Community and University: Recent Episodes
Community and University
The MSU Center for Community and Economic Development podcast is aimed at providing outreach to community members and students throughout the state of Michigan. The Community and University podcast series features economic developers and committed scholars who share their knowledge and experience around equitable economic development within their communities and across Michigan. The podcast provides an additional platform for strategic partnerships, knowledge sharing, responsive community engagement, and collaborative learning to support the creation and identification of innovative tools, models, policies and practices to increase the number of small businesses; create access to job skill development; improve public infrastructure; advance high-growth entrepreneurship and strengthen underserved communities and historically excluded citizens. By hearing various insights and perspectives, an opportunity is created to enrich the continuing discussion around equitable economic development and thought given to the wider implications that economic development practices have on distressed communities in Michigan. https://ced.msu.edu/
On this episode of Transforming Tomorrow Together Today, Mary ZumBrunnen interviews CityCraft Foundation founder and board chair, John L. Knott, Jr., as well as Melissa Hall, systems and operations strategist, and Brent Forsberg, a Michigan-based development leader with over 25 years of experience in real estate investment and community revitalization, about the Southwest Lansing Regenerative Roadmap, the Lansing Growth Fund and what's next for circular economic systems co-creation. This episode is part one of a three-part series with Knott, Hall and Forsberg discussing community ownership and the value created today leaving a legacy for those generations of tomorrow. CityCraft champions sustainable development and regenerative communities with over 20 years of experience building healthier, more resilient places, the Foundation has grown from a local initiative into a national force for change.
This episode of the Transforming Tomorrow Together Today podcast explores how communities can transition from a traditional “take-make-waste” economy to a more sustainable circular economy by keeping materials in use rather than discarding them. Featuring Michigan State University researcher Abigail Kerrigan, the conversation focuses on a newly developed toolkit designed to help recyclers, governments, and businesses identify and connect with “reuse markets” - the companies that can turn recycled materials into valuable inputs. The episode breaks down key challenges like lack of transparency, weak demand for recycled goods, and system inefficiencies, while highlighting practical strategies and tools to strengthen these connections.
Transforming Tomorrow Together...Today, or T^4, a podcast produced by the Center for Community and Economic Development at Michigan State University. Where your host, Mary ZumBrunnen, explores the people, ideas, and initiatives shaping stronger, more equitable communities within Michigan and beyond. In each episode, we’ll dive into timely topics related to community and economic development, innovation, and service, and how these efforts contribute to positive change at the local and national level.
The MSU Center for Community and Economic Development is excited to welcome a variety of guests, including students, professionals, community partners, thought leaders, change-makers and researchers who are working on projects that support communities in meaningful ways. Our guests will share insights from their experiences, discuss challenges and successes in their work, and reflect on how their efforts contribute to broader social and economic impact for the development of our shared great spaces in which we live, learn, work and play!
For our first episode of this series, Dr. Brooks is our guest speaker, discussing his new appointment as the CCED Community Engagement Specialist.
What is a circular economy, and how would an institute dedicated to this initiative benefit Michigan? On today's episode of Transforming Tomorrow Together, we will be exploring these questions and so much more!
The MSU Center for Community and Economic Development is excited to welcome Kiera Tierney, a research assistant working on Circular Economy who has been working on these initiatives. Kiera will share insights into her work on circular economy, including efforts to pass a Senate bill that would fund the creation of a Circular Economy Institute right here at Michigan State University.
If you have topics you'd like us to cover in future episodes, let us know at: https://linktr.ee/CircularEconomyMSU.
Disclaimer: The views discussed during this podcast are those of the guest, and do not represent the opinions of Michigan State University, or the Center for Community and Economic Development.
On today's episode of our new series, Transforming Tomorrow Together, the MSU Center for Community and Economic Development is excited to welcome Courtney Loung, an AmeriCorps VISTA who is working on Green Zones. Courtney will share insights into her work on Green Zones, focusing on her resource mapping project that identifies wellness metrics for the senior population across Ingham County.
If you have topics you'd like us to cover in future episodes, let us know at: https://linktr.ee/CircularEconomyMSU.
Disclaimer: The views discussed during this podcast are those of the guest, and do not represent the opinions of Michigan State University, or the Center for Community and Economic Development.
In our new series, Transforming Tomorrow Together, the MSU Center for Community and Economic Development will highlight ongoing projects in our office and collaborations with community partners. In this week's episode, we welcome Jayla Simon, a research assistant specializing in Circular Economy and Domicology. Jayla will discuss her MAPPR project, a public opinion survey examining consumer perspectives on recycling, solid waste imports, and support for increasing Michigan’s statewide disposal surcharge.
]If you have topics you'd like us to cover in future episodes, let us know at: https://linktr.ee/CircularEconomyMSU.
Disclaimer: The views discussed during this podcast are those of the guest, and do not represent the opinions of Michigan State University, or the Center for Community and Economic Development.
A conversationwith the Executive Director of Doing Development Differently Detroit, Sam Butler, and the Center For Community and Economic Development Director, Dr. Rex LaMore, about community benefit agreements and an exciting upcoming event.
