TIMES ARGUS 02/16/18 By Michael Shank and Mary Falcon We don’t need a mega-prison in Vermont. We need a mega-commitment to keeping people out of prison. When Human Services Secretary Al Gobeille proposed building a new $150 million mega-prison in Vermont with taxpayer money — which CoreCivic (formerly the scandal-ridden […]
VTDIGGER 12/10/17 By Michael Shank Editor’s note: This commentary is by Michael Shank, Ph.D., of Brandon, who is the communications director for the Carbon Neutral Cities Alliance and the Urban Sustainability Directors Network. He writes in his personal capacity. Economists love it. Republicans love it. Democrats love it. Big multinational […]
HUFFINGTON POST 5/25/17 By Michael Shank Many Americans don’t know where their trash goes after tossing it. Out of sight, out of mind. They don’t know where their municipal landfill is located or that an incinerator is nearby, ready to burn their waste. That disconnect makes it easy for Americans […]
JOURNAL NEWS 05/22/17 By Michael Shank This year is shaping up to be another “hottest year on record”, as February was the planet’s warmest month ever recorded. These aren’t anomalies. There’s a trend developing. The last few years have been surpassing previous temperature precedents, with 2016 going down as the […]
JOURNAL NEWS 03/21/17 By Michael Shank America has a dangerous addiction to plastic. If recent trends in New York State are any indication, it’s not going away anytime soon, thanks to multi-million-dollar lobbying by the plastics industry. The recent showdown over plastic bag fees in Albany shows the unwillingness of […]
JOURNAL NEWS 02/13/17 By Michael Shank Food and fashion are among the industries contributing to climate change, writer says As climate change becomes more visible, with 2016 as the hottest year ever on record, Peekskill residents, myself included, organized an environmental film series to raise awareness about what we can […]
JOURNAL NEWS 10/12/16 By Michael Shank Bailouts are common in government — at the federal and state level and regardless of political party — and that’s what is happening now in New York for the nuclear industry. New York’s nuclear bailout is merely the latest example of business getting off […]
HUFFINGTON POST 09/19/16 By Michael Shank The Hudson River is under threat, again. Just when we thought we were in the clear – and that river towns up and down the Hudson Valley could enjoy scenic river views for restaurants, new housing, parks and other critical economic development – we’re […]
JOURNAL NEWS 09/14/16 By Michael Shank Film series raises awareness about threats to our health and our Hudson Valley home One year ago, I moved to Peekskill to have more nature in my life. While my professional path has kept me in the city, my preferred setting is where the air […]
HUFFINGTON POST 1/29/16 By Michael Shank Americans are slowly, but surely, becoming more familiar with, and fearful of, acts of terror. “Terrorism” dominates the presidential campaign debates with few other policy topics getting such prominence. Yet with all of the front runners’ hometown familiarity with one of America’s most frequent […]