Broome County opens applications for Small Community Fund grants

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BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — Broome County is now accepting applications for the 8th round of its Small Community Fund grant program, which has $650,000 this year

Bond elects environmental and energy attorney as member

Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Law, Accounting & Taxes, Subscriber Only

SYRACUSE — Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC, a Syracuse–based law firm, recently announced that 11 of its attorneys have been elected members (partners) of the firm, effective at the start of this year. One of those new members is Sarah K. Spencer, who is part of Bond’s environmental and energy law practice. Spencer, who is

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FLLT land acquisition in Cayuga County to help protect Skaneateles Lake

Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Subscriber Only

SEMPRONIUS — It’s a land acquisition that the Finger Lakes Land Trust (FLLT) says will help protect Skaneateles Lake. The FLLT says it has purchased 218 acres adjacent to Bear Swamp State Forest in the town of Sempronius in Cayuga County. The property includes wetlands, upland forests, and 1,755 feet of frontage on Bear Swamp

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SEMPRONIUS — It’s a land acquisition that the Finger Lakes Land Trust (FLLT) says will help protect Skaneateles Lake.

The FLLT says it has purchased 218 acres adjacent to Bear Swamp State Forest in the town of Sempronius in Cayuga County.

The property includes wetlands, upland forests, and 1,755 feet of frontage on Bear Swamp Creek, the largest tributary to Skaneateles Lake, the unfiltered drinking-water supply for the City of Syracuse, per the Feb. 18 announcement from Ithaca–based FLLT.

The FLLT says it intends to transfer a portion of the newly acquired property — about 141 acres — to New York State as an addition to Bear Swamp State Forest. The property will connect the eastern portion of the forest with 102 acres that FLLT acquired in 2021. The combined property will also join the state’s land holdings in this area.

The remaining 77 acres are primarily agricultural land and will be conserved using a perpetual conservation easement and sold to a private buyer subject to the terms of the easement. The FLLT says it will use proceeds from the sale to replenish its Opportunity Fund, the organization’s dedicated account created to make “time-sensitive” acquisitions possible.

Protection of these properties will safeguard water quality in Skaneateles Lake, protect wildlife habitat, and provide additional recreational opportunities, the FLLT contends. The land purchase also represents the ninth conservation project in the vicinity of Bear Swamp, which is identified as a priority project within New York State’s Open Space Plan, the FLLT adds.

It is also part of an Audubon-designated Important Bird Area and features “extensive pristine wetlands and rare flora.” Other protected lands in the area include Carpenter Falls State Unique Area and the FLLT’s Bahar Nature Preserve, the organization noted.

Conservation easements are voluntary legal agreements that permanently limit future land use to protect the land’s conservation value. Lands subject to conservation easements remain in private ownership, on local tax rolls, and available for traditional uses such as farming and hunting, the FLLT said.

About Finger Lakes Land Trust

The FLLT focuses on protecting critical habitat for fish and wildlife, conserving lands that are important for water quality, connecting existing conservation lands, and keeping prime farmland in agriculture. The organization also provides programs to educate local governments, landowners, and residents about conservation and the region’s unique natural resources.

By working cooperatively with landowners and local communities, the Finger Lakes Land Trust says it has protected more than 34,000 acres of the region’s undeveloped lakeshore, rugged gorges, rolling forest, and scenic farmland. The FLLT owns and manages a network of more than 45 nature preserves that are open to the public and holds perpetual conservation easements on 200 properties that remain in private ownership.

NYS Green Building Conference coming to Syracuse in late March

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Subscriber Only

SYRACUSE — The 23rd annual New York State Green Building Conference will include a series of presentations by top green-building researchers, educators, and practitioners. The event is set for March 27-28 at the Marriott Syracuse Downtown, says Syracuse University’s Center of Excellence in Environmental and Energy Systems (SyracuseCoE). The conference aims to bring together leading

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Upstate N.Y. Energy Storage Engine COO begins position

Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Subscriber Only

VESTAL — The Upstate New York Energy Storage Engine, led by Binghamton University, in January appointed Heidi Grenek as its chief operating officer (COO). She is responsible for leading the Engine’s operational strategy — overseeing day-to-day operations, financial planning, and budgeting; providing compliance and regulatory oversight; and developing and implementing strategies to drive overall programmatic

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VESTAL — The Upstate New York Energy Storage Engine, led by Binghamton University, in January appointed Heidi Grenek as its chief operating officer (COO).

