B5. Resilience, Third Nature, and Transition

I went for a run this morning, on a paved trail that runs along a little creek surrounded by a few loblolly pine trees and some red maples, a little bit of urban nature surrounded by houses, streets, and suburbia. It was humid in the early summer morning, with mist steaming up off the concrete […]

Your age shapes your diet’s impact will be—and while older people drive overall emissions increases at global scales, it’s surprisingly the youth who have a higher individual footprint, a new study finds.

The Nature Food research brought together a multinational team who say their work indicates that a one-size-fits-all approach won’t be effective in tackling dietary impacts: instead we need tailored approaches that target different age groups, they believe.  

The research draws on data from 149 countries, from the period spanning 2000 and 2019, and evaluates dietary emissions linked to 141 commonly-consumed foods. What makes this study different from most others like it is that it looked at how much of each product was consumed across more than 20 age groups. 

Key patterns emerged. Chief among these is that across the 149 countries overall, seniors—people aged 60 years or more—were responsible for most of the emissions growth linked to food. However, this wasn’t because older people individually ate more greenhouse gas-intensive diets, as is often assumed. Instead the larger dietary contribution of older folks simply comes down to their greater numbers. That’s because many of the 149 countries included in the study—mainly high and middle-income nations—now have aging populations.  

In fact, it was teenagers, aged 11 to 19 years, and young adults aged 20 to 29, who were responsible for consuming more greenhouse gas-intensive meals at the individual level. Meat and dairy were the main drivers of increased emissions in diets across all age groups. But in young people’s diets the presence of meat and dairy was especially pronounced, and hiked up their per capita emissions impact. 

 

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The researchers say this partly reflects young people’s higher energy requirements. But it also reveals increasing lifestyle-related dietary preferences for animal-based foods. This trend is becoming more pronounced in lower-middle-income countries, where changing dietary traditions and increasing per capita food intake seem to be fueling a greater appetite for dairy and meat. 

In these countries, young people actually turned out to be the main contributors to total dietary emissions too, because youth tend to make up the majority of those populations.

This complex picture suggests we’ll need a more nuanced approach if we’re going to try and encourage people to make more sustainable food choices. For young people, the research team underscores the value of education and behavioral change through school and restaurant environments that mainly attract the youth.

For older people, despite not having the highest per capita footprint, there are still dietary emissions reductions to be made across this group and these could have huge potential considering its size. 

One delicate factor to navigate is that in some lower-middle-income countries, there’s an association between increased meat and dairy consumption and nutritional gains. So, balancing sustainability with health in these places may in fact require a slower shift in food systems, to increase access to a diversity of nutrient-rich foods, not just dairy and meat. 

For now, the researchers simply want us to consider this other, overlooked factor in what shapes global dietary emissions: “Who we are, as much as what we eat, is becoming a defining factor in future climate trajectories,” they say.

Li et. al. “Youth lead current dietary emissions while seniors increasingly drive total emission growth.” Nature Food. 2026.

Image: © Anthropocene Magazine

Forsaking diversity and inclusion won’t save public lands. It will only splinter our movements and weaken our work to build just futures for all. This article is a call to resist reactionary responses to Trump’s attacks on public lands, environmental justice, and DEI.

Four years after the devastating Eastern Kentucky floods of 2022, communities across the region are still rebuilding. While significant progress has been made, the disaster further exposed challenges that existed long before floodwaters rose, including a shortage of affordable housing and the need for a skilled trades workforce. In Magoffin County, TEK Center is working to meet that need by training the next generation who will help build Eastern Kentucky’s future. 

For founder Angie Reynolds, the idea came from years spent working in human resources, where she repeatedly encountered the same problem: there simply were not enough skilled tradespeople to meet demand. 

“Everywhere I looked, employers were desperate for qualified workers,” Angie said. “At the same time, there were people in our communities who wanted a better future but didn’t have access to training that fit their lives.” 

Establishing the Center 

Following years of networking, grant writing, and planning, Angie officially established TEK Center in 2021 with a mission to prepare Eastern Kentuckians for good-paying careers in less than a year. 

Today, TEK offers accelerated training programs in electrical work, heavy equipment, welding, and industrial mechanics, with more pathways in the works in masonry, carpentry, plumbing, and industrial machinery maintenance. Unlike traditional college programs, students attend classes just two days a week and graduate in about 10 months with nationally recognized certifications. 

“Our goal isn’t to keep students in a classroom for years. It’s to help them master the skills employers need and get them into careers as quickly as possible.” 

What makes TEK unique is that the programs are employer-driven. Tradespeople help design the curriculum and serve as instructors. Many graduates move directly into positions earning approximately $77,000 annually, or union jobs making over $50 an hour, creating opportunities that can be life-changing for individuals and families across the region. Before students even graduate, TEK brings employers to campus for job fairs and recruitment events. 

Supporting the Larger Picture of a New Economy 

Without a strong pipeline of skilled workers, housing and other development projects become more expensive, timelines grow longer, and communities have fewer options. 

