Protecting our water, our land, and our natural habitat is really about protecting us. It's about protecting people. Dave Ulrich is one such protector. As head of the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, it is Dave's job to bring mayors from the U.S. and Canada together to restore and protect the Great Lakes ecosystem. Dave served as deputy regional administrator for the Great Lakes region of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for more than a decade, and during his 30 years with EPA, he was also director of the Waste Management Division, acting regional counsel, and chief of Air Enforcement

Michael Mehaffy is an international leader in sustainable planning. Michael guided planning for some of the earliest transit-oriented developments in the U.S. and has used that experience to influence land use and transportation planning at a regional scale. Michael is an author, researcher and consultant in sustainable planning, and president of Structura Naturalis Inc. in Portland, Oregon.

Our conversation is about the latest efforts to protect our resources and ourselves, this week on Smart City.