THE HILL 03/19/21 By Michael Shank Undoing former President Donald Trump’s legacy of environmental damage and degradation — and his administration’s many regulatory rollbacks — has been high on President Joe Biden’s 100 days to-do list. The impressive lineup of environmental leaders appointed across energy, transportation, environment and interior departments […]
VTDIGGER 02/23/21 By Michael Shank This commentary is by Michael Shank of Brandon, communications director for the Carbon Neutral Cities Alliance and an adjunct faculty member at New York University’s Center for Global Affairs. Since receiving President Joe Biden’s nomination for secretary of the Department of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack is […]
THE HILL 02/23/21 By Michael Shank Since receiving President Biden’s nomination for secretary of the Department of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack is indicating that he’s newly committed to a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that prioritizes sustainability, regenerative and climate resilient agriculture. It’s a welcomed shift from previous stints as […]
THE HILL 01/01/21 By Michael Shank This month witnessed the launch of the first-ever “Gas Index”, which ranks American metropolitan areas on the leakiness of the gas supply chains that service their cities. This new index — which Burlington, Vt., ranks in the middle of — takes into account methane […]
RUTLAND HERALD 12/26/20 TIMES ARGUS 12/26/20 By Michael Shank This month witnessed the launch of the first-ever “Gas Index,” which ranks American metropolitan areas on the leakiness of the gas supply chains that service their cities. This new index — of which Burlington ranks in the middle – takes into […]
RUTLAND HERALD 08/10/20 By Michael Shank The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2020, which passed the U.S. House of Representatives and now needs bipartisan Senate support, is the bellwether for what’s possible in tackling systemic racism in America. The bill, which targets racial discrimination and excessive use of […]
THE HILL 06/17/20 By Michael Shank It’s time for a global divestment campaign against the factory farming industry. It has now proved itself to be as harmful to human health as the fossil fuel industry. While air pollution is prematurely killing 7 million humans annually — for which fossil fuels, […]
VTDIGGER 06/16/20 By Michael Shank Editor’s note: This commentary is by Michael Shank, of Brandon, who is adjunct faculty at New York University’s Center for Global Affairs. It’s time for a global divestment campaign against the factory farming industry, which has now proved itself to be as harmful to human […]
NEWSWEEK 06/11/20 By Michael Shank and US Congressman Hank Johnson America’s streets are looking increasingly like countries we dismiss as petty dictatorships and rogue states. Mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles and Humvees are now patrolling cities all across America. We saw it at Standing Rock. We saw it in Ferguson. We saw […]
NEW YORK REVIEW OF BOOKS 06/03/20 By Michael Shank Military might has always paraded in America’s streets. But it wasn’t until this century that it became an often daily presence. In the 2000s, local law enforcement agencies began to adopt the type of military equipment more frequently used in a […]