“When people talk about affordable housing and economic development projects, they’re often talking about materials or financing. But you also need the workforce. You need the electricians, the plumbers, the carpenters and masons who can actually build those homes and buildings,” Robin Gabbard, President of Mountain Association said. “We have to grow that workforce if we’re going to solve these larger community challenges.” 

The organization is also working to remove barriers that prevent students from enrolling. Childcare, transportation, and financial constraints often stand between students and opportunity. Tuition is approximately $10,000, but partnerships with organizations such as EKCEP can cover up to $7,000 of that cost. Additional workforce programs can assist with expenses such as gas cards, steel-toe boots, and other necessities. 

As Angie was developing the idea for the TEK Center, Mountain Association provided critical support through our Business Support program, helping TEK strengthen its foundation to apply for grants, as well as build its website and strengthen its public presence. Through participation in our SPARK Nonprofit Collaborative, TEK gained access to capacity-building resources, networking opportunities, and guidance that supported its growth. Today, the partnership continues to evolve, with additional marketing and development projects underway. 

Constructing A New State-of-the Art Facility 

In order for TEK to build out more pathways, it needs more than its existing 5,000 square foot facility. With the support of a $3+ million Abandoned Mine Lands Economic Revitalization (AMLER) Program grant, they will soon break ground on a 30,000-square-foot training center in Magoffin County. 

“The trades aren’t slowing down,” Angie said. “I believe it could take 30 years or more to catch up with the demand, and with the new center, we are prepared to tackle this challenge.” 

TEK is developing an intermediary apprenticeship program that connects students directly with employers. Businesses can bring students on three days a week while TEK assists with apprenticeship paperwork and administrative requirements. Some employers are even exploring agreements to cover a student’s tuition in exchange for a commitment to remain with the company for a period after graduation. 

As Eastern Kentucky works to address workforce participation, economic development, and affordable housing shortages, TEK Center‘s mission offers a reminder that solutions often begin with people, skills, and opportunity. By training the next generation of trades professionals, the organization is helping lay the foundation for the region’s future, one student at a time. 

The post How TEK Center Is Tackling Eastern Kentucky’s Trades Shortage   appeared first on Mountain Association.

Fake shopping apps, anti-vaxx dating sites and business as usual through climate disasters are stark reminders of the surreal lengths we'll go to preserve a sense of normality, and how readily corporations will profit from it.

As if we didn’t need another case for building more homes — turns out, it reduces driving.

New planned housing is expected to cut the number of miles driven in California, according to a new study released on Thursday.

Researchers from UC Berkeley and UCLA analyzed the state’s housing plans to understand how changes in supply affect vehicle miles traveled. They found that building more homes can eliminate up to 1 percent of miles driven statewide, inching towards California’s official goal of a 25-percent drop by 2030.

Recommended Letter From Bogotá: How A Great World Capital Puts Housing, Transit and Public Space First Sophia Lebowitz July 29, 2026

Transportation researchers agree that decreasing vehicle miles traveled minimizes pollution, eases traffic congestion, and mitigates roadway fatalities. In some studies, less driving has brought money-saving and public health benefits, too.

“Many existing neighborhoods do have opportunities for people to be able to drive less,” said Zach Subin, one of the study’s researchers and an Associate Director at UC Berkeley’s Terner Center. “There’s very clearly an opportunity to … solve the housing shortage by directing new housing to these places.”

Now, research confirms that the benefits of reducing driving are achievable through building more housing. By growing the neighborhoods where public transit is reliable, walking is convenient, and shorter drives are possible, more Californians can enjoy car-light and car-free living.

The results are an encouraging sign that the state is making material progress towards ending car dependency. They don’t, however, capture its full potential, nor reduce driving to a livable standard.

Recommended California Climate Funding Fight Pits Transit and Housing Advocates Against Oil Industry Giveaways Damien Newton May 26, 2026

More strategic housing placement could reduce vehicle miles traveled by as much as 6 percent per capita, well-above the 0.9-percent currently expected. To reach that more ambitious goal, the study claims that cities would need to locate new housing with the sole intent of reducing driving, which they do not currently do. 

They may not be fully equipped to do so, researchers suspect.

California uses a top-down process in planning for new housing, with mandated growth goals for each city and county. First, state officials conduct a Regional Housing Determination, an eight-year projection of needed housing growth in every region. Regions are then on the hook for their allotted number of homes.

Each region then divides its target number amongst its municipalities based on current supply and expected demand. Finally, every municipality must then pass a state-approved Housing Element that demonstrates how they plan to build new housing, and where it will go.

California requires its cities to build housing, but cities decide where and how to build.

Cities are the focus of the state’s struggle to more dramatically reduce driving. Regional governments, the study finds, are sufficiently investing in housing production in cities and counties where residents drive less on average. But local governments aren’t paying the same attention to their car-light neighborhoods.

Subin theorizes that competing priorities and insufficient state support could both curb cities’ ability to plan more strategically. He notes that the study did not conclude a primary rationale for slowed local-level improvements, and that each municipality had its own unique struggles. However, he still sees clear opportunities for improvement.

