Sarah Mills

News

Mills selected for Department of Energy grant to study utility-scale solar

Dec 18, 2020

Sarah Mills, senior project manager at the Center on Local, State, and Urban Policy, has been selected for a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office. Mills, along with School for Environment and Sustainability...

Mills selected for Department of Energy grant to study utility-scale solar

In the Media

Solar panel project proposed for Richmond Township getting a hearing

Oct 10, 2020 Reading Eagle

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News

U-M survey: More than half of Michigan's local governments have developed energy plans

Oct 7, 2020 Michigan News

More than half of local government officials in Michigan see improving energy efficiency for local businesses or residents as relevant to their jurisdiction's government, according to a survey by the Ford School's Center for Local, State, and Urban...

U-M survey: More than half of Michigan's local governments have developed energy plans

News

U-M survey finds strong interest among Michigan communities in sustainability and energy collaborations

Sep 30, 2020

Few local governments in Michigan report collaborating with another community on energy and sustainability issues, but nearly half expressed interest in teaming up with others to pursue opportunities, according to survey results released today by...

Michigan local leaders report widespread support for community recycling programs

News

Farmers harvesting the benefits of wind energy

Mar 5, 2020

With U.S. farm bankruptcy rates rising, farmers have been turning to the wind energy to make ends meet. Sarah Mills, senior project manager at the Ford School's Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP) was featured in a USA Today article...

In the Media

A home that will keep you warm and cool the planet – Imagine newsletter #7

Mar 5, 2020 The Conversation

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In the Media

How can efficiency and renewables help rural communities? Conference speaker previews her research

Jan 15, 2020 American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy

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In the Media

Researcher Talks Renewable Energy Potential In Handy Twp.

Dec 23, 2019 WHMI 93.5 FM, Handy Township, MI

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State & Hill

CLOSUP’s Michigan Public Policy Survey turns 10

Nov 14, 2019

It’s been a tumultuous decade in Michigan: three governors, a cratered economy and its recovery, the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history, a public health disaster in Flint, and more. Through it all, the Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS)...

CLOSUP’s Michigan Public Policy Survey turns 10

In the Media

As climate threat looms, Texas Republicans have a solution: giant wind farm everywhere

Oct 21, 2019 USA Today

The sprawling Roscoe Wind Complex stretches across four counties and 84,000 acres in West Texas — bigger than five Manhattan islands. Located about three hours west of Fort Worth, it’s comprised of 627 turbines that could generate up to 782...

In the Media

Opinion | Wind turbines helping fund schools? It's happening in Michigan

Aug 26, 2019 Bridge Magazine

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News

Leiser and Mills contribute to resources for new Michigan Lead and Copper Rule

Jun 27, 2019

The Flint Water Crisis prompted the state of Michigan to adopt a new Lead and Copper Rule (LCR)—the guidelines that water utilities must follow to ensure the public’s health is protected. The most proactive LCR in the country, the University of...

Leiser and Mills contribute to resources for new Michigan Lead and Copper Rule

News

Sarah Mills work featured on This is Michigan

Apr 19, 2019

With bias and misinformation swirling around the consequences of wind turbine installation, local government officials are hard-pressed to find reliable information for themselves and their communities. Certainly there are tangible...

Sarah Mills work featured on This is Michigan

State & Hill

Stephanie Leiser and Sarah Mills on perception versus reality in local government budgets

Apr 10, 2019

Local government officials’ assessments of their own fiscal health is often at odds with—and worse than—what their financial statements indicate, according to work done by Stephanie Leiser and Sarah Mills. The researchers note that this could be...

Stephanie Leiser and Sarah Mills on perception versus reality in local government budgets

News

Mills weighs in on UP wind energy project

Apr 8, 2019

In Michigan's Upper Peninsula a proposal to construct 49 wind turbines across 28,000 acres of the Huron Mountains is the subject of criticism from the local communities. To get perspective in her April 4, 2019 story on Interlochen Public Radio, Kaye...

