Photo: From Pollution Sustainability Directory When we think about artificial intelligence (AI), we often imagine something weightless and invisible - software, algorithms, or data moving through the cloud. In reality, AI depends on a vast physical infrastructure that is deeply tied to the natural world. Behind every AI-generated image, search result, or chatbot response are buildings full of machines, massive energy demands, and a surprisingly large reliance on water. Unders

Liberty Hyde Bailey believed that good horticulture begins with understanding the place. Soil, climate, wildlife, and human purpose all mattered to him - not as obstacles to overcome, but as guides. In Bailey’s view, the most successful gardens and landscapes were those that worked with  their surroundings rather than against them. That philosophy feels especially relevant each spring, when local tree sales invite us to think carefully about what we plant and why. The Van Bur

The sugar maple (Acer saccharum) is one of Michigan's most familiar and ecologically imports ant native trees. Found throughout southern and central Michigan, it thrives in nature rich, well-drained skills and is a defining species of mature hardwood forests. With a broad canopy and distinctive lobed leaves, the sugar maple contributes to the structure and stability of forest ecosystems that have shaped Michigan's landscape for centuries. Ecologically, sugar maples play a vi

The Christmas lights glow has been turned off, and ornaments have started their long hibernation until the next holiday season. We are now left with the quiet question Mr. Bailey would want us to ask: what responsibility do we hold toward the materials we use and the land that receives them? Bailey believed deeply about caring for the natural world and in living deliberately within it. He wrote not only for gardens and orchards, but of habits: the small, repeated choices that