“[Cities] can’t just do it on their own,” Subin stressed. “The state really needs to step up in terms of, not just guidance, but high quality data and technical assistance.” The study also recommends a prioritization of state-issued goals to help local governments stay on track.

California has long charted the nation’s path for climate action. To reach its ambitious carbon reduction goals, and to reduce other pollutants, traffic, and roadway fatalities, the state must continue to build. It won’t succeed, however, if cities can’t get with the program.

• The stopgap spending bill recently passed by the U.S. Senate would allow $38 billion in transportation funding to expire Oct. 1, because it does not extend the Biden administration’s infrastructure act. (News From the States)
• Vision Zero is a natural extension of the car-safety legislation the U.S. government passed in the 1960s. (Vox)
• Uber’s defense in sexual assault lawsuits is to blame the victims. (New York Times)
• Past EPA data made it clear that electric vehicles greatly reduce carbon emissions compared to gasoline, even when generating the electricity is accounted for. Now the EPA has stopped collecting that data. (The Equation)
• The Urbanist rounded up all the insane things the Trump administration has been doing lately regarding transportation.
• Street design is as important is zoning in encouraging more housing. (Planetizen)
• Sound Transit is installing fare gates at its busiest stations to boost revenue collection. (KOMO)
• The L.A. Metro is expanding a program that incentivizes households to drop down to one car. (The Source)
• Pittsburgh is stepping up enforcement against drivers blocking sidewalks and bike lanes. (WPXI)
• City of Pittsburgh employees who work downtown will receive free transit passes. (WESA)
• Omaha launched a $5 million relief fund for businesses affected by streetcar construction. (WOWT)
• As places with temperate climates get warmer, there’s a lot they can learn from cities in Southern Europe and the Middle East, such as the need for shade and shelter instead of wide-open paved spaces. (Building Design)
• Brisbane may not be the most walkable city, but it is “permeable,” meaning it’s inviting to explore on foot. (Architect)
• Ontario is a test case for what happens when automated traffic enforcement cameras are removed — speeding there surged. (CityLab)

When people talk about living near mountain lions, it’s usually about the threat they pose. But what if these big carnivores are also making us safer?

Having more of these big cats in the neighborhood can translate into fewer car collisions with deer, according to research published today in Current Biology.  

“Living alongside large carnivores isn’t simply about protecting wildlife; it’s about protecting the many ways they quietly benefit us every day,” said ecologist Mark Elbroch, who was involved in the new study and heads mountain lion research for the conservation group Panthera.

The findings in some ways resemble the more widely known story of how wolves helped revive Yellowstone vegetation by driving down elk populations that had spiraled out of control due to a lack of predators. The actions of one species can ripple through an ecosystem, sometimes in unexpected ways. In the case of mountain lions in Washington state’s Olympic Peninsula, add the unnatural automobile to the equation.

The discovery of this phenomenon emerged from years of work by native tribes of the peninsula to track deer and mountain lion populations. The research involved scientists from the Lower Elwha Klallam, Skokomish, Quinault, Makah and Port Gamble S’Klallam tribes. Wildlife cameras placed at more than 500 locations, combined with GPS-equipped collars on 59 mountain lions, provided a detailed picture of where the cats and their prey were spending time.

The researchers paired this data with the locations of nearly 1,000 collisions between cars and wildlife on the peninsula between 2020 and 2025. Those crashes were associated with more than 80 injuries, two fatalities and $14.7 million in car repairs and medical care.

 

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The pattern of where these collisions happened couldn’t be explained simply by the abundance of deer (based on the wildlife cameras) or by the level of human development and traffic. But when the scientists added the data from the mountain lion collars, it revealed that these cats were a major factor.

In places where mountain lions occurred with relatively high frequency, the likelihood of a car running into a deer was 67% lower, the scientists found. Overall, having lots of mountain lion activity in an area translated into a 76% drop in the total number of expected collisions over five years, according to a model scientists used to analyze the interactions between the cats, their prey and motorists.

The dynamic appears to be related to how deer behave when mountain lions, also known as pumas, are in the area. Much as mountain lions adjust their movements when people are nearby, deer do the same when one of their most fearsome predators is on the prowl.

“Deer alter their use of both space and time where pumas are present, overlapping less with roads and reducing activity at night, when some of the most dangerous collisions occur,” said lead author Justin Suraci, an ecologist at California-based Conservation Science Partners. “Increased road safety thus represents an ecosystem service that large predators like pumas can provide to human communities.”

Wildlife advocates are hoping awareness of benefits like these might help make the case for conserving such species, which often make the headlines only when they attack people.

“Carnivores may well be providing a similar road safety service elsewhere around the globe where populations have persisted and this valuable ecosystem service has just gone unnoticed,” said Suraci.

In fact, deer are far more deadly than mountain lions. A 2011 study by the U.S. Geological Survey found that mountain lion encounters at their 1990s peak resulted in approximately 5 injuries and 1 fatality per year in North America. Two deaths involving mountain lion attacks have been reported in the 2020s.

By contrast, in 2024 alone more than 200 people died in vehicles that ran into wildlife, mostly deer.

