A small army of students, advocates and contractors armed themselves with caulk guns, door sweeps and compact fluorescent light bulbs one crisp December afternoon. Their mission—accomplished—was to install weatherization kits and educate Lansing residents on the benefits of conservation.

The Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM Sisters) home in Monroe is the motherhouse of green renovation and a “masterpiece of energy-efficiency,” according to the Detroit Free Press. Now a growing number of Michiganders are learning first-hand of the remarkable facility through group tours that are free of charge and available to the public.

Utilities in Michigan are implementing Clean Energy legislation passed by the Michigan Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Jennifer Granholm last year (Public Acts 286 and 295 of 2008). Key components of that legislation require new programs in energy efficiency and renewable power. The legislation was a compromise supported by the Michigan Environmental Council, which fought for stronger measures to secure cost savings through energy efficiency and energy independence from renewable power.

A victory for Michigan’s environment and economy was secured in September with the adoption of new energy efficiency programming and the state’s first renewable energy standard.

MEC and its allies are gearing up to convince state legislators to overhaul the state’s outdated and inefficient construction codes for new buildings.

West Michigan Environmental Action Council has started Project Light Change, a program to engage businesses and individuals in the use and recycling of CFL bulbs.

The Michigan League of Conservation Voters (Michigan LCV) honored three Michigan mayors—Mayor John Hieftje of Ann Arbor, Mayor George Heartwell of Grand Rapids, and former Mayor Rob Sisson of Sturgis—with the 2008 Environmental Leadership Award on June 12, 2008.

The Michigan Environmental Council teamed with a Washington, DC nonprofit in December to release a report documenting the economic benefits of investing in energy efficiency and renewable power. The release was part of MEC’s sustained effort to convince Michigan legislators to establish a renewable energy standard and aggressive energy efficiency programming for the state’s ratepayers. At press time, MEC and its allies were continuing to press for those programs. Below is a summary of the report, which concludes that renewable power and efficiency is a win-win for the economy and environment.

The automotive industry is a regular whipping boy for environmentalists in a lather over fuel economy standards and the beyond-petroleum “vision thing.” So what was a contingent from Michigan Environmental Council doing in clean room suits and safety glasses ogling General Motors’ new Delta Township plant outside Lansing in May?

It’s the economy, stupid! And, the environment as well, according to a new University of Michigan study that shows the two go hand-in-hand when it comes to renewable power, reductions in global warming pollution and incentives for energy efficiency.

There’s a big fuss in Lansing as the governor, legislators and lobbyists try to find a way to replace revenue that will be lost when Michigan’s Single Business Tax (SBT) dies at the end of the year. And with good reason; our SBT generates a whopping $2 billion every year. Still, that’s chump change compared to the $20 billion Michigan businesses and residents pay vendors in other states and countries just to meet our annual energy needs.