Horst Schmidt

Member group representative,
Upper Peninsula Environmental Coalition

Horst joined the Environmental Council Board of Directors in 2022. 

Horst is the former president and current member of the Upper Peninsula Environmental Coalition, the UP's longest-serving environmental organization. He works to preserve the area's cultural and natural resources through stewardship, science-based decision making, and public education and discourse. He is especially keen on cleaning up legacy pollution and preventing new mines from polluting lakes, streams, and aquifers.

The Houghton County resident is also involved in other Upper Peninsula groups, such as the Friends of the Land in Keweenaw, the Western Upper Peninsula Citizens Advisory Council, and the Houghton County Planning Commission. Other groups include the Michigan Council on Climate Solutions and the Western Mining Action Network. 

He rounds out his experiences with a bachelor's degree in history and a master's in geography, both from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Horst took up full-time environmental advocacy when he moved to the south shore of Lake Superior after retiring from a career in social services. But nature has always been appreciated by Horst. He explored the fields and streams around his southeast Wisconsin home as a child, which gave way to a belief that we as people are meant to help our communities and environment through public service.

Horst extends his commitment to service by his appointment to the Environmental Council board, where he serves as the Upper Peninsula's representative.