Suraci, et. al. “Large carnivores shape road safety through effects on prey space use.” Current Biology. Aug. 5, 2026.

Photo: ©Glen Kalisz, WSDOT

For generations, children walked through the doors of the Colson school in Letcher County, Kentucky. Among the teachers who helped shape those memories over the decades was Shirley Sexton, who spent years teaching in the building before retiring in 1995. Like so many others in the community, she watched with sadness as the school closed and fell into disuse. 

“A lot of people around here are working two jobs, and just struggling. Everything we try to do has the goal to make things easier and more joyful for families.”

After eight years of sitting empty, in 2020, she was able to purchase the building with a vision of giving it a second life. Working closely with Martin and Melanie Holbrook, fellow community members, they began building Colson Civic Center in 2021 to serve local families with opportunities for fun and fellowship.  

Then, the following year, the 2022 flooding disaster struck. 

Flooding Setbacks

More than six feet of water rose in the building, leaving behind 18 inches of mud. The force of the flood was so powerful it pushed furniture out the doors, ruining their commercial kitchen and the heating and cooling system. For a community already facing population loss and economic challenges, the flood was another painful setback.  

However, volunteers arrived from near and far to help get them get back to serving the community. Save Our Sheep, Helping Hands from North Carolina and Team Rubicon joined in the massive cleanup effort.  

Organizations and partners stepped up in remarkable ways. Members of Kentucky-based nonprofit, Clean4Change, visited multiple times to assist with recovery work, including cleaning floors and helping restore damaged spaces. They also helped secure funding via the Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky for three mini-split heating and cooling systems, allowing individual rooms to be heated and cooled efficiently within the large building. 

Planning for Long-Term Resilience

Mountain Association became another key partner in the center’s recovery and long-term sustainability. Through energy-efficiency improvements spearheaded by our Energy Team, the center upgraded its lighting system with LED fixtures. We provided additional free technical assistance thanks to support from the KY Office of Energy Policy, and facilitation for solar, with panels donated via the Footprint Project and installed via Letcher County’s own HOMES, Inc. HOMES received funding from the Solar Finance Fund to bring down the cost by $6,000. 

Combined with efficiency improvements, the impact has been dramatic. Electric bills that once ranged from $200 to $300 per month have dropped to around $40. At new rates, they are expected to save more than $2,600 per year.  

Volunteers with Appalachia Science in the Public Interest, led by Mountain Association’s Josh Bills, change out lights in the Christmas room.

This means more money can be invested directly back into the community. 

Back to Serving the Community

The center hosts food giveaways twice each year in partnership with God’s Pantry and the Letcher County Food Pantry. Every Christmas, more than 300 families visit to take photos with Santa and receive free toys. Every fall, children can explore a one-acre corn maze, pose with giant hay bale creations, and pick one of 500 pumpkins that are grown and given away. School groups visit from Letcher and Knott counties, as well as the Autism Center and Adult Learning Center. They also operate B&G Thrift Store out of the back half of the school, providing affordable clothes and household items for families. 

“A lot of people around here are working two jobs, and just struggling. Everything we try to do has the goal to make things easier and more joyful for families,” Martin Holbrook said.  

That mission is working. Parents and grandparents often come through the doors and immediately find themselves walking down memory lane. Former students wander the halls pointing out classroom or their lockers. After events, children cry when it’s time to get back on the bus because they don’t want to leave, though there’s always another event coming up they can look forward to. 

Ongoing Recovery

Even though they are back to offering activities, recovery projects continue and the list of maintenance needs is long. They are now better prepared for future flooding with flood doors, sandbags, and drain plugs ready, but the center lost nearly half an acre of land to creek erosion following the flood, and work is underway to stabilize the streambank with rock to prevent further damage. They are also looking for funding for critical roof repairs and ultimate replacement. 

Through floods, setbacks, and years of hard work, the Colson Civic Center stands today as a symbol of resilience and generosity for the people of Colson and Letcher County. 

To learn more about them visit their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/p/Colson-Civic-Center-100079497507885/  

The post A Shuttered School Becomes a Place for Community in Colson, Kentucky  appeared first on Mountain Association.

Richard’s writing never minimized the severity of the challenges before us, but neither did it surrender to hopelessness. Again and again, he insisted that another path could be imagined and designed—one based on ecological understanding, community-based economics, and a renewed culture of commoning.

Unregistered high-speed motorcycles are illegal, but a deceptive and widespread marketing tactic has tricked families into purchasing the dangerous vehicles, with deadly results, and fooled lawmakers into pushing laws that would make streets even less safe.

Gabriel Nacato, 17, died last week in New York City after a crash with an SUV while riding his Deepower e-moto. The vehicle’s top speed of 30 miles per hour is illegal in New York, but the uncle who purchased the wheels for Nacato told the media he had no idea. It’s hard to blame him: Deepower’s website advertises the e-moto as an e-bike — a common practice for misleading and endangering consumers.

An illegal e-moto by Tuttio advertised as an “Electric Bike” with a top speed of 46+ mph. Click to expand.

