LaDuke, a two-time vice presidential candidate, urged her listeners to be aware of their impact on the earth before the harm cannot be undone.

An audience of about 270 filled Anspach 161 to hear LaDuke’s presentation, titled “Indigenous Thinking and the Next Economy.” LaDuke shared her experiences as an activist dedicated to protecting the environment and culture of American Indian communities.

She is visiting Central Michigan University as the Denison Visiting Professor of Native American Studies.

“We’re the big consumers,” she said. “We consume more than our share of the biosphere.”

LaDuke is the founding director of the White Earth Land Recovery Project, a non-profit organization dedicated to restoring the culture of the White Earth Anishinaabeg. She is also the executive director of Honor the Earth and works at the national level to raise public support and funding for native environmental groups.

LaDuke was the vice presidential running mate of Ralph Nader on the Green Party ticket in the 1996 and 2000 presidential elections.

Human consumption has raised carbon dioxide levels and caused the Earth’s overall temperature to increase 1 degree, LaDuke said. She said climate change is a threat to the environment.

“The reality is that we have destabilized a lot of things,” LaDuke said.

LaDuke said energy waste is a significant issue in the United States.

“Not only do we have a lot of energy consumption, we have a lot of inefficient energy consumption,” she said.

LaDuke said she helped build a wind turbine on the White Earth reservation to generate power for the community. She likes wind power because it is “power that can be owned by the people,” not corporations, she said.

The price and availability of food is also a growing concern, she said. As the price of oil rises, so does the price of food.

“There is no long-term security until you address food and energy,” she said.

Charlevoix freshman Raymond Shenoskey said he was most interested to hear LaDuke talk about food security and raising crops.

“You don’t have to go to Walmart,” he said. “You can grow your own vegetables.”

Mount Pleasant senior Kehli Henry said LaDuke was an inspiring speaker. She said she wanted to attend the presentation because she is an American Indian and has a minor in American Indian studies.

“It’s important to have different world viewpoints,” she said. “I think the Native American viewpoint is good to include.”

Henry said she agreed that people should reduce the amount of energy they consume.

“We waste more energy in the United States than we use,” she said. “Something needs to be changed.”

The gas turbine was installed in 1991, but was shut down in 2002 because it was not economically efficient, said Steve Lawrence, associate vice president of Facilities Management.

The price of natural gas had increased causing the university to stop using the turbine. However, it was reopened several weeks ago.

“We’re making our own electricity,” Lawrence said. “It’s a very efficient and very sustainable operation.”

The turbine itself reduces the steam into thermal needs such as hot water and heating and cooling, he said. It will generate 55 to 60 percent of the campus’ energy needs.

CMU switched to a boiler after halting the gas turbine in 2002. The energy from the gas turbine is used to heat water, buildings and a small portion is also used for humidification, said Leroy Barnes, director of energy and utilities.

“The turbine was restarted when we determined the price of natural gas was dropping,” Barnes said. “The price of electricity was also increasing.”

The heat recovery generator collects any of the excess heat emitting from the turbine and converts it into energy. The wood burner, which burns wood chips to generate steam, is even carbon neutral, Barnes said.

Facilities Management recently completed repairs on the heat recovery steam generator.

“We have a fairly low carbon footprint compared to other universities,” Barnes said.

David Burdette, vice president of Finance and Administrative Services, said CMU co-wrote a grant with Union Township in order to study wind turbines as a plausible alternative energy source. He said wind turbines and other sources of alternative energy, like the gas turbine at CMU, are the right things to implement for the future.

“I’m very positive about the future of alternative energy,” Burdette said.

-Senior Reporter Carisa Seltz contributed to this report.

In 2004 the tribe began a wind feasibility study with the U.S. Department of Energy, said Sally Kniffen, environmental specialist for the tribe. The result of this study will be a turbine on Tomah Road.

The original project was limited to powering greenhouses, but was expanded to power heating and cooling in homes, she said. The electricity will be linked into existing power lines and the Consumers Energy electric grid through a negotiated agreement. She hopes the wind turbine will act as a demonstration project.

“I like to call this a ‘boot on the ground’ project so people can actually see how it works in a tangible way,” Kniffen said.

The turbine is a commercial three-bladed wind turbine from Heron Wind Manufacturing, LLC. The height of the turbine from blade tip to base is about 148 feet, Steve Smiley, owner of Heron Wind Manufacturing, said.

The project was coordinated through the Tribe’s Housing and Planning Departments, Seventh Generation Cultural Center, the United States Department of Energy and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Tribal Housing Manager April Borton is happy to see the project moving toward completion because of the benefits her tenants will see.

“We are happy to make this a reality and lower tenants’ costs,” Borton said. “Luckily, we got the grant money and other funding as well.”

She said the wind turbine will help offset heating and cooling costs for her tenants.

More wind turbines could be built in the future in various locations if the first proves to be successful, Kniffen said.

