Arizona State University (ASU) will house the next clean energy facility, established by $70 million in federal funding from the Department of Energy (DOE).
The facility will be the seventh established Clean Energy Manufacturing Innovation Institute, housed within ASU’s Electrified Processes for Industry Without Carbon (EPIXC) in the Ira Fulton Schools of Engineering.
In a press release issued last month, DOE Acting Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Alejandro Moreno said the goal of EPIXC is to result in zero industrial emissions through total replacement of traditional energy sources, namely fossil fuels, with electrical energy. The $70 million will extend over the next five years.
“Achieving the nation’s climate goals will require an all-hands-on-deck, multidimensional approach to eliminating industrial emissions,” said Moreno. “Our newest institute, EPIXC, will focus on one of the key pillars of industrial decarbonization—electrification—to dramatically slash emissions while helping to strengthen and secure America’s leadership in the global clean energy economy.”
In a separate press release, ASU shared that they partnered with University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M University, Pennsylvania State University, Stanford University, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Tuskegee University, North Carolina State University, Navajo Technical University, Idaho National Laboratory, the National Energy Technology Laboratory, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. Strategic guidance for the proposal came from KB Science.
The senior associate of KB Science, Scott Boyce, hails from the same company, Dow Chemical Company, that helped launch the Obama-created organization associated with this DOE initiative: Manufacturing USA. Boyce helped oversee the organization and is characterized as “instrumental in supporting the Dow partnership with the DOE.”
The senior consultant of KB Science, JoAnn Milliken, worked as the program manager, office director, and senior executive for the DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy for over 21 years.
A significant portion of benefits derived from this clean energy initiative won’t be returned to the general public, but rather be repurposed for equity-oriented causes. Justification for this flow of taxpayer dollars comes from Biden’s executive order issued on the day of his inauguration, “Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government.”
This $70 million in funding coincides with the DOE’s “Decarbonization Roadmap” released last year. EPIXC will comply with President Joe Biden’s Justice40 initiative (issued a week after his inauguration) to prioritize equity in all clean energy initiatives. The initiative directs 40 percent of benefits derived from federal investments into clean energy — as well as clean transit, affordable and sustainable housing, training and workforce development, remediation and reduction of legacy pollution, and development of clean water infrastructure – will go to disadvantaged communities (DACs).
DACs include any communities the government classifies as “marginalized, underserved, or overburdened by pollution.” The Biden administration clarified that racial demographics don’t factor into DAC classifications. However, they also noted that “communities of color suffer disproportionately from some of these burdens.”
Leading EPIXC is ASU professor Stacy Esposito and University of Texas in Austin professor Bruce Eldridge.
All seven of the DOE’s Clean Energy Manufacturing Innovation Institutes are part of the Manufacturing USA initiative. The organization was established in 2014 under the Obama administration, formerly named the National Network for Manufacturing Innovation, for the purposes of spurring domestic manufacturing. Initial planning for the network began in 2011 when Obama’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology recommended the formation of the Advanced Manufacturing Partnership (AMP). Leading the AMP were former Dow Chemical Company President, Chairman, and CEO Andrew Liveris and former Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) President Susan Hockfield.
The other Manufacturing USA organizations are Advanced Functional Fabrics of America (AFFOA) in Cambridge, Massachusetts; American Institute for Manufacturing (AIM) Photonics in Albany, New York; America Makes in Youngstown, Ohio; Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing (ARM) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; BioFabUSA in Manchester, New Hampshire; Bioindustrial Manufacturing and Design Ecosystem (BioMADE) in St. Paul, Minnesota; CESMII in Los Angeles, California; the Cybersecurity Manufacturing Innovation Institute (CyManII) in San Antonio, Texas; Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI) in Knoxville, Tennessee; LIFT in Detroit, Michigan; Manufacturing times Digital (MxD) in Chicago, Illinois; NextFlex in San Jose, California; National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals (NIIMBL) in Newark, Delaware; Power America in Raleigh, North Carolina; Rapid Advancement in Process Intensification Deployment Institute in New York, New York; and Reducing EMbodied-energy and Decreasing Emissions (REMADE) in Rochester, New York.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ-07) selected an anti-Christian art piece as the winner of this year’s Congressional Art Competition.