Deepower’s deception is not anomalous. Days before Nacato’s death, a 14-year-old died in Seattle after his e-moto plummeted down a set of stairs. Another 14-year-old outside of Chicago met the same fate.

The deaths come as manufacturers continue to dodge basic safety requirements. Several popular brands design their bikes with a speed cap override, or operate above legal limits by default. Many of these companies target their advertising towards children and teenagers, even though their products can reach speeds up to 50 mph. They list the vehicles as e-bikes, misleading consumers on the risks and legality of their products.

E-moto manufacturer Tuttio Sport markets its illegal, 50 mph-capped bikes to children.

Thrill-seeking youth and well-meaning family members aren’t the only targets of the e-moto scam. Lawmakers are getting duped, too.

In January, New Jersey’s then-Gov. Phil Murphy signed a bill requiring e-bike riders to possess a drivers’ license, registration and, in some cases, insurance. The bill went after legal e-bike users — not the illegal e-moto market.

“The final bill places unnecessary and burdensome restrictions on low-speed e-bikes while leaving higher-risk vehicles like electric mopeds and motorcycles without additional regulations,” PeopleForBikes said in a statement.

New Jersey’s convoluted series of requirements that restrict and deter e-biking. Click for full-size version. Photo: New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission

California legislators introduced a similar bill one month later. Their proposed statute, which would have required riders of most e-bikes to register their bike and attach a license plate, has stalled in committee. Separately, the state’s attorney general advised consumers to be wary of falsely advertised e-motos, and emphasized the danger to children in particular.

“California should focus on regulating, educating, and enforcing laws against deceptive advertising and illegal use of e-motos, rather than creating new barriers for people riding legal e-bikes,” statewide bike advocacy organization CalBike said in a statement.

States vary in how they define e-bikes, compounding consumer uncertainty over what is and is not legal. Some states classify e-bikes as bicycles. Others define them as car-like vehicles. All but eight states and Washington, D.C. follow a three-class system based on speed and wattage. Most states cap unlicensed e-bikes at 28 mph, designating anything faster an e-moto. And without meeting stricter safety rules such as registration, a license, and a helmet, those e-motos are illegal.

Federal officials are beginning to take note of the good, the bad and the outright scapegoating. In March, a bipartisan group of House representatives introduced the Safe SPEEDS Act, which would codify a federal e-bike class system and prohibit merchants from marketing e-motos as e-bikes.

If passed, the bill would empower regulators to curb the illegal e-moto market and keep consumers safe — without punishing law-abiding e-bike riders.

Recommended New Calif. Legislation, Backed by Bike Safety Groups, Proposed to Regulate E-Motos/E-Bikes Damien Newton February 23, 2026

Its sponsors urged regulatory action in a letter sent to the US Consumer Product Safety Commission last month.

“While e-bikes remain an affordable and essential mode of transportation for millions of Americans, federal safety rules have struggled to keep pace with a rapidly evolving marketplace,” the letter said. “Bad actors abuse regulatory loopholes to sell electronic motorcycle-like vehicles to consumers as if they were ordinary e-bikes.”

Amidst Republican-led attacks on bike and pedestrian safety, other members of Congress may be less eager to shield safe alternatives to cars and follow the New Jersey route.

Scapegoating, however, is not an effective legislative strategy. Restricting low-speed, legal e-bikes will not stop e-moto riders from dying in the street. Addressing the illegal, deceptive, and dangerous e-moto market will.

• Flock license plate readers are useful in enforcing traffic laws, but they can also be traffic safety hazards. Some cameras are just a couple of feet from the road, perched atop black metal poles that are hard to see and a lack a breakaway plate allowing them to easily snap when hit by a car. And they’re rarely inspected by city or state transportation officials. (The Guardian)
• Transit agencies are boosting their own ridership by developing land around stations, which has the added benefit of creating more housing where residents don’t need expensive cars. (Metro Magazine)
• The Trump administration’s isolationism is leaving the U.S. behind other countries that are rapidly adopting electric vehicles, according to climate activist Bill McKibben. (New Yorker)
• An Amtrak restructuring could create conflicts within the agency and does not address its biggest problem, funding. (Trains)
• Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Ayanna Presley introduced a bill allocating $25 billion to help transit agencies go fare-free, but some would prefer to spend that money on improving service. (Boston Globe; paywall)
• Not even Dulles officials think the Washington, D.C. airport needs the 32,000-space parking garage President Trump is proposing, especially since it’s now on a D.C. Metro line. (NOTUS)
• Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson is pitching a proposed small tax hike to fund transit as an affordability measure, pointing to the high cost of owning a car.
• Nashville is rolling out more raised crosswalks and concrete dividers protecting bike and scooter lanes as part of its Choose How You Move initiative. (Axios)
• Oklahoma City is an example of a booming city that’s trying to deal with growth by expanding transit rather than highways. (Streetsblog USA)
• A Wayne County, Michigan transit tax referendum looked like it would pass easily Tuesday night. (Detroit Free Press)
• Honolulu Civil Beat reported on a dangerous crosswalk, and lo and behold, the Hawaii DOT actually fixed it!
• To accommodate increased ridership after going fare-free, Iowa City is building a new $20 million transit center. (Press-Citizen)
• Some rural counties in Alabama still have more dirt roads than paved ones, but the state ignores them because not many people live there. (Alabama Political Reporter)
• Business Insider has some tips for traveling overnight on Amtrak.

