VERMONT RANKS: Happy babies & Energy efficiency

Vermont was ranked the best state to have a baby in based on factors including; the fifth lowest infant mortality rate, the most midwives and OB/GYNs per capita, the third most pediatricians and family doctors per capita, and the most child care centers per capita.

And those babies may be using less electricity than elsewhere, because the ACEEE just ranked Vermont in the top five of energy-efficient states, following Massachusetts, California and Rhode Island. The ACEEE’s annual state energy-efficiency scorecard compares states in six policy areas:  utility and public benefits programs and policies, transportation policies, building energy codes, combined heat and power policies, state government-led energy efficiency initiatives, and appliance and equipment standards.

FALL FOLIAGE & TREES

Vermont’s fall foliage has been impressive this year—but the eye-catching red coloring in the leaves of maples and other trees may be doing more than meets the eye. Research by UVM ecologist Abby van den Berg suggests that reddish-hued anthocyanin pigments may help protect leaves from sun damage, enabling them to carry on important functions like sending nutrients back into the tree before the leaves die. Check out other theories about red foliage in this New York Times article.

Speaking of leaves, tree regeneration is essential for sustainable forest management, but it can be hindered by ecological and harvesting effects. A study by UVM researchers on the regeneration responses to management for old-growth characteristics in hardwood-conifer forests of Vermont found that structural complexity enhancement is a successful method for holistic forest management.

WHY DO PEOPLE STAY IN VERMONT?

Researchers Cheryl Morse and Jill Mudgett found that place-based factors and family ties were the main determinants in causing individuals to stay in their home state. Those “contented stayers” placed emphasis on the emotional aspects of living near family in Vermont, and outlined the ways in which they exercise mobility to remain happy at home.

And speaking of Vermont researchers, the Center recently interviewed Castleton University’s Rich Clark on the concept of “Vermont,” UVM’s Lesley-Ann Dupigny-Giroux on climate change and Vermont, historian Nick Muller on Ethan Allen and Bill Mares on the Full Vermonty. (If you have an idea for a researcher video contact us).

NEW REGIONALISM

Could “new regionalism” be the key to developing and promoting sustainable energy practices? Researchers from Saint Michael’s College examined the hub of green energy resources along the Vermont-Canadian border, and analyzed the emergence of this identity as a tool in promoting sustainability on a greater scale—as well as a drawback in directing resources away from neighboring states.