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One step closer to market: Renewable energy flooring makes debut in Union South
By Will Cushman, UW-Madison, Environmental Resources Center
As tens of thousands of visitors each day walk across a new flooring installation in UW-Madison’s Union South in fall 2017, they might not realize they’re participating in what could very well represent a leap into the future of renewable energy production.
A research team led by Xudong Wang, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor of materials science and engineering, in collaboration with the UW-Madison Grainger Institute for Engineering, has installed a high-tech flooring prototype that harvests the energy of footsteps and converts it into electricity.
Right now, you’re probably sitting in your office, trying to stay warm and planning for the year ahead. Be sure to check out the following recognition programs and pass the information along to committee and boards who would be interested. The great part is that a single project could be used to help meet all three programs’ requirements! Also be sure to 
The city of West Bend is in Washington County, about a 30-minute drive north of Milwaukee. More than 32,000 people call West Bend home. Emerald ash borer was first confirmed in West Bend on June 9, 2010. The DNR Urban Forestry team previously showcased West Bend’s efforts to 
The Milwaukee Bucks and American Transmission Co. (ATC) are bringing back their “Trees for Threes” initiative for the 2017-18 Milwaukee Bucks season. Through the Trees for Threes platform, the Bucks and ATC will sponsor the planting of a new tree in Wisconsin for every 3-pointer the Bucks make at home this season. 
In November, two Urban Forestry team members, Alex Elias (Urban Forestry Grants Manager) and Ellen Clark (Urban Forestry Communications Specialist), attended the Partners in Community Forestry Conference in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The Partners in Community Forestry Conference is a two-day gathering for individuals, nation-wide from industry, non-profit, and state, local and federal agencies alike to come together and collaborate and share ideas, research and interests with others. The conference offered peer-to-peer learning opportunities and educational sessions regarding how to engage communities and partners to promote trees. The conference also fostered discussions regarding how to develop nationwide metrics and stories promoting urban forestry. 
he Urban Forestry team has recently added a new member, Abner Jacobson. Abner will be an Urban Forestry Grant Specialist. Originally from the East Side of Madison, Abner graduated from the University of Wisconsin in 2017 with degrees in Communication Arts and Political Science.