The conversation around data centers in Eastern Kentucky has rapidly picked up pace since we first wrote about them in November 2025 and looked at the Kentucky General Assembly’s proposals in March of this year. To help our community members and local leaders better understand the landscape, we have compiled the resource list below. This list includes Eastern Kentucky counties with current data center moratoriums, resources from partner organizations, notable projects, and feedback from elected officials. 

Mountain Association believes in community-led, transparent data center development that recognizes the importance of community benefits agreements between developers and local government. 

In-depth resources about data center development and impact: 

Data Center Development Considerations for Kentucky Communities [Blueprint Kentucky] 

The Rapid Growth of Data Centers [Kentucky Conservation Committee] 

See where data center developers are looking to build in Kentucky [Kentucky Lantern] 

Data centers in Kentucky: Resources & Information [Kentucky Resources Council] 

The largest two electrical providers in the region’s pages on data centers: 

East Kentucky Power Cooperative: Data Centers 

Kentucky Power: Data Centers Help Support Long-Term Affordability 

As of August 2026, ten out of fifty-four Appalachian counties in Kentucky have passed data center moratoriums. 

Adair | Six-month halt on data centers in effect in City of Columbia [July 8, 2026] 

Bell | Bell County passes data center moratorium, halting construction for 2 years [July 2, 2026] 

Boyd | Boyd County freezes new data centers for six months, but EastPark project is exempt [July 10, 2026] 

Edmonson | Edmonson County Fiscal Court Enacts One-Year Moratorium on New Data Centers, AI Facilities, and Crypto Mining Operations [June 8, 2026] 

Greenup | Greenup County places moratorium on data centers — Hall on TeraWulf, not included in the pause: ‘We would not do anything to harm this county’ [July 17, 2026] 

Laurel | London City Council passes 2-year data center moratorium [August 3, 2026] 

Letcher | County orders two-year halt on data centers [July 22, 2026] 

Metcalfe | Data Center Moratorium Passed [July 27, 2026] 

Nicholas | The Court approved a one-year moratorium on data centers and windmills in Nicholas County [July 10, 2026] 

Russell | Update from Mayor Simpson Regarding Data Center Moratorium in Russell [July 10, 2026] 

Notable Projects: 

Boyd County: TeraWulf announces plans to build data center in Boyd County, Kentucky [WCHS / May 27, 2026] 

Boyd/Greenup County: Kentucky’s biggest data center project to date eyes former steel mill [Courier Journal / July 22, 2206] 

Letcher County: Eastern KY officials sign secretive deal with data center venture to explore off-grid power [Herald Leader / July 16, 2026] 

Pike County: City leaders evaluating proposed data center in Pikeville, Ky. [WCHS / June 23, 2026] 

News related to the Kentucky General Assembly’s and data centers:  

OPINION: KENTUCKY CAN LEAD ON DATA CENTERSWITHOUT LEAVING COMMUNITIES BEHIND [Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers (R-Manchester) / August 3, 2026] 

Is Kentucky About to Give Billions in Tax Breaks to Data Centers? [KyPolicy / July 23, 2026] 

The post Data Center Resources for Kentuckians appeared first on Mountain Association.

Climate change is an extremely politically polarized topic in the United States, with Democrats generally concerned about human-caused climate change and Republicans more skeptical. But these familiar broad strokes hide both differences within parties and bipartisan agreement—as well as a broad, messy middle, according to a new analysis based on two decades of polling data.

“Americans are deeply divided on climate change, but the real story is much deeper than a simple Democrat-Republican split,” says Mayank Kejriwal of the Information Science Institute at the University of Southern California.

Past studies have provided hints that other socio-demographic factors such as income, age, and education may also shape climate attitudes. But the new study employs a methodology that enabled researchers to assess a comprehensive set of factors at the same time to see where the fault lines truly lie.

Kejriwal and USC engineering graduate student Yidan Sun analyzed responses to an annual Gallup Poll survey that queried U.S. adults on various environmental topics from 2000 to 2020. They assessed climate attitudes and looked at how support for 14 different climate-related policy proposals varies both within and across parties.

As expected, party identification is the strongest factor influencing climate beliefs, the researchers found. The partisan divide on climate has long existed, but it deepened after Donald Trump was first elected to the presidency in 2016.  In the 2017 poll, climate concern jumped among Democrats and Independents like a collective eyebrow raise, while remaining at a flat, relatively low level among Republicans.

But people aren’t just blue or red, they’re individuals. And their opinions are shaped by more than just their political party, the researchers discovered when they dug into the influence of age, income, ethnicity, and education.

 

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“Climate opinion is polarized, but it is not uniform, and understanding those internal differences matters if we want to understand where public support for climate policy may grow,” says Kejriwal.

