We have entered a new geologic epoch, called the Anthropocene, that recognizes people’s effect on the Earth’s ecosystems—harming them in ways that are likely irreversible. So what will Anthropocene society look like in the future? Erb faculty member Andrew Hoffman and...
Not a month goes by without a media campaign linking the supply chain of a well-known brand with unsavory labor practices or environmental mismanagement. Such exposés can devalue brands and reduce well-meaning corporate sustainability initiatives to hypocrisy. Beyond...
Research by Lauren Lutzke, U-M SEAS Master’s Student; Caitlin Drummond, Erb Institute Postdoc; Joe Arvai, Erb Institute Faculty Director Article by Lauren Lutzke, M.S. Candidate in Behavior, Education, and Communication at the University of Michigan “Fake News” has...
Many environmental management programs offer people incentives to engage in conservation activities. But these activities, carried out on a local level, often are difficult to monitor. Are people inclined to cheat to get the incentives? Research led by Rohit Jindal of...
If residential solar photovoltaics (PV) were adopted more widely in the United States, they could significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions. But consumers balk at high up-front costs, even if energy savings would later offset those costs. A group of researchers...
Reposted from the Stanford Social Innovation Review 9/4/2018 On July 13, 2005, WorldCom CEO Bernie Ebbers, who had been convicted of fraud and conspiracy four months earlier, was sentenced to a 25-year prison term. It was the largest accounting scandal in US history,...
“If she had been male, none of this outrage would be happening” was a popular sentiment about the furor that raged in the media following the comedian Michelle Wolf’s recent performance at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. How true is the sentiment? Had the same...
Today, most large companies like Exxon Mobil, Ford and GM issue slick reports extolling their efforts to conserve resources, use renewable energy or fund clean water supplies in developing countries. This emphasis on efforts to curb environmental harm while benefiting...
People may be more willing to pay for clean energy and strategies that dramatically reduce emissions than previous studies have suggested, according to new research by Michigan State University Professor Douglas Bessette and University of Michigan Professor Joseph...
By Allison Torres Burtka and Wren Montgomery Is water a human right or a commodity? It’s treated like both. As water scarcity becomes more pressing, both public and private entities have had to examine their stances on how water resources should be controlled. These...