A conversation about community capital with REI project coordinator, Jenan Jondy and REI Innovation Fellow and Chair of the National Coalition for Community Capital, Chris Miller
CCED's research assistant, Emma Gilbert, has a conversation with Tony Willis and David Palmer about both of their innovation fellow projects. Innovation fellows provide on the ground support and coordination to move these concepts to actions implementing new economic development tools, models and policies. Together both these projects aim to build financial resilience in both Detroit and Lansing communities.
CCED's research assistant, Emma Gilbert, has a conversation with David Palmer about his project "Growing a Well- Functioning Homebuyer Ecosystem for Low-Median Income Detroiters". Palmer addresses specific systems failure in the City of Detroit, and leveraging the tools and building upon the work of others to develop solutions not currently available in the marketplace.
CCED's research assistant, Emma Gilbert, has a conversation with Tony Willis about his project "Exploring Communal and Cooperative Investment Models for Lansing". Willis discusses Equitable Economic Development and how it unlocks the full potential of the local economy by dismantling barriers and expanding opportunities for low-income people and communities of color.
CCED's research assistant, Emma Gilbert, has a conversation with Jake Parcell about his project "Wayne Country Land Bank Practicum Project". Parcells discusses how he will help create strategies for the Wayne County Land Bank to return vacant and abandoned property to productive use. The research will uncover which of the land banks’ existing programs are the strongest based on how they address community needs, the number of properties returned to productive use, and how well they fit the Land Bank’s mission.
CCED's research assistant, Matthew Emery, has a conversation with Stephen Gasteyer about his project "Creating Circular Economic Opportunities through Localizing the Food Cooperative". Gasteyer discusses the focus of his project, which is how food cooperatives and local community organizations can help create a circular food economy that would not only improve local food access and security, but also help local food producers improve their own future prospects.
CCED's research assistant, Emma Gilbert, has a conversation with Ashley Bellant about her project "Regional Tax Base Sharing”. She discuses the goal of her project is to aim at stimulating the implementation of regional tax base sharing in the Lansing, East Lansing metropolitan area so that residents, advocates, and policymakers in financially strained localities make better informed decisions.
Rex LaMore, CCED Director, talks to Terry Link about the Triple Bottom Line, a business theory with a focus on sustainability. Terry discusses alternate ways for business to approach making profit that also takes sustainability and the wellbeing of employees into account.
Bob Brown, director of the CCED in Flint talks to Pastor Tommy about issues with the Help Centers in Flint along with other ongoing problems still faced everyday by the residents of Flint. Also, Pastor Tommy gives his reaction to the Governor's comments to the Mayor of Flint where the Governor told the people of Flint to "get over it."
Rex LaMore, director of the CCED, and Jennifer Bruen, REI Project coordinator talk to Rita Fields, an REI Innovation Fellow about her research project on the Underground Economy in Detroit. Her research examines the barriers for people that keep their businesses "Underground" rather than on the books.
Expert telecom industry analyst Mitchell Shapiro joins the show to discuss his Co-Learning Plan on bringing high speed internet to rural areas in Michigan. We discuss the reasons why a technology largely taken for granted has been so slow to reach these areas, and why the timing is just right for fiber-optic expansion to rural Michigan.
Jeffrey Franklin, REI Undergraduate Research Assistant is joined by Sam Butler, the Executive Director of Doing Development Differently in Metro Detroit (D4). Butler is an author of one of REI's 2019 Co-Learning Plans regarding best practices for implementing community benefit agreement mechanisms in the development process. Community benefit agreement mechanisms are an inclusive process that allow residents to become involved in the cultivation of their built enviroment.
REI Research Assistant Jeffrey Franklin sits down with Chris Miller and Mary Zumbrunnen representing the City of Adrian to discuss a new federal investment tool called Opportunity Zones that could bring major benefits to small rural communities in Michigan.
Norman Christopher, a private consultant and former Executive Director of Sustainability Practices at Grand Valley State University joins the podcast to discuss his REI supported Innovation Fellowship Research. He builds upon a previous MSU REI student led research project, exploring viable social impact and social entrepreneurship community investment strategies. In the podcast Christopher explains how the social issues we face today are all interconnected, but focuses our discussion on the issue of affordable housing, sustainability and new investment strategies.
Key statewide case studies will be used on a best efforts' basis, so that other Michigan cities, communities, and neighborhoods can collectively learn what type of social impact investment strategy would work best in their community. A stan
Dr. John Monberg a professor of writing, rhetoric, American cultures, and experience architecture at Michigan State University joins the podcast to discuss his Co-Learning Plan about how we can better integrate a humanitarian perspective into the technically dominated development of smart cities in Michigan.
In this podcast, we talk with Dr. Mahmoudi, an assistant professor at the School of Packaging. The aim of her project is to eliminate food waste by making excess food accessible for people in need. A food donor (e.g., a farm, retailer, or catering service) donates some food to a food bank. Then, the food bank will quickly decide to send the food to distribution agencies or to composting facilities. For this decision making, the food bank should consider various factors such as environmental (e.g., harsh weather conditions), physical (e.g., personnel and mobility resources), social (e.g., recipients’ food restrictions due to various cultural and religious backgrounds), and economic (e.g., monetary budgets). They develop an analytical framework that can provide an applicable guideline for food banks to decide about the final destination of the donated food (with respect to the availability of the resources, as well as quality, volume and type of donated food).