The biggest divide within the Republican party is by age. Republicans under age 35 are more likely than older Republicans to support renewable energy and oppose fossil fuel development.

Yet the devil is still in the details: Young Republicans might support renewable energy development, but they tend to oppose a carbon tax right along with their elder partisans. Meanwhile, young Democrats show high support for both policies.

In general, Republicans tend to be more open to technology- and market-oriented climate policies, suggesting that future climate communication efforts could frame policies in these terms rather than emphasizing regulations that are unpopular among conservatives.

Among Democrats, education is the most important factor shaping climate attitudes, with higher levels of education linked to greater support for various climate policies. Education moves Republican beliefs to a much lesser degree.

“One striking result was how consistently policy support depended on the design of the policy, not just on general concern about climate change,” says Kejriwal.

For example, policies to limit household energy use are unpopular across the political spectrum, in line with people’s general preference for climate carrots over sticks. And some policies like government investment in solar energy and development of alternative fuels enjoy broad support regardless of political party.

Another pattern seen across the political spectrum is inconsistency: a substantial proportion of Democrats (26.8%), Independents (42.6%), and Republicans (36.3%) alike fall into what the researchers call the “mixed middle”—people with complicated, sometimes contradictory views on climate, rather than pure skepticism or concern. Messages that link climate policies to economic or public health benefits could help sway this group, the researchers suggest.

Source: Sun Y. and M. Kejriwal. “Modeling complex associations between socio-demographic factors and climate policies using Conditional Inference Trees.” Humanities and Social Sciences Communications 2026.

Image: © Anthropocene Magazine (based on Adobe Stock/Julia)

I’ll never forget it. My family and I had just arrived in San Francisco in 2024 to begin a long tour with my podcast. I immediately reached out to Richard and was welcomed with the kindness that characterised him as much as his work.

• A new Gallup poll found that Americans’ No. 1 fear is car crashes. When asked about the greatest risk to their safety, 34 percent of respondents said car crashes — almost twice as many as the second-most popular response, violent crime. (Jalopnik)
• Beth Osborne blasted Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy for implying that people who ride bikes or live in apartments are unworthy of safe streets.
• Cities are using robots to evaluate sidewalk conditions and find out where improvements are needed to meet ADA requirements. (Government Technology)
• The new book “Transportation and the Shape of Cities” examines the spatial needs of various modes of transportation. (Forbes)
• Florida wants to use $198 million the federal government earmarked for electric vehicle chargers to build helipads for flying taxis instead. (The Next Web)
• The Federal Highway Traffic Safety Administration is letting robotaxi company Zoox deploy up to 5,000 vehicles in San Francisco. (The Verge)
• A Wayne County, Michigan transit funding referendum would no longer let communities opt out of the tax. (Detroit Free Press)
• Idaho’s Valley Regional Transit is shutting down a program that takes people to medical appointments due to lack of funding. (Capital Sun)
• Leaders in Philadelphia’s Chinatown neighborhood are fighting to restore federal funding for an expressway cap. (Inside Climate News)
• A Nashville city council member is considering restricting cars on Broadway after a driver hit four pedestrians. (WSMV)
• The Portland city council is considering banning right turns on red on more streets. (KGW)
• Volunteer docents on a Pacific Coast Amtrak line are getting passengers to look up from their phones and check out the scenery. (Oregonian)

Sobre las asambleas Carlos Tornel Para el filósofo francés Jacques Rancière, todo orden social se sustenta en una partición previa de lo perceptible o en un orden de lo sensible: una distribución de espacios, voces y capacidades que determina quién y qué puede verse, decirse u oírse, y reconocerse como político. La política comienza, según Rancière, cuando esta disposición se ve interrumpida: cuando quienes no debían hablar se reúnen, se nombran a sí mismos y hacen

On Assemblies Carlos Tornel For French philosopher Jaques Rancière, every social order rests on a prior partition of the perceptible or an order of the sensible: a distribution of spaces, voices, and capacities that determines who and what can be seen, said or heard, and recognized as political. Politics begins, according to Rancière, when this arrangement is interrupted: when those who were not supposed to speak, gather, name themselves, and make TapestryAlternativesGTAGTAalternativesvs.GTA…

With great growth comes great responsibility … to give residents better transit alternatives.

That was the message coming from Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt in his recent 2026 State of the City Address introducing a proposed sales tax to fund the region’s vision for transit expansion.

Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt

He wants to avoid the mistakes of peer cities like Austin and Nashville that have grown precipitously in recent decades without accommodating additional travel capacity, resulting in hellish levels of congestion. 

He also knows that highway expansion isn’t an acceptable long-term solution. 

“The metro has pretty much reached the point of saturation with highways,” said Holt. “New highways or adding significantly more lanes is just not feasible for most of our existing system. Adding lanes is not the panacea you may think it is.” He then showed the crowd a photo of a jam-packed 12-lane Interstate 405 in Los Angeles. 

Instead of that carmaggedon, Holt is pitching a transit improvement sales tax aimed at giving residents alternatives to the car-based transportation planning that dominates the U.S. 