The piece, titled “Chokehold,” depicts a blonde, curly-haired woman being choked with a scarred cross on her forehead. According to the artist, recent Nogales High School graduate Grecia Solorio, the drawing signifies the “damaging effects of purity culture on women,” referencing Christian values specifically. The piece will be displayed in the U.S. Capitol for one year.
“I’d like to thank everyone who submitted their art for the competition this year and want to congratulate Grecia on this impressive accomplishment,” said Grijalva. “The depth of talent and range of artistic styles are inspiring and each participant should be proud of their work. I look forward to welcoming Grecia to Washington and viewing her art in the U.S. Capitol.”
Felicidades to Grecia Solario from Nogales High and the winner of #AZ07's Congressional Art Competition!
I look forward to welcoming Grecia to Washington and viewing her work hang in the U.S. Capitol.https://t.co/10D3qSBlKT
— Raul M. Grijalva (@RepRaulGrijalva) May 30, 2023
Solorio will also be brought to the Capitol and honored at a congressional reception for her work.
In the 22nd Annual Juried Exhibition, Solorio said in an artist statement that she was happy that artwork allowed her to disrespect the sacred aspects of Christian religion. Solorio added that her work represented a rejection of the patriarchal customs of Hispanic-American culture and society.
“Throughout my life, I was taught that freedom was the most important thing for a human being to possess. However, I learned that in order to feel free, I needed to confront my belief-based fears, and continuously fight back against the patriarchal customs that were introduced to me by my culture and by society,” stated Solorio. “I find my freedom through art, most specifically in creating artwork that allows me to be irreverent. The religion I defied as my first act of personal freedom, serves as inspiration for my feminist work. I strive to combine both topics, not to intertwine them, but rather to point out the hypocrisies of the prior and create an impactful view into issues of the latter.”
Solorio also received Best of Show for the piece during an art show last month displaying high school students’ work, “Hi-Art.” The piece was also displayed last November in ArtLink’s 22nd Annual Juried Exhibition, one of the largest group artist exhibitions in the state.
ArtLink partners include Valley Metro, Kimpton Hotel Palomar Phoenix, Arizona Commission on the Arts, Arizona Center, Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, the city of Phoenix, Arizona Strategies, Arizona Public Service, and FOUND:RE Phoenix Hotel.
Another of Solorio’s pieces depicted motherhood as slavery. The piece, titled “Modern Madonna,” displayed a breastfeeding, crying mother with a chain around her neck, with the saying underneath, “La maternidad será deseada o no será,” a saying that translates to, “Motherhood will be desired or will not be” — a statement in support of abortion.
Solorio plans on attending the School of Art Institute of Chicago.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
The former USA Today editor-in-chief took over the Arizona State University (ASU) initiative to “reimagine” local journalism efforts.
The editor-in-chief, Nicole Carroll, formerly served as editor of The Arizona Republic for nearly 20 years prior to joining USA Today. Both outlets are owned by the Gannett Company, where Carroll also served as president of news.
USA Today hired Carroll following her Pulitzer Prize award for coverage of former President Donald Trump’s border wall plans.
Under Carroll, TheArizona Republic broke precedent by endorsing a Democratic candidate, Hilary Clinton, in the 2016 presidential election. The editorial board at the time asserted that former President Donald Trump wasn’t conservative and therefore not qualified.
“Clinton has the temperament and experience to be president,” wrote the board. “Donald Trump does not.”
In early 2020, just weeks before the declaration of a national emergency over the COVID-19 outbreak, The Arizona Republic said it would no longer endorse candidates.
In a press release, Carroll said that reporters should embrace disruptive solutions when delivering the news.
