{"id":5313,"date":"2015-06-10T16:21:44","date_gmt":"2015-06-10T20:21:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/uropcbrp.com\/?p=5313"},"modified":"2020-08-28T14:07:18","modified_gmt":"2020-08-28T14:07:18","slug":"week-two-2-blog-community-placement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/dcerp\/2015\/06\/10\/week-two-2-blog-community-placement\/","title":{"rendered":"Week Two (2) Blog – Community Placement"},"content":{"rendered":"

I feel incredibly fortunate to be placed with the Southeast Michigan Regional Energy Office (SEMREO). We share an office space and work closely with the Suburbs Alliance, which is making the transition to Metro Matters. At first all of these names were difficult to keep track of, but I think I\u2019m starting to understand the name change now!<\/p>\n

Our office is in Ferndale, just off of 9 Mile and Woodward. When I first met my team for lunch before the program started, I nearly walked right past the building. We\u2019re situated between Pearle Vision and a guitar store. The door is slim and sort of sandwiched between its neighbors \u2013 easy to miss unless you\u2019re looking for it! Once you find the entrance, there\u2019s immediately a rather imposing set of stairs. Climb them and you\u2019ll find a small hallway with a few other organizations and businesses; our door is across from a psychology office.<\/p>\n

I couldn\u2019t have asked for a better placement. The office has five rooms \u2013 the \u201cgreen room\u201d and its adjacent space, a large area in the entrance, a kitchen and the \u201cblue room\u201d. I like the blue room best because its colors match the ones in my room at home \u2013 deep turquoise and royal purple. We use the blue room to make important calls, read or meditate. It\u2019s pretty sealed off from the rest of the office and feels so peaceful.<\/p>\n

My desk is in the green room, so named for its soft leafy walls. There\u2019s a giant skylight above me, so I usually adjust my desk midday, but the sun lights up the entire office so that we hardly have to turn on the lights.<\/p>\n

Not only do I work alongside seven of the most welcoming, committed and knowledgeable people around, but I also get the chance to contribute to a truly fantastic organization. The REO\u2019s main objective is to make Southeast Michigan a leader in \u201csustainable energy practices and polices\u201d by 2050. (Feel free to check out our website<\/a>\u00a0for more information!) We are responsible for collaborating with 25 cities, Washtenaw County and their member representatives to plan and implement sustainable energy projects. I\u2019m working on one of these: \u00a0\u201cSolar Powering Public Safety\u201d.<\/p>\n

Solar Powering Public Safety identifies opportunities to install solar hot water systems on public safety buildings. Police and fire stations are especially equipped for these solar systems because they house community members who are (presumably) already respected, model figures. Further, stations are highly visible to city residents. If solar systems can be installed on station roofs, residents might feel more confident about using them for their own homes. Solar systems can also save stations a great deal of energy and money. Stations consume tons of hot water because they typically operate 24\/7, and firefighters and police officers often live at the station (so they need hot water for showers and cooking).<\/p>\n

At the moment, my role in the project is primarily to connect with our REO member reps, who will put me in touch with community member contacts. My supervisor Energy Programs Manager Jennifer Young and I will meet with these contacts to assess the feasibility of solar hot water projects across Southeast Michigan. We will collect information on station roofs, energy use, potential savings and more. This Friday we\u2019ll meet with Highland Park Fire Chief Derek Hillman and I\u2019m really looking forward to it! He will help me refine my baseline data questionnaire.<\/p>\n

Because I\u2019m commuting, I\u2019m not in Detroit as often as some of the other students. I\u2019ve tried to arrive early to walk around downtown and get a feel for the city. So far, when I drive there for seminars and group meetings, I\u2019m so proud and glad to return. The city has a seriously cool vibe. I love just walking around and checking out the blend of new and old shops. I was a majorly surprised to find a Starbucks and Whole Foods behind our UM Center. I wonder if this is a sign of gentrification and what that might mean for Detroit. I\u2019m curious about whether Detroiters can afford to buy groceries at places like Whole Foods, or if maybe such stores are displacing small businesses that might be there otherwise. The group meetings help me stay connected to other students and I\u2019m especially excited to visit the Detroit Historical Museum and DIA! I still feel like I need to spend more time downtown. So far I\u2019ve noticed a lively, exciting, adventurous and musical energy (maybe that\u2019s confusing?) and I hope to experience it much more soon.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve spent comparatively more time in Ferndale. I\u2019ve walked around a bit and looked into some bookstores, a New Age-y place and tons of small markets. It\u2019s a colorful place and truly thriving. I\u2019ve met lots of dogs (and their owners); I love stopping to pet them and talk to new people. Ferndale initially seemed a little small \u2013 Woodward cuts straight through and seems to divide it a bit \u2013 but on foot it\u2019s a whole new world to explore. I visited a Detroit-themed store across the street from my office, Rust Belt Market. Business owners set up their merchandise (almost like stalls) and you can visit their stores one after another. I\u2019ve bought some mind-blowing bubble tea from Detroit Bubble Tea, carried out from Anita\u2019s multiple times and bought my mom and sister treats from the market (key lime cheesecake and an oreo cupcake). I\u2019m loving my time here and feel so thankful for this awesome opportunity!<\/p>\n

\"Heavenly<\/a>
Heavenly bubble tea from Detroit Bubble Tea (in Ferndale).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I feel comfortable in Ferndale and Detroit, but want to learn my way around. I feel driven to help forge tangible, visible and positive change in Southeast Michigan. This program has already made me even prouder to live here!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I feel incredibly fortunate to be placed with the Southeast Michigan Regional Energy Office (SEMREO). We share an office space and work closely with the Suburbs Alliance, which is making the transition to Metro Matters. At first all of these names were difficult to keep track of, but I think I\u2019m starting to understand the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1669,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5313","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-dcbrp-2015"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/dcerp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5313","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/dcerp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/dcerp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/dcerp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1669"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/dcerp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5313"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/dcerp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5313\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16223,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/dcerp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5313\/revisions\/16223"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/dcerp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5313"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/dcerp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5313"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lsa.umich.edu\/dcerp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5313"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}