“We can learn from their mistakes. The time to make a commitment is now,” he added. “That commitment must give us the resources we need to strengthen our existing system of city streets for those who remain in cars, and it must provide public transit alternatives that take some cars off the road and, at the very least, give each of us a choice.”

Oklahoma City has been able to facilitate growth in large part because of its Metropolitan Area Projects initiatives. The first iteration coming in 1993, the one-cent sales tax has funded numerous capital improvement projects aimed at transforming the city’s infrastructure and strengthen cultural amenities.

Past uses of that tax funded what is now the Oklahoma City Thunder’s arena, the revitalization of the historic Bricktown district, the OKC Streetcar, and bus rapid transit projects that are currently in the works. 

Three-quarters of the proposed transit tax would go to bus and rail infrastructure and improvements, with the remaining quarter going to maintenance of existing infrastructure. 

Oklahoma leaders knew that growth would necessitate building for the future. That’s why, in 2019, they formed the state’s first regional transit authority that would oversee this expansion, now known as ONE Transit. 

The agency is comprised of Oklahoma City and its two most prominent suburbs, Norman and Edmond. All three of the cities have experiencede remarkable growth in the past 20 years. The population of Oklahoma City, for example, increased by 17.4 percent between 2010 and 2020 and is on track to increase another 11.4 percent by 2030.

That’s on track for a population of more than 750,000, plus another 130,000 in Norman and 100,000 in Edmond — which are both growing.

The backbone of ONE Transit’s transit expansion plan for the region includes commuter rail that will connect all three cities with key stopping points along the way. The line would be created along an existing BNSF rail corridor. 

This rendering was partly made with AI, according to ONE Transit.

The hope is that the commuter rail line will enable those in the suburbs to feed into Oklahoma City’s more robust transit options in the downtown area, which already includes the improving bus network and the OKC Streetcar.

Future plans also include more robust bus rapid transit lines, including a western route, a route to Will Rogers International Airport to the southwest, and a route to Tinker Air Force Base to the east. A light rail line to the airport would be the final piece of the plan.

ONE Transit understands the value that transit can provide for a local economy, citing an APTA study that shows a five-to-one economic return produced by long-term investment in public transit.

“Collectively, this plan will preserve our quality of life by alleviating traffic congestion, it will preserve the mobility necessary to keep our economy strong and growing, and it will spur commercial development, among other benefits,” Holt said in his address, aligning with ONE Transit’s vision.

There are signs of a growing appetite for transit alternatives in the area. The OKC streetcar recently announced that its free fare pilot program was being extended until Aug. 20 due to increased ridership. The program kicked off in January of this year and brought 37 percent more ridership between January and April versus the same period last year.

The city’s first and only bus rapid transit line also saw a record month this year, with over 60,000 rides in May. 

Levels of support for the tax remain uncertain. Hope in the region certainly took a hit when riders learned that Oklahoma lawmakers failed to include 2027 funding for the Amtrak Heartland Flyer, the line between Oklahoma City and Fort Worth.

The measure is sure to meet a challenge in car-oriented and fiscally conservative Oklahoma, but there is hope that residents will see past success with Metropolitan Area Projects in boosting the health of the city. Holt is calling on Oklahomans to rise to the occasion.

“The resources we have today are not sufficient to meet the challenges of growth,” he said. “Meeting this new transportation challenge is going to require a new commitment from each of us.”

The proposed sales tax would need approval from Oklahoma City, Norman, and Edmond and then could be put up for a vote in 2027.

• Under the BUILD America 250 Act, House Republicans’ transportation budget bill replacing the Biden administration’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, funding for transit would plunge by 23 percent, adjusted for inflation. That includes a loss of $2 billion for California and New York alone. The share of funding for highways would grow from 63 percent to 70 percent, according to the Urban Institute. (Governing).
• Cities like New York, Paris, Berlin and London that invested in bike infrastructure during the pandemic and didn’t stop are now reaping the benefits. (Momentum)
• As the war with Iran rages on, driving up gas prices, oil companies are raking in massive profits. (Associated Press)
• Too much overlapping bureaucracy is delaying American infrastructure projects. (Government Tech)
• Automated traffic enforcement cameras make streets safer, but Flock surveillance is giving them a bad name. (Streetsblog USA)
• After a driver killed a Boston transportation official while she was riding her bike, Mayor Michelle Wu, who largely abandoned her pro-bike stance during the recent mayoral campaign, has flip-flopped back to bikes. (WBUR)
• Widening Houston’s Katy Freeway to 26 lanes only made traffic worse — proof of induced demand. (Space Daily)
• Atlanta’s transit system performed well during the World Cup, but will MARTA build on that success or fall back into complacency? (AJC)
• The Ballard light rail line in Seattle is not dead and could be built by 2042. (My Northwest)
• Las Vegas is installing its first protected bike lane. (LV Sports Biz)
• Kansas City set speed and age limits for e-bikes and e-scooters. (KCUR)
• Building sidewalks is a good thing, but in Milwaukee the construction is temporarily forcing vulnerable pedestrians and people with disabilities into the street. (TMJ 4)
• Costco parking lots are a war zone. (USA Today)