“We must create and embrace disruptive solutions to engage and empower people with the news and information they need to strengthen our communities and democracy,” said Carroll.
ASU said that Carroll’s role would be to develop new strategies and business models for local reporting through ASU Media Enterprise.
Under Carroll, major articles included what was widely perceived as a hit piece portrayed as news rather than opinion against Supreme Court (SCOTUS) Justice Brett Kavanaugh ahead of his confirmation.
In one of Carroll’s last opinion pieces for USA Today before departing, Carroll featured former SCOTUS Justice Sandra Day O’Connor and discussed how the current SCOTUS erred in overturning Roe v. Wade.
Last summer, Carroll highlighted the USA Today goal of increasing gender and race-based diversity in newsrooms.
Carroll took over for her former longtime colleague: professor and managing program director, Mi-Ai Parrish, who’d most recently served as the publisher for TheArizona Republic. Both Carroll and Parrish served on TheArizona Republic editorial board together.
Parrish was friends with newly-appointed Ninth Circuit Court judge Roopali Desai, casting her as a diversity appointment.
“Interviewing fellow Athena and rockstar pal Judge Roopali Desai, first So. Asian on @US9thCircuit for an Asian Am Wonder Women evening. #truthmatters #justicematters #inclusionmatters,” tweeted Parrish.
ASU Media Enterprise housesArizona PBS, the public broadcasting channel and platform; Issues in Science in Technology, a public policy forum partnering with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Zocalo Public Square, a humanities journal; Global Sports Matters, a sports publication; Transformations, an online magazine for narrative essays that serves as a publishing channel of the Los Angeles Review of Books; Narrative Storytelling Initiative, a writing projects cohort; Future Tense, a Washington, D.C. partnership with New America and Slate magazine to analyze and project technology’s impact on society; Leonardo, a problem-solving initiative combining the arts, sciences, and technology; KBAQ, a classical public radio station; Digital Audiences Lab, a student-led social media campaign strategy program; Innovation Happens, a student podcast to highlight the diversity of ASU.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego heeded the call of Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner, urging for the addition of a public railroad to the city.
Gallego said that the railroad, or passenger railway, would make long-distance travel easier for both locals and visitors.
“An @Amtrak connection in Phoenix would make long-distance travel easier for Phoenicians and bring more visitors. Let’s get it done!” said Gallego.
An @Amtrak connection in Phoenix would make long-distance travel easier for Phoenicians and bring more visitors. Let’s get it done! https://t.co/2NYqU7AuTN
The renewed calls for a public railway came after Gardner singled out Phoenix in recent public comments on his company’s intent to expand nationally. Gardner said it was an “embarrassment” that Phoenix doesn’t have his passenger railway company.
“(It is) frankly an embarrassment that we don’t serve such a major, prominent city,” said Gardner.
Amtrak applied for $716 million in federal funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to launch 16 projects nationwide, including Phoenix. The Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) submitted a proposal to the federal Corridor Identification and Development Program (Corridor ID Program) to assist in the expansion. Additionally, ADOT provided $3.5 million.
Another proponent of the Amtrak expansion into Arizona, Rep. Greg Stanton (D-AZ-04), claimed that passenger railway would reduce the number of cars and therefore result in significant emissions reductions.
In a press release, Stanton also claimed that a public railway would provide an economic boost for the state.
“[It’s an] opportunity to connect our communities, make them more accessible and productive, and more internationally competitive,” said Stanton. “Opportunity to boost our regional economies with better access to jobs and more private investment along the route. Opportunity to ease congestion along Interstate 10 and help reduce air pollution.”
Likewise, Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) said Phoenix needed to join the other major cities in the country served by Amtrak.
“Phoenix is the largest city in the country not served by Amtrak, but thanks to our Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we’re working to fix that,” said Kelly. “This support for the Return to Phoenix Project will finally bring together Arizona communities, the railroads, and Amtrak to develop a comprehensive plan to connect Phoenix and Tucson with passenger rail and connect Phoenix to Amtrak’s nationwide network.”
