Our purpose here at Motor City Eco Events (MCEE) is to help you get involved in local conservation, environment, and sustainability events. We aim to be the one stop shop for conservation efforts in Southeast Michigan where extra hands are always appreciated, and friends are always welcome!
We also champion local environmental organizations to encourage involvement and amplify their reach. Feel free to reach out if you or your organization would like to be featured!
Kendall Brabandt
Founder & Creator
Motor City Eco Events
Motor City Eco-Events is your one-stop shop for all environmental events in Southeast Michigan! We’re excited to connect people through eco-events and activities, fostering a lasting environmentally conscious community.
Our Mission & Vision
Engage Our goal is to help people find events and activities they’re interested in at all different experience and age levels.
Connect We hope to connect individuals, organizations, and communities to opportunities for environmental action and learning.
Sustain Through collaboration, inspiration, and diverse opportunities, we hope to create a lasting desire to act in environmentally conscious ways.
EARTH DAY EVENTS
Sidewalk Detroit River Clean Up
West Bloomfield Parks Earth Day Celebration
APRIL
18
APRIL
21
Grosse Pointe Farms Earth Day Celebration
Detroit River Coalition Earth Day Cleanup
APRIL
20
Earth Day Rain Gardens
Garden Fest - Earth Day Party
Cleanup Club with 86 Plastic Co
APRIL
22
check this out !
Here are just a few of the local environmental and conservation organizations you can get involved in
The Cleanup Club
From Motor City to Green City:
Detroit's Eco-Evolution
The City of Detroit has long been a leader in industrialism. Its location on the Detroit River between major cities like New York and Chicago allowed for early success in manufacturing and trade, especially in railroad car manufacturing in the late 1800s. This industrial foundation helped the automobile industry get off the ground with local inventor, Henry Ford.
Motor City was born, and has never left.
But this industrial boom did not come without a cost. The relentless focus on production left a mark on the city’s environment. Between the rapid population increase, the factories and industrial sites, the entire Metro Detroit area has suffered significant air, water, and soil pollution. The once pristine Detroit River became a polluted waterway, harming aquatic life and raising concerns about public health.
Ford River Rouge Plant, n.d.
Despite the environmental challenges, Detroit isn't just a city defined by its industrial past. In recent years, there's been a growing focus on environmental initiatives that are not only cleaning up the city but also creating a more sustainable future.
In 1996, a group of concerned individuals gathered together to protect the Humbug Marsh. This one-mile stretch of land is the only remaining natural shoreline on the US side of the Detroit River, and is now home to the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge. That small group of people has grown exponentially, and is now known as the Friends of the Detroit River. This organization has helped to restore fish and wildlife habitats, provide data and recommendations on rehabilitation, identify and remedy invasive species, and secure fiduciary support to enhance and protect the river and surrounding watershed.
Humbug Marsh, n.d.
Stately elm trees framed rows of grand homes in the 1950’s, with brand new cars parked under their green canopy. Until Dutch elm disease wiped nearly every tree out of existence. Thousands of ash trees were replanted, and fell victim to emerald ash borer invasion. Pairing this huge reduction in the city’s tree canopy with the concentrated industrial air pollution, Detroit residents face a higher risk of respiratory problems, asthma, and other health issues. Recognizing the critical role trees play in air quality and overall well-being, organizations like The Greening of Detroit have emerged as champions of urban forestry. Their mission to restore the city's tree canopy offers a beacon of hope for a healthier and more sustainable future. This organization, a beacon of community growth and revitalization, has planted over 147,000 trees in the city since 1989.
Tree-lined Detroit street in 1971© Jack H. Berger
While Detroit has made significant strides in improving its environment, it's important to acknowledge that the burden of pollution hasn't been equally shared by all residents. Low-income communities and communities of color have historically borne a disproportionate share of environmental hazards. Organizations like the Southwest Detroit Environmental Vision (SDEV) are at the forefront of this fight in Detroit. Founded in 1995, SDEV is a non-profit organization dedicated to empowering residents in Southwest Detroit, a community heavily impacted by industrial pollution. Their mission is to achieve environmental justice through community education, advocacy, and resident participation in decision-making processes.
Residential area in Detroit, Obtained from the Detroit Free Press, Photo by Romain Blanquart
While the journey is far from over, Detroit's spirit of innovation and determination offers a hopeful glimpse into a future where the Motor City becomes a model for a green and thriving community. Read more about many of the organizations doing work in this amazing city, and get involved. Motor City, More Wild.
Sources
About Us. (n.d.). Friends of the Detroit River. Retrieved May 3, 2024, from https://www.detroitriver.org/about
A Story of Trees - runner magazine. (n.d.). Runnerdetroit.run. Retrieved May 3, 2024, from https://runnerdetroit.run/AStoryOfTrees.LeonieHagen.html
greeningofdetroit.com. (2019). The Greening of Detroit. The Greening of Detroit. https://www.greeningofdetroit.com/
Our Mission and History. (n.d.). SDEV. https://www.sdevweb.org/ourmissionandhistory
Schwartz, J. (1991). Particulate air pollution and daily mortality in detroit. Environmental Research, 56(2), 204–213. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0013-9351(05)80009-x
Thompson, K. (2017, September 20). The Rise and Fall of Detroit. ReviseSociology. https://revisesociology.com/2017/09/20/rise-fall-detroit-industrialisation/
Yi, X. (2024). The Decline and Revival of Traditional Heavy Industrial Cities: The Examples of Detroit in the United States and Shiyan in China. Highlights in Science, Engineering and Technology, 86, 95–101. https://doi.org/10.54097/f73qb292