Katy Spence
Montana Instruments: Building cryogenic microscopes, and community, while changing the world
For Montana Instruments founder Luke Mauritsen, a company is more than a company. That’s why each device MI builds is constructed next to a picture of the person who will receive it. That’s why there’s a wall filled with pictures of each man or woman who has ever bought a device.
Untapped potential: Engaging veterans in Montana’s high-tech workforce
While Montana has been rated as one of the best states for military retirees, Les Craig believes that many veterans aren’t aware of the competitive number of high-tech job opportunities in the state. He knows because he was one.
Growing pains: Some Missoula neighborhoods struggle with infill
The Missoula’s City Council’s 2015 adoption of the Our Missoula Growth Policy means apartment buildings and other infill projects will accommodate population growth in neighborhoods throughout the city. But some residents worry that the city’s quality of life may suffer as a result.
Recycling isn’t enough: Missoula works to reduce waste by 90 percent
The next time you throw away a plastic bottle, remember that you could be contributing to the nearly $5 million worth of recyclables that end up in Missoula’s landfill each year. On Monday, members of Missoula’s Zero by Fifty leadership team presented City Club members with tips for reducing the city’s waste. In this context, waste refers to trash that finds its way to a landfill.
Missoula County greenhouse gas survey: Commuters, jail, sheriff top emissions list
Missoula County operations emitted 6,810 metric tons of CO2 equivalent in 2016. Says Erika Barnett: “If you imagine a cube that stands about 30 feet and fill it with carbon dioxide equivalent, it would weigh approximately one metric ton. If you imagine around 7,000 of those, that’s how much Missoula County operations emitted in 2016.”
Western Montana Fair to raise funds for wildland firefighters, families
The 2017 Western Montana Fair is partnering with the Wildland Firefighter Foundation to raise money for families of wildland firefighters. The fair begins Tuesday, Aug. 8, running through the following Sunday.
On the road: City plans to triple bicycle commuters by 2045
Missoula’s new master plan for the infrastructure needed to support bicycles as a form of mass transit was quietly approved this week by the City Council. But its impact could be significant, transportation planner Aaron Wilson said.
Think globally: Missoula first market for elephant-friendly tea
Together with Wildlife Friendly Enterprises and the University of Montana’s Broader Impacts Group, the world’s first two elephant-friendly certified teas are on the market, exclusively in Missoula for the time being.
Missoula City Council approves fiscal 2018 budget, 3.82 percent tax increase
Tensions ran high at Monday night’s Missoula City Council meeting, as members heard public testimony, deliberated and unanimously approved the fiscal year 2018 city budget. Following committee meetings last week, the budget included a 4.02 percent increase in property taxes. That number dropped to 3.82 percent at Monday’s meeting; still, most citizens who testified opposed any increase.
UM marks 50 years of African-American studies with new resolve
Tobin Miller Shearer, department head and sole member of UM’s African-American Studies Department, believes a program like his is essential to student development in today’s world, especially in a racially homogenous world like Montana. “One of the most important things for a white majority community like Montana to recognize is that everyone is raced,” Shearer said.