Mills weighs in on UP wind energy project

In the Media

Study Shows Positive Perception Creates More Acceptance of Wind Farms

Feb 14, 2019 Renewable Energy Magazine

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In the Media

Opinions on wind energy linked to whether people feel they had input into turbine projects

Feb 14, 2019 WCMU Public Radio

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In the Media

New study: when residents feel they have a say in local wind turbine projects, they are more likely to have positive opinions about wind energy

Feb 14, 2019 WMUK NPR Radio

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News

Sarah Mills' key to the success of wind energy projects gets media attention

Feb 11, 2019

As the drive to develop renewable energy projects escalates, attention shifts towards harnessing wind energy as a reliable energy source. Despite the benefits wind energy provides—mainly jobs—advocates for wind energy must continue to combat...

Sarah Mills' latest article signals a crucial relationship between homeowner attitudes and the fate of wind energy projects in Michigan

In the Media

Perceptions play big role in how residents feel about wind energy

Feb 11, 2019 The University Record

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In the Media

UM study: How communities handle wind energy can increase negative views

Feb 10, 2019 Michigan Radio

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News

Sarah Mills' latest article signals a crucial relationship between homeowner attitudes and the fate of wind energy projects in Michigan

Jan 25, 2019

In her latest journal article, published in Land Use Policy, Sarah Mills of the Ford School elaborates on public attitudes pertaining to wind energy development projects before and after the completion of the project. In “Exploring landowners’...

News

Researcher shows red states embrace wind energy for the sake of bottom line

Oct 25, 2018

While renewable energy through wind mills is often seen as a coastal undertaking, Sarah Mills, senior project manager at the Ford School’s Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP), details how research reveals that red states are pursuing...

News

Wheels Keep Turning: Researcher Sarah Mills continues to educate on wind turbine impact in MI

Oct 18, 2018

“The goal is to share the pros and cons of wind energy so communities can make their own decisions based on facts,” explained Sarah Mills, a senior project manager and researcher at the Ford School’s Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy...

News

Rabe & Mills: "State energy policy in the Trump era: Insights from public opinion"

Feb 5, 2018

An article by Barry Rabe and Sarah Mills, "State energy policy in the Trump Era: Insights from public opinion," was published in the December 2017 edition of the Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences. Abstract In light of President Trump’s...

Governors have emerged as President Trump's main opposition, according to Rabe

News

Sarah Mills: "Wind development in Pennsylvania: A reflection on state policy"

Feb 5, 2018

An article by Sarah Mills, "Wind development in Pennsylvania: a reflection on state policy," was published in Commonwealth: A Journal of Pennsylvania Politics and Policy (Volume 19, Number 1 [2017]). AbstractWhile other states have continued to add...

News

Mills provides power of information, nears end of Michigan wind energy tour

Nov 16, 2017

Sarah Mills is working to dispel rumors and inform rural Michiganders of the pros and cons of wind farm energy.Mills, a post-doctoral fellow at the Ford School’s Center for Local, State and Urban Policy (CLOSUP), received an $80,000 grant from the...

News

Michigan News release: Americans support hotly debated 'net energy metering' policies

Sep 6, 2017

Approximately three out of every four Americans—76 percent—support hotly debated net energy metering policies, which allow residents with wind turbines and solar panels to sell excess energy back to the grid at retail rates. That’s according to a...

News

Michigan News release: In climate policy, Americans want states to pick up federal slack

Jun 9, 2017

A majority of Americans across the political spectrum believe states are responsible for addressing climate change in the absence of federal policy, according to a new survey by University of Michigan researchers.The National Surveys on Energy and...

News

Mills surveys Michigan farmers, finds wind turbines have positive impact on landowners

Nov 17, 2016

Sarah Mills of the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy surveyed more than 1,200 farm landowners throughout 14 townships in Michigan to find out how farmers are impacted by wind energy turbines on their land. Mills found landowners with wind...