She is responsible for leading the Engine’s operational strategy — overseeing day-to-day operations, financial planning, and budgeting; providing compliance and regulatory oversight; and developing and implementing strategies to drive overall programmatic success.

“We are thrilled to welcome Heidi to our team,” Meera Sampath, CEO of the Engine, said in a release. “Heidi brings a wealth of experience and expertise, refined through her many senior leadership roles in the tech industry. Her strategic planning abilities, business acumen and hands-on operational management experience will be invaluable assets as the Engine accelerates its efforts to drive impact at scale and speed.”

Grenek has worked for many years in large organizations at the intersection of technology and business. She most recently served as chief operating officer for Pure Lithium Corporation, a startup focused on lithium metal extraction and battery innovation. Prior to Pure Lithium, Grenek led high-stakes corporate initiatives at Corning, including comprehensive transformation of lithium supply chain operations through revamped forecasting processes, supplier diversification and partnerships, and material recycling, to generate savings and secure supply, per the release. She began her career at Xerox Corporation, where she had progressive leadership and entrepreneurial roles, including as director of business development and strategy for the Palo Alto Research Center (PARC).

“The Upstate New York Energy Storage Engine’s work is vital for both New York’s economic growth and the future of battery storage and power management,” said Grenek. “Battery technology sits at the intersection of our nation’s energy security and industrial innovation. This is an unparalleled opportunity to strengthen the region’s economy while advancing critical energy solutions for our country.”

Grenek holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from Cornell University and an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management, as well as certifications in artificial intelligence for business applications from MIT and the University of Chicago.

The Upstate New York Energy Storage Engine, led by Binghamton University, is a National Science Foundation-funded, place-based innovation program. The coalition of more than 40 academic, industry, nonprofit, state, and community organizations includes Cornell University, Rochester Institute of Technology, Syracuse University, LAUNCH-NY, and NY-BEST as core partners. The Engine advances next-gen battery technology development and manufacturing. Its vision is to transform upstate New York into America’s Battery Capital.

ESF professors lead initiative that wins $5 million NSF grant

Education & Training, Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Subscriber Only

SYRACUSE — Two professors at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) are leading an international initiative to develop sustainable bioproducts from waste biomass. The National Science Foundation (NSF) is supporting the work with a $5 million grant to the Global Center for Sustainable Bioproducts (GCSB), an international research hub dedicated to developing

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SYRACUSE — Two professors at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) are leading an international initiative to develop sustainable bioproducts from waste biomass.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is supporting the work with a $5 million grant to the Global Center for Sustainable Bioproducts (GCSB), an international research hub dedicated to developing sustainable bio-based solutions for environmental and economic challenges, per ESF’s Feb. 19 announcement.

Chang Geun Yoo, with ESF’s department of chemical engineering, and Gyu Leem, with ESF’s department of chemistry, are at the helm of the NSF Global Centers program that brings together experts from Canada, Finland, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and the U.S. Their goal is to create eco-friendly and economically viable alternatives to traditional plastics and composites, ESF said.

“Dr. Yoo and Dr. Leem’s groundbreaking work is crucial for developing sustainable solutions that can transform industries and protect our environment,” ESF President Joanie Mahoney, said in the school’s announcement. “Their leadership in this international initiative highlights ESF’s commitment to innovative research with real-world impact.”

GCSB’s research focuses on four main areas. They include sustainable bio-utilization, or transforming abundant biomass into valuable materials; ensuring processes help mitigate climate change; designing eco-friendly products that are also market-viable; and improving technologies for efficient bioproducts production.

