In the wake of Hurricane
Fiona, a Category 4 storm that
hit the U.S. island territory
of Puerto Rico on Sept. 18,
approximately
233,000
individuals have been without
power, dozens of communities
were flooded and thousands
of homes have been destroyed.
Puerto Rico is over 1,900 miles
away from Ann Arbor, but for
many members of the University
of Michigan community, the
catastrophe is personal.
Rackham
student
Daniela
Crespo-Miró, who is studying
contemporary
Puerto
Rican
literature, spearheaded support
efforts on campus to help
provide relief to Puerto Ricans.
They worked to develop multiple
fundraising initiatives in Ann
Arbor and Ypsilanti, including
a Sept. 26 fundraiser at the
Detroit Street Filling Station
that succeeded in raising $750.
“The Detroit Street Filling
Station volunteered to offer
10% of their proceeds to four
different (relief) organizations:
Proyecto Matria, Taller Salud,
Brigada Solidaria del Oeste, and
ENLACE,” Crespo-Miró said.
“It was a fantastic, very effective
fundraiser.”
Crespo-Miró
orchestrated
another fundraiser that will
take place on Oct. 7 at the Bridge
Community Café in Ypsilanti.
According to Crespo-Miró, the
café is volunteering to host live
poetry readings and raffles,
with all proceeds going towards
financial
assistance
for
the
affected communities.
According to Lawrence La
Fountain-Stokes,
professor
of Romance Languages and
Literatures and Women’s and
Gender Studies, Crespo-Miró’s
efforts this year are reminiscent
of what students did in response
to Hurricane Maria, which
struck Puerto Rico and other
areas
in
the
northeastern
Caribbean in 2017.
The Ann Arbor City Council
approved a feasibility study on
renewable energy options for
the city on Sept. 7, energizing
the Ann Arbor for Public Power
(A2P2) movement as they ramp
up
efforts
to
garner
public
support. The feasibility study will
examine three pathways toward
renewable energy: tax credits and
other economic incentives, a full
municipal energy utility and a
partial municipal energy utility.
A2P2 is a coalition of local
organizations advocating for the
city to take control of its energy
utility,
currently
owned
and
operated by the Detroit-based
energy company DTE, and transfer
the city to 100% renewable energy.
A2P2 President Greg Woodring
said
the
organization
knew
they would need to start with a
feasibility study, but now that the
study has been approved, they are
shifting their efforts to canvassing
for public support.
“We pretty quickly identified
the first step was to get a feasibility
study,”
Woodring
said.
“We
advocated over the next year
for the city to conduct such a
feasibility study, we collected 1300
signatures, we attended several
Energy Commission meetings and
city council meetings (and) did a
lot of research. … So now we’re at
the point of needing to advocate
to the general public to continue
to educate them about the benefits
of equalization and public power
generally.”
U-M alum Zackariah Farah,
spokesperson for A2P2, said the
organization has been engaged in
various forms of public outreach to
raise support for a publicly-owned
energy utility.
“Right now, we’re trying to build
overwhelming public support in
our community for this idea, for
taking control of the utility and
making it a public one,” Farah said.
“That involves knocking doors
(and) holding educational events.
We have meet and greets as well
where anybody can come and ask
us any question they want.”
From wading through the
fountain by the bell tower the
first week of freshman year to
cautiously avoiding the “M”
on the Diag, to be a Michigan
student is to participate in a rich
array of traditions. To some,
these customs include feeding
squirrels on a sunny day. So, the
question stands, once and for all,
should we feed the squirrels?
Nursing
senior
Autumn
Farnum is the co-president of The
Squirrel Club at the University
of Michigan, an organization of
students, alumni and members of
the Ann Arbor community that
feed squirrels during the school
year every Sunday. Farnum said
they believe feeding squirrels
is a good way to build a campus
community, as long as they are
fed healthy food.
“Having
the
connection
between the wildlife and our
students here kind of builds that
friendly campus environment
that we have and also makes sure
that (the squirrels) have a nice
treat once in a while,” Farnum
said.
While
Farnum
—
and
campus tour guides — embrace
squirrel
feeding,
animal
welfare
organizations
have
raised concerns over feeding
the furry creatures. Squirrels
who are fed by people can
become dependent on handouts
occasionally never regaining self-
sufficiency.
Feeding
squirrels
can also contribute to their
overpopulation in certain areas
as the squirrels adapt to reside in
areas where human handouts are
popular, such as parks and urban
areas.
When humans feed squirrels,
whether on campus or in other
areas, squirrels can lose their
natural fear of humans. Ann
Arbor’s fearless squirrels often
approach
students,
especially
around the Diag, because they
are so often fed there.
LSA sophomore Alanna Carlo-
Pagan is a member of the Animal
Ethics Society, an organization
dedicated
to
furthering
discussion about the ethical
treatment of animals through
philosophy, and often volunteers
for The Creature Conservancy
in Ann Arbor. Carlo-Pagan said
it is important to think about the
impact humans’ actions have on
animal behavior when feeding
animals like squirrels.
“What you have to take into
account when you’re measuring
the impact of human behavior on
the environment is how it’s gonna
affect humans, how it’s gonna
affect other species and how it
might affect that species,” Carlo-
Pagan said. “What people are
mostly concerned about is how
it just rubs patterns of migration
and food seeking behavior and
how it might lead animals to
become so trusting of humans –
or imprinted on humans – that
they’re unable to actually go out
and look for food on their own.”
Squirrels
can
also
cause
problems for local residents, as
they can destroy property and
carry disease in highly populated
areas. The Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention says
while it is extremely unlikely for
squirrels to contract rabies or
carry the rabies virus, they can
carry other diseases like typhus
and ringworm.
Despite these concerns, many
students
actively
partake
in
feeding the squirrels on campus
and befriending the creatures.
LSA freshman Julia Holden said
feeding squirrels on campus is
fun for her and her friends, and
it is a nice way for students to get
outside.
“It’s just fun, honestly,” Holden
said. “It’s just nice to be around
animals. It’s a good way to get
outside. They obviously aren’t
antsy about being around people.
So, I mean, they’re here anyways.
Why not?”
Holden said squirrels might
often be fed the wrong foods,
but she is careful to feed them
healthy nuts that the animals can
digest.
“I’m sure they get enough not
good food,” Holden said. “I have
organic, unsalted walnuts. So, I
think if you’re feeding them the
right thing, it’s probably okay.”
Farnum
echoed
Holden’s
emphasis on feeding squirrels
nutritional foods.
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
News
2 — Wednesday, October 12, 2022
PHOTO OF THE WEEK
Should you feed those Diag squirrels? University
community weighs in
NEWS
What’s next for Public Power
in Ann Arbor?
SAM ADLER/Daily
The twin cooling stacks of Fermi 2 Power Plant release water vapor October 3.
Advocates describe joy of feeding the rodents, critics say it increases
dependence on humans
A2P2 advocacy group talks plans after city
announces feasibility study
Read more at MichiganDaily.com
Read more at MichiganDaily.com
JOSÉ BRENES/Daily
RACHEL MINTZ
Daily News Reporter
UMich students, faculty lead
support efforts on campus
following Hurricane Fiona
Fundraisers, spreading awareness
Read more at MichiganDaily.com
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Daily Staff Reporter
NATALIE ANDERSON
Daily Staff Reporter
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