FAST COMPANY 07/14/23 By Michael Shank and Kate Lee There’s a new movement cropping up in city governments across America. It’s apolitical enough that it can avoid the polarization that comes with other climate initiatives. And it’s easy to incorporate because it spans many aspects of city governance and life, […]
National Analysis
How San Francisco Translated Its 300-Page Climate Plan Into Tangible Actions for Residents
FAST COMPANY 06/12/23 By Michael Shank Most climate action plans are long, dry documents that few people understand. San Francisco decided to change that. Most cities that consider themselves environmental leaders have developed climate action plans that articulate how they’re reducing emissions, adapting to climate impacts, and promoting circularity and […]
The Cash Incentives in the Climate Bill Are Only Good if People Actually Use Them
FAST COMPANY 08/24/22 BY Michael Shank Now that Congress has passed generous tax rebates for decarbonizing and buying EVs, the next step is getting people to decide to make the switch and take advantage of the money. The environmental community scored a much-needed win recently in the Inflation Reduction Act, […]
Climate Activism Can’t Leave Out the Built Environment — It Generates Half of Emissions
THE HILL 08/05/22 By Michael Shank With Indonesian islanders suing cement producers for climate damages recently, buildings are getting much-needed attention for their carbon-heavy footprint. The built environment generates nearly 50 percent of annual global emissions. Yet, buildings hardly receive the climate activism commensurate with their impact – despite concrete […]
Pinpoint Our Real Problem — Our ‘Suicidal War on Nature’
VTDIGGER 06/15/22 RUTLAND HERALD 06/18/22 TIMES ARGUS 06/18/22 By Michael Shank This commentary is by Michael Shank of Montpelier, director of engagement for the Carbon Neutral Cities Alliance and an adjunct faculty member at NYU’s Center for Global Affairs and George Mason University’s Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution. Shank recently […]
Yes, Prosecute Putin, but U.S. Is Culpable Too
VTDIGGER 03/24/22 RUTLAND HERALD 03/22/22 TIMES ARGUS 03/22/22 By Michael Shank This commentary is by Michael Shank, an adjunct professor at New York University’s Center for Global Affairs and George Mason University’s Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution. This article first ran in Newsweek. When President Joe Biden called Russian President […]
Let’s Lock in a Precedent to Prevent Future Wars
VTDIGGER 3/10/22 RUTLAND HERALD 03/08/22 TIMES ARGUS 03/08/22 By Michael Shank This commentary is by Dr. Michael Shank, a resident of Montpelier who is an adjunct professor at New York University’s Center for Global Affairs and George Mason University’s Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution. This article first ran in Newsweek. […]
Climate Change Requires a Global Security Rethink
THE HILL 12/31/21 By Michael Shank and US Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke This past month, rich countries made it very clear that least developed and under-resourced nations — the ones most vulnerable to extreme climate impacts but the least responsible for the global warming that generated them — are on […]
Our Defense Agencies Should Respond to Climate
VTDIGGER 12/28/21 TIMES ARGUS 12/24/21 RUTLAND HERALD 12/24/21 By Michael Shank and US Congresswoman Clarke This commentary is by U.S. Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., vice chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Michael Shank of Montpelier, communications director for the Carbon Neutral Cities Alliance and an adjunct faculty member at […]
Holding the Federal Government Accountable for the Harmful Impacts of Climate Change
THE HILL 09/29/21 By Michael Shank and US Congressman Raul Grijalva No matter your politics, you’re seeing the harmful impacts of climate change and continued reliance on fossil fuels all around you. Just this summer, we’ve seen the surface of the ocean on fire in the Gulf of Mexico, record-setting […]