The team involved is focused on polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA), a biodegradable bio-based plastic from agricultural residues. By combining PHA with bio-fillers such as nanocellulose and nanolignin, they aim to develop materials for 3D and 4D printing. They will also work to ensure these new materials are environmentally friendly and cost-effective. ESF will lead the research and educational programs with a $1.45 million grant, the SUNY school said.

“By integrating cutting-edge science with industry applications, we’re building a sustainable future,” Yoo said in the ESF announcement.

Leem also adding, “This research bridges the gap between science and real-world solutions.”

The NSF award highlights the foundation’s support for “impactful global research.” With backing from international agencies, GCSB’s work aims to “make a lasting impact on global sustainability.”

Partnering institutions include the University of Tennessee, University of Iowa, Howard University, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, University of Alberta, University of British Columbia, University of Surrey, University of Strathclyde, Åbo Akademi University, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, and Hanyang University.

OPINION: Is Trump Inheriting Biden’s Recession?

Opinion, Subscriber Only

Don’t look now, but the Atlanta Federal Reserve’s GPDNow estimate (www.atlantafed.org/cqer/research/gdpnow) for the first quarter of 2025 shows the U.S. economy potentially contracting [by up to nearly 3 percent] annualized. Coupled with initial jobless claims peaking up to 242,000 [as reported on Feb. 27], a good question to ask is whether President Donald Trump inherited

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It wouldn’t be the first time an incoming president had to deal with either an ongoing recession or a new one in their first years of office. Just ask Richard Nixon (1969), Ronald Reagan (1981), George W. Bush (2001), and Barack Obama (2009) who all had recessions their first years in office.

Politically, the good news is each one of those administrations went on to get reelected relatively easily in 1972, 1984, 2004, and 2012. So, first-year recessions are not politically fatal per se for the White House incumbents.

Midterms are what they are — regardless of the circumstances, there is usually a 90 percent chance of the White House incumbent party losing seats in the House of Representatives during the midterms — and that’s agnostic in terms of recessions.

During and after COVID, slowdowns in global economic production combined with trillions of dollars of monetary and fiscal stimulus heated up inflation to 7.5 percent by January 2022, peaking at 9.1 percent by June 2022. Overall, inflation outpaced earnings for the entire four-year period of Biden, even as the rate of inflation cooled — and it made Biden-Harris a one-term proposition.

During that time, the spread between 10-year and 2-year treasuries inverted and then un-inverted. Usually, the periods of un-inversion are when unemployment tends to rise. Well, since January 2023, that spread has been rising — and so has unemployment by 1.1 million, and so has the unemployment rate, from a low of 3.4 percent in April 2023 to 4 percent in Jan. 2025.

The key point is that these trends have been ongoing for months and years. They didn’t begin yesterday. A recession today, if there is one, will have had many fathers.

The truth is, what goes up must come down. If there is a recession now or soon, then it’s because inflation overheated the economy since 2021, the American people maxed out their credit cards, and demand is finally pulling back. The upside is recessions tend to eat inflation, but the downside is unemployment goes up.

If so, the sooner the better. Rip off the band-aid, but the Trump administration would do well to manage expectations. And that applies to anything, underscoring a communications problem that any White House needs to overcome.

The point is to set goals but also be prepared for setbacks. Nobody said this was going to be easy.

If the economy is softening following the inflation, then that could provide more of an impetus for President Trump’s plans to cut taxes and stimulate long-term growth, for example. And then, to control future inflation, to cut spending and borrowing, and so forth.

The “soft” landing — long sought by Biden and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell — was remotely possible but considering the U.S. was coming off 9.1 inflation in 2022, and perhaps in hindsight, rather fanciful. Nothing is set in stone, naturally, but generally, all an administration can do is hope for the best — and prepare for the worst. Stay tuned.

Robert Romano is the VP of public policy at Americans for Limited Government, a conservative 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization that says it is dedicated to restoring constitutionally limited government, allowing individuals to pursue life, liberty, and happiness.

