The Baltimore Sun reported on August 28th the awarding of grants from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) totalling $9.2-million with the aim of “planting trees, restoring wetlands, installing rain gardens” and undertaking other projects to improve the condition of the Chesapeake Bay area.

Among the organizations awarded was UMBC’s Center for Urban Environmental Research and Education (CUERE). The center received $324,000 and according to reporter Tim Wheeler will collaborate with the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) and Maryland State Highway Administration (MSHA) on runoff controls like pervious concrete and a practice called subsoiling, where ground soil is loosened in order to hopefully allow it to soak up more rainfall.

CUERE’s project is among 41 in located Maryland, DC, and five other bay-watershed states, with all focused on dealing with polluted runoff, which Wheeler described as “one of the most challenging and costly aspects of the bay restoration” in the article.

Political science professor Thomas Schaller appeared on yesterday’s Marc Steiner Show to discuss the kickoff of the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina. Schaller spoke about the DNC and what it means for the election with fellow panelists Rae Abileah (Code Pink), Neil Sroka (Progressive Change Campaign Committee), Cory McCray (BEST Democratic Club) and legislative consultant Tyrone Keys. The program also received calls from Gov. Martin O’Malley and Maryland State Delegate Mary L. Washington, directly from the DNC.

Want to learn more about Schaller’s perspective on the election? Check out his regular columns in Salon and the Baltimore Sun.

Kyle Leighton of of TalkingPointsMemo’s PollTracker gives us some insights into the polls following Mitt Romney’s nomination at the Republican National Convention.

The main theme is that nothing is really going to change. Despite all the mud slinging, fibs, fabrications, misquoting, and pandering, the battle lines seem to be set.

Conventions have historically been massive pep rallies, whipping their members into a passionate frenzy going into the last leg of the election. This energy typically gives the respective party a bump (if only temporary) in the polls. But coming out of the RNC and going into the DNC we’re seeing none of that.

Even the much hyped vice presidential pick of Paul Ryan lead only to a “micro bump” for Romney in the polls.

We can draw from this that in a season of polarized parties the trenches have been dug. We won’t see much movement across no-man’s-land for the remainder of the campaign.

But as Mr. Leighton points out, it’s the internal poll numbers that are the most interesting and perhaps the most important.

This election may come down to who has the more energized and active base of supporters.

In 2008 President Obama famously used a successful “ground game” mobilizing a massive network of fans to get out voters.  The Republicans this year are trying to do the same.

Who of the candidates can rally his supporters just a little more than his opponent will likely be the winner in this close contest.

courtesy of practicethis.com

In the past few weeks, dozens of speakers have addressed nationwide audiences at the national political conventions.

Some were good, others less so.

But before judging a speaker it may be worth asking : How well would YOU do speaking in front of a big crowd? or even a small crowd?

Public speaking is a tough but very necessary skill to master.

If you are concerned about your speaking abilities, or just don’t want to sound like a dope when you raise your hand in class, the good folks at Ragan.com have some useful speaking tips for you.

The first is, ummm… try to avoid the word “ummm”.

It’s like a security blanket, a nice little touch of warmth when you have run out of time to search for that elusive word. Filler words like um, well, and hmmm are like pieces of verbal debris that assail a listener’s ear and distract from your point.

While we’re on the subject, there are other filler phrases that can be just as painful. Ending a sentence with “right?”, “yes or no?”, or “ok?” or beginning it with phrases like “very quickly”, “basically”, or “to be honest”

There are a few basic rules to be observed to sound your best.

• Don’t repeat any phrase more often than you can help it.
• Slow down and relax. Jumbled, panicky speech doesn’t impress anyone.
• Don’t try to sound smarter than you really are. This means no big words (you may or may not know the meaning of).
• Every time you feel like you want to say “umm” say . . . nothing.

A good way to practice is to stand in front of a mirror (or non-judgmental friend… if that is possible), and talk about anything. Try your best to avoid these verbal ticks.

Do you have some speech tips? Speak up!

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