David Poulson

One of the first things Michigan Gov.-elect Rick Snyder noted in his victory speech Tuesday is the need to restore his state’s central cities.

That’s hardly news. And it’s hardly the first time a politician highlighted the need.  Who could oppose such a thing?

But who can make it happen?

Better yet, who is making it happen now?

Echo is setting loose a team of reporters to profile a handful of the best, innovative and successful efforts at recycling the landscape in older communities throughout the Great Lakes region.

Which ones?

That’s where you come in.  Right now we’re looking for projects to profile.  The key criteria is that they are within a state or province bordering at least one of the Great Lakes. We want brownfield reclamation projects that are already underway and clearly innovative.

But we’re also interested in some of the more creative ideas still on the drawing board.

You can submit nominations in the comment section below, or e-mail me at poulsondavid@gmail.com

Echo Editor David Poulson is the associate director of Michigan State University’s Knight Center for Environmental Journalism.