OPINION: Vladimir Putin’s quarter-century reign has been remarkable

Opinion, Subscriber Only

Vladimir Putin has been Russia’s undisputed leader for 25 years. That is a remarkable achievement. Only a handful of today’s world leaders have held onto power for that long, and only Putin has done so in a nation as large and complex as Russia. Consider this: If Putin remains in charge for four more years,

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Consider this: If Putin remains in charge for four more years, he will match the tenure of Josef Stalin, the cruel dictator who ruled the Soviet Union until his death in 1953. Putin, 72, is starting a six-year term of office, so it seems likely that will happen.

Unfortunately, Putin’s tenure has been authoritarian and brutal; nothing like Stalin’s, certainly, but bad enough. He has crushed dissent, jailed critics, and eliminated independent news media. Elections have become one-sided, with no opposition able to thrive. His foreign policy has grown more and more aggressive.

It’s easy to forget that the West had high hopes for Russia after the Soviet Union collapsed. The Cold War had ended. Russia adopted a constitution with democratic principles and transitioned to a more capitalist economy. Under Boris Yeltsin, Russia’s first elected president, there were problems of economic weakness and corruption, but Western observers remained hopeful.

On New Year’s Eve in 1999, Yeltsin surprised the world by resigning and leaving Putin, a former KGB intelligence officer, as his successor. Including four years when Dmitry Medvedev was a figurehead president, Putin has been in charge ever since.

The initial optimistic response was that Putin would restore order after the chaos of the Yeltsin years. U.S. President George W. Bush, after meeting with Putin in June 2001, said: “I looked the man in the eye. I found him to be very straightforward and trustworthy.” German Chancellor Gerhard Schroder called Putin a “flawless democrat” in 2004.

But Putin is no democrat. Secrecy and intolerance became hallmarks of his regime. Independent news outlets and political groups were shut down. Writers and artists were censored. Critics were jailed or worse. Opposition leader Boris Nemtsov was shot to death near the Kremlin in 2015. When Alexei Navalny died last year in prison after multiple episodes of poisoning, then-President Joe Biden said he had “no doubt” Putin was to blame.

Meanwhile, Russia thumbed its nose at Western democracies and acted as a neighborhood bully. It seized part of Georgia in 2008, annexed Crimea in 2014, and invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Hundreds of thousands of Russian and Ukrainian troops have been killed or wounded in that war, which hasn’t gone well for Russia.

And Russia has other problems: unemployment, a low birth rate, and high inflation and interest rates. Its standing in the Middle East took a hit in December when Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, its ally, was ousted. Western sanctions over the Ukraine war have hurt Russia, although oil and gas exports have kept its economy above water.

Even so, polls indicate Putin is popular at home. He has linked himself to Russia’s proud history, reaching back 300 years to Emperor Peter the Great and including the 20th century, when the Soviet Union made immense sacrifices to stop Hitler. Putin, in 2005, called the breakup of the Soviet Union a “major geopolitical disaster.”

You could say that Putin wants to “make Russia great again” with his geopolitical ambition. And that raises an obvious question: What should we expect in U.S.-Russia relations now that Donald Trump is back in the White House.

Trump criticized Biden’s support of the Ukraine war effort and claimed he could end the war in a day. Of course, he hasn’t done that. Putin, knowing Trump loves flattery, has praised him, even endorsing his claim that the 2020 election was stolen.

Both men are canny, ambitious, and unpredictable. It would be interesting to watch their competition play out — if only there weren’t so much at stake for the rest of us.

Lee Hamilton, 93, is a senior advisor for the Indiana University (IU) Center on Representative Government, distinguished scholar at the IU Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies, and professor of practice at the IU O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs. Hamilton, a Democrat, was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for 34 years (1965-1999), representing a district in south-central Indiana.

Ask Rusty: Can I Get Extra SS for my Military Service?

