Lake Superior at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.

Lake Superior runs for president, ponders running mate

LAKE SUPERIOR PRESIDENCY: Yes, Lake Superior is a declared candidate for president of the United States and is in search of a running mate. The self-proclaimed #GLOAT (Greatest Lake Of All Time) is running on a “Water First Agenda,” is active on the social media platform X and maintains a campaign website. We hear from the campaign’s account manager, an MSU science communication expert and the Great Lakes Indian Fisheries and Wildlife Commission. By Elinor Epperson. FOR ALL POINTS.

Author Sally Cole-Misch says her background in environmental communication taught her that story-telling is a powerful educational tool.

Need a summer read? Join this Great Lakes -wide book club

GREAT LAKES BOOK CLUB: Readers across the Great Lakes states and Canada this year will participate in a basin-wide book club hosted by the Library of the Great Lakes. From now until September 2025, participants will read Bloomfield Township author Sally Cole-Misch’s The Best Part of Us that takes place on an inland lake near Lake Huron and deals with family history, heritage and place-based attachment.They’ll also read an Ontario author’s children’s book, The Water Walker. By Kayla Nelsen. FOR ALL POINTS.

Newly emerged monarch butterfly.

Butterflies race for state insect status

BUTTERFLIES: Three butterflies are racing to become Michigan’s official state insect – and the black swallowtail is ahead, at least politically. The Michigan Garden Clubs and a House committee are among its fans, but the Karner blue and the monarch aren’t out of the running yet. Lawmakers, including ones from Meridian Township, Muskegon and Pontiac, are split. By Vladislava Sukhanovskaya. FOR ALL POINTS.

The Vicksburg Union Depot in the past.

Southwest Michigan train depot chugs onto National Register of Historic Places

HISTORIC DEPOT: A 1904 train depot in Kalamazoo County has arrived on the National Register of Historic Places. The last Grand Trunk Western passenger train stopped at the Vicksburg Union Depot in 1972 and freight service was discontinued two years later but 60 freight trains a day still rumble by the restored depot. By Eric Freedman. FOR STURGIS, THREE RIVERS, COLDWATER AND ALL POINTS.

Rep. Matthew Bierlein R-Vassar.

Proposal would restrict deepfake images depicting sexual content

DEEPFAKES: A Vassar lawmaker wants to crack down on deepfakes, which are photos or videos with digitally altered faces or bodies to appear to be someone else, usually used maliciously or to spread false information. The legislation raises First Amendment free speech questions. Cosponsors include representatives from Metro Detroit. An expert at Western Michigan University’s Cooley Law School discusses. By Sophia Ceru. FOR DETROIT, LANSING CITY PULSE AND ALL POINTS.

Detroit’s Masonic Temple on Temple Street is now a concert and events venue

Repurposed Masonic temples reveal Michigan history

MASONIC TEMPLES: Lansing officials are considering a proposal to convert the historic but vacant Masonic Building into a new city hall. Other former buildings used by the Masons have already been repurposed, such as those in Detroit (concert hall), Big Rapids (bar) and Traverse City (boutique hotel). By Theo Scheer. FOR LANSING CITY PULSE, WKTV, TRAVERSE CITY, LEELANAU, GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS, DETROIT, GREENVILLE, CORP! AND ALL POINTS.

Proposed project to bring first digital art installation to East Lansing

A proposed location of the vinyl digital art murals on the south wall of the Albert Street parking garage. Picture courtesy of Wendy Sylvester-Rowan. A painted mural on the corner of Michigan Ave and N Harrison Rd photographed on March 11. East Lansing’s public art scene is no stranger to vibrant murals, unique sculptures, and quirky architecture. If it depends on the Art Programming and Placemaking Specialist Wendy Sylvester-Rowan, the city will look even more lively soon.