“We’ve approached this as a Phase 1 wind turbine energy project,” Borton said. “The housing department is looking into more grants for alternate energy resources and the tribe is looking into it also.”

The first wind turbine will be located near the Elijah Elk Cultural Center, 7529 E. Tomah Road, as it goes hand-in-hand with their philosophy, Kniffen said.

Kniffen and Smiley both acknowledged public concern about noise and potential threats to flying wildlife, but said there is no need to worry: the turbines are virtually silent and studies indicate zero negative impact on local birds.

“We are creating clean energy so the birds can be more healthy,” said Smiley. “Cars driving by will kill more birds than a wind turbine.”

But that didn’t stop the Speak Up, Speak Out forum, “BP and the Big Spill: At What Cost Oil?” Wednesday from drawing students, faculty and Mount Pleasant residents interested in the issue from both environmental and business perspectives.

Ed Hinck, a communications and dramatic arts professor, facilitated the debate in front of about 250 people at the Bovee University Center auditorium.

Martin Steinbis, a Central Michigan University alumnus who worked as a geologist in the oil industry for 30 years, began the discussion by explaining the drilling technology oil companies use and the problems that can occur with it. He said BP lost control of the well because the pipes could not contain the high-pressure gas and the blow out preventer didn’t work.

“It was essentially the perfect storm,” he said. “Literally eight back-up systems failed.”

The panelists besides Steinbis were Tom Rohrer, director of the Great Lakes Institute for Sustainable Systems; Jeff Drury, assistant professor of communications and dramatic arts; John Porter, a Coleman sophomore and College Republicans vice chairman; and Heather Kendrick, assistant philosophy and religion professor.

The panel also debated the advantages and disadvantages of adopting an alternative energy system.

Rohrer said alternative energy would be a big investment of time and money, but it is necessary to conserve fossil fuels. He said new energy programs would also create jobs in America.

“Clean energy is patriotic,” he said.

Porter said some people do not want to invest in alternative energy because the results are uncertain and there is no guaranteed return.

The U.S. currently imports 78 percent of its crude oil, Steinbis said. He said Americans have not yet made a commitment to alternative energy because they do not want to make a sacrifice, despite having the resources available.

“We’re not land constrained, we’re not energy constrained,” he said. “We just haven’t dealt with these problems.”

Jeffrey Ellis, a Mount Pleasant resident and freelance BP surveyor, attended the forum and said people will eventually have to make sacrifices to avoid fossil fuel dependency.

“The bottom line is, unless you cut consumption, there’s no way in heck we’re going to get away from this,” Ellis said.

Merlyn Mowrey, chairwoman of the SUSO organizing committee, said she was impressed with the discussion and she believes many important questions were addressed.

“There was a lot of expertise on the panel and in the audience,” said Mowrey, an associate professor of philosophy and religion.

Hinck said he was surprised at how informed the audience was.

“I thought the members of the forum asked good questions,” he said. “I just hope they continue raising these issues.”

His speech covered a wide range of topics, from mercury-poisoned fish to the need for a national grid to supply our nation with alternative energy sources.

“We need a grid that can intelligently deploy solar (power) at night and wind during the day,” he said.

Kennedy was named one of TIME magazine’s “Heroes for the Planet” for his success in helping environmental watchdog organization Riverkeeper lead the fight to restore the Hudson River. He was brought to CMU by the Speaker Series for $35,000.

Kennedy said eliminating people’s carbon needs and developing alternative energy sources would lead to an explosion of economic growth. He cited similar cases in Iceland, Sweden, Costa Rica and Brazil.

“We don’t need to abolish carbon to discover that our addiction to it is the principal drag on our economy,” he said.

California recently made its energy more efficient, Kennedy said. Now, California uses 6,000 kilowatt hours of energy a year in electricity and other forms of energy, while Michigan doubles that number at 13,000 kilowatt hours a year.

The Great Plains and prairie states can provide the wind power, and southwestern states can provide the solar power to run the country. But the nation needs a grid that can stretch across the nation and use these types of energy.

“This is not about the destruction of the environment,” he said. “It’s about the subversion of American democracy. Today, we’re going to be building things that provide prosperity.”

The Kennedy name

Students and Mount Pleasant residents alike came out to hear Kennedy’s speech.

Fruitport graduate student Gabe Kuchar said he liked Kennedy’s style, as he cracked jokes and went off track occasionally.

“He was up there talking and didn’t seem to have a structure,” he said. “It was good. He had ideas, but could go off on tangents to tell a story and help his argument.”

The Kennedy name was a big drawing point for students. Kennedy is the son of Robert Kennedy, a former presidential candidate assassinated in 1968, and the nephew of former president John F. Kennedy.

“I wanted to hear someone intelligent and well-respected,” said Beverly Hills freshman Kate Kelly. “I think it’s really cool to have someone this passionate.”
Brighton freshman Colleen McNeely said Kennedy’s name and reputation as an environmentalist drew her to his speech, but his ideas were what stood out.

“It really resonated with me,” she said. “He spoke about information that students really need to know.”