation with two Alliance staffers – Molly Flanagan, our Chief Operating Officer and Vice President for Policy, and Jennifer Lumpkin, our Cleveland Local Partnerships Manager about what the midterms mean for the Great Lakes, why it's important for water issues to be a part of election season conversations, and how you can get involved this election season.

A timely chat about our big day of action for the Great Lakes – September Adopt-a-Beach – which was held earlier this month. We also discussed more broadly about beach cleanups, plastic pollution, and volunteerism around the Great Lakes region.

Crystal M.C. Davis, our VP of Policy and Strategic Engagement, and Tom Zimnicki, Director of Agriculture and Restoration Policy, chat about algal blooms in western Lake Erie, what they are and how they directly impact the local economy.

An eye-opening conversation with LimnoTech Principal and Senior Engineer Ed Verhamme on the importance of buoys and how they help daily to protect drinking water, have safe boating experiences, and more. Resources How Buoys Help Two Yellow Buoys

In today's episode, we’re chatting with Dr. Sherri Mason, a leading expert on plastic pollution. Her award-winning work has drawn international attention to the threat of microplastics in our waters and led to the passage of national legislation banning microbeads. She serves as Director of Sustainability at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College.

In today's episode, we’re talking with Alex Novak, the Alliance’s Community Planning Manager based in Detroit. We're chatting with Alex about green infrastructure – what it is, and how it can help improve our Great Lakes communities.

In today's episode, we’re talking again with Joel Brammeier, Alliance President & CEO. Today we’re talking climate change and the Great Lakes. Our region is frequently referred to as a ‘climate haven’ - an anticipated area of migration as people around the country may move in large numbers as the impacts of climate change are felt. But, the Great Lakes are also going to be feeling the impacts of climate change, and, in an op-ed last year, Joel argued that we need to get our own house in order. We’ll be talking about how climate change is already affecting the lakes, whether or not the Great Lakes really are a climate refuge, and what leaders can do to make sure our communities are climate-resilient.

In today's episode, we’re reconnecting with Anna-Lisa Castle, the Alliance’s Clean Water, and Equity Policy Director. We spoke with Anna-Lisa earlier this season about the big problems facing water and wastewater infrastructure around the Great Lakes region. In this conversation, we’ll be digging into the problem of toxic lead pipes that carry water into homes in many Great Lakes cities.

In today's episode, we’re talking with Tom Zimnicki, the Alliance’s Agriculture and Restoration Policy Director. We’ll talk with Tom about harmful algal blooms in the Great Lakes, the role agricultural pollution plays in causing those blooms and get his thoughts on how to tackle this challenging problem.