Public railway, like other forms of public transit, suffers from high crime rates. According to Amtrak police, there were around 6,000 incidents and over 456,400 calls for police assistance in 2021. That’s based on the latest National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) data from the FBI.
That’s compared to about 5,000 incidents and 412,000 calls in 2020; around 6,700 incidents and 419,700 calls in 2019; around 6,100 incidents and 254,700 calls in 2018.
Amtrak has 30 routes consisting of 500 stops along 46 states. Based on their latest crime data report (2021), that’s about 12 incidents and 912 calls to Amtrak police at each stop annually.
In a press release on Monday, Amtrak explained that their applications were submitted through the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) programs funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA): the Corridor ID Program and the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Program. The essential goal of the programs is to establish a comprehensive national passenger rail network.
Gov. Katie Hobbs’ Office of Tourism and the Arizona Lottery are sponsoring a “child-friendly” drag show next week in Flagstaff.
The event, “Pride in the Pines: After Party,” will take place at the Orpheum Theater on June 17 at 9 pm. The event is open to all ages, with those under 16 years old requiring a parent or guardian chaperone. Cost of admission is $14 plus fees.
Hobbs selected an executive officer from Arizona Community Foundation, one of the event sponsors, to be director of the Office of Tourism in January: Lisa Urias. Hobbs appointed Tereza Fritz last month to oversee marketing for the lottery. Fritz hails from Western Alliance Bank and formerly worked for Lavidge marketing company.
The event is part of the 27th annual Pride in the Pines. Drag queens featured in the event include DJ Lezbein McKenzie, Anya C. Mann, Salina Es Titties, and Dillon Duvet, as well as Miss Gay Arizona America 2022 winner Janee Star.
Where are our RuPaul Fans? Salina ES Titties and Kerri Colby will perform at Pride in Pines on June 17th at Thorpe Park! Get your tickets today! pic.twitter.com/ljQNRAFhoa
Another sponsor for the event is the controversy-stricken Bud Light. The beer brand came under fire last month for selecting transgender personality and actor Dylan Mulvaney as their spokesman.
Following national coverage of Bud Light’s involvement, Flagstaff Pride deleted a tweet including a version of the event poster depicting the beer brand’s sponsorship. (An archived version of Flagstaff Pride’s page, including the deleted tweet, is available here). The organization claimed that Bud Light isn’t a sponsor of the event.
We put out an incorrect promotional poster which included Bud Light as a sponsor. Attached is the correct poster. pic.twitter.com/9xYdcdS4L7
The organization lists Bud Light as a sponsor on Twitter and on their official event sponsor page (archived versions here and here).
Coca-Cola also joined in as a sponsor.
Other sponsors are the Twin Arrows Casino, Old Navy, Living Christ Lutheran Church, the Northern Arizona Association of REALTORS, Bluespan, Veterinary Emergency & Speciality Center of Northern Arizona, Westside Veterinary Clinic, Flagstaff Downtown Dental, Findlay Toyota Flagstaff, Creative Flagstaff, Flagstaff 365 Events, BBB Revenues from the City of Flagstaff, Discover Flagstaff, High Country Sanitation, Verve Valley Rentals, Hensley Beverage Company, Nutrl Vodka, Yucca North, Collins Pub & Grill, Stackhouse Wealth Strategies, WestUSA Realty Flagstaff, Little America Hotel, Pride Guide USA.
A number of hotels also sponsored the event by offering discounted rates: Twin Arrows Casino, GreenTree Inn, High Country Motor Lodge, Sonesta Suites, and Little America Hotel.
Other entertainment at Pride in the Pines includes a band called “The Pubes.”
The state wasn’t listed as a sponsor for last year’s Pride in the Pines after party. Neither was Bud Light, but other sponsors including Coca-Cola, Old Navy, and Blue Cross Blue Shield were.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
