There are plenty of ways to participate in local civics this week. Tonight, Ann Arbor City Council is prepared to vote on formation of a task force to create an oversight board for the police department. Join WEMU's David Fair and Mary Morgan, executive director of the CivCity Initiative, for a discussion on that and other important topics in this week's edition of "Civic Matters."

Through the course of this week, Governor Rick Snyder has released some ambitious plans for environmental policy for his final year in office. WEMU’s David Fair caught up with James Clift , Policy Director of the Michigan Environmental Council, to discuss the plans and whether any of it will actually make it into policy.

The Washtenaw County Health Department revealed that local enrollment in health insurance is up through the Affordable Care Act .

The Ann Arbor Area Convention and Visitors Bureau has changed its name and is rebranding itself.

Eastern Michigan University announced last week that a credit hour shortfall has caused a $4.5 - $5.5 million budget shortfall in this fiscal year. To remedy that, up to 60 positions (both current employees and unfilled openings) will be eliminated across campus. EMU's faculty and lecturers' unions responded yesterday with a joint press release saying that these issues are being driven by "bad management decisions." Patrick Campion sat down with EMU-FT President, Daric Thorne, to discuss that

President Donald Trump delivered his first State of the Union address Tuesday night, and 12th District Congresswoman Debbie Dingell was in attendance. She spoke to WEMU's David Fair about her thoughts on the speech, including such issues as the automotive industry and immigration.

WEMU is happy to announce that On the Ground Ypsi will continue through 2018. We start this week's edition with WEMU's Patrick Campion and Concentrate Media's Brianna Kelly meeting with a team of aspiring young engineers from Ypsilanti Community High School, who want to show off their skills on the national stage.

On Tuesday night, President Donald Trump delivered the State of the Union address, and Ann Arbor Mayor Christopher Taylor was watching. Mayor Taylor shares his perspective on the potential impacts of proposed policies introduced in the address in a conversation with WEMU's David Fair.

For some, it might seem incongruous to try and run a business from the perspective of an artist. It's exactly that perspective that has made the Zingerman's Community of Businesses such a success. In this week's 'creative:impact," we explore the artistic vision of Zingerman's co-founder and co-owner, Ari Weinzweig, and the business model it helped create that is being imitated around the world.

Every Monday morning, the executive director of the CivCity Initiative will join WEMU's David Fair for a conversation on topics pertinent to the city of Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County. Mary Morgan provides news, analysis, commentary and explains the various ways residents can become more engaged.