Business Mentors, Subscriber Only

Dear Rusty: Please help. I served from 1964-1966 in the US Army. I have been trying to contact the Social Security Administration (SSA) to request extra benefits for veterans. The telephone is a recording, and you never get to speak to anyone. The web site (www.ssa.gov) is useless to me. I went to the Social

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Dear Rusty: Please help. I served from 1964-1966 in the US Army. I have been trying to contact the Social Security Administration (SSA) to request extra benefits for veterans. The telephone is a recording, and you never get to speak to anyone. The web site (www.ssa.gov) is useless to me. I went to the Social Security (SS) office and there was a huge line outdoors in the freezing cold. I am disabled and cannot stand on a line in this cold. Please advise me about my options. Financially, is it worth the trouble?

Signed: Disabled American Veteran

Dear Disabled Veteran: My profound thanks for your service to our country. FYI, the “special extra credit for military service” you refer to does not provide an incremental Social Security benefit amount for military veterans. Rather, it adds an additional amount to your recording earnings for the years you served, which may affect your Social Security benefit.

In your case (serving between 1964 and 1966), if you told the SSA of your military service when you applied for benefits (or gave it a copy of your DD-214), it would have added up to $1,200 per year to your recorded military pay record (FYI, those who served after 1967 were automatically given earnings credit for their military service years). However, whether those special extra credits would affect your SS benefit depends on what your lifetime earnings record was when you later claimed SS. When you applied for benefits, the SSA reviewed your lifetime earnings record and used the highest-earning 35 years of earnings over your lifetime (adjusted for inflation) to calculate your “primary insurance amount” (or PIA), which is what you get if you claim benefits to start at your SS full retirement age. If, after your military service, you had 35 or more years of earnings which were higher than what you earned while serving, the SSA would have used those later higher earnings to calculate your benefit, and your military earnings wouldn’t affect your benefit. If, however, any of your military earnings (including the special extra credits) were among the highest over your lifetime, then those higher military earnings would be included when calculating your benefit.

So, whether you will benefit from these special extra credits for military service depends largely on your post-service earnings history. If your military earnings were among the highest-earning years over your lifetime, and you provided SSA with a copy of your DD-214 when you applied for Social Security, then your current SS benefit already includes consideration of your military service. The SSA should have asked about your military service when you applied. If you didn’t advise the agency of your military service when you applied for Social Security, or if you aren’t sure, you should contact the SSA at (800) 772-1213 and ask if you were given those special extra credits for military service when you applied. However, if you had at least 35 years of higher earnings after you left military service, your current SS benefit is already based on those later higher-earning years, and you will not get anything additional from those special extra credits for your military service years.

FYI, we know it is often difficult to contact the Social Security Administration by phone, as well as trying to visit SSA offices without an appointment (which is why our AMAC Foundation provides this free service). SSA is now allowing in-person visits “by appointment only” and you can call the above number to schedule an in-person appointment at your local SSA office. But before you do, please consider what I’ve said above. And remember that your SS benefit is based on the highest-earning 35 years over your entire lifetime and each year represents only 1/35th of your benefit amount. So, is it worth the trouble? That depends on whether your military earnings, including the special extra credits for military service, are among the highest over your entire lifetime. If the answer is “yes” then it is likely worth it; if “no,” then perhaps not.

Russell Gloor is a national Social Security advisor at the AMAC Foundation, the nonprofit arm of the Association of Mature American Citizens (AMAC). The 2.4-million-member AMAC says it is a senior advocacy organization. Send your questions to: ssadvisor@amacfoundation.org.

Author’s note: This article is intended for information purposes only and does not represent legal or financial guidance. It presents the opinions and interpretations of the AMAC Foundation’s staff, trained, and accredited by the National Social Security Association (NSSA). The NSSA and the AMAC Foundation and its staff are not affiliated with or endorsed by the Social Security Administration or any other governmental entity.

Rotary Club of Cooperstown donates to Bassett School-Based Health Program

Education & Training, Health Care, Mohawk Valley, Subscriber Only

COOPERSTOWN — The Rotary Club of Cooperstown presented Jane Hamilton, practice manager of Bassett Healthcare Network’s School-Based Health Program, a nearly $1,150 donation for the program at its Feb. 18 meeting. “The work being done by Bassett’s School-Based Health Program is a direct match for three of the Rotary’s key missions: fighting disease, saving mothers

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