Overview:
- Planet Detroit strengthens its community-centered mission with two new hires: Ian Solomon and Ashley Woods Branch.
- Solomon, an Emmy-winning artist and journalist, joins as Outdoors Reporter, focusing on the intersection of outdoor access and environmental justice.
- Woods Branch, founder of Detour Detroit, becomes Chief Officer of Partnerships and Revenue, aiming to build sustainable support for local environmental journalism.
- These additions underscore Planet Detroit's dedication to editorial excellence and organizational sustainability.
Planet Detroit is strengthening its commitment to community-centered environmental journalism with the addition of two new team members whose careers embody the newsroom’s mission of making environmental coverage accessible, accountable, and deeply rooted in community.
Ian Solomon, an Emmy award-winning interdisciplinary artist and journalist, joins as Outdoors Reporter. Ashley Woods Branch, founder of Detour Detroit and former Vice President of Growth at BlueLena, becomes Chief Officer of Partnerships and Revenue.
Connecting outdoor access to environmental justice
Solomon, born and raised in Detroit, brings a unique lens that bridges outdoor recreation with environmental justice reporting. As founder of Amplify Outside and host of the PBS segment “Ian Outside” on Great Lakes Now, he’s spent years working to connect Black Detroiters with natural spaces—work he sees as fundamentally linked to environmental accountability.
“I’m ecstatic to be joining the Planet Detroit team,” Solomon said. “I’ve been a huge fan of the critical reporting that’s been done in and around Detroit and look forward to helping bridge the gap between outdoor recreation and environmental justice.”
Solomon holds a bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism from Arizona State University and recently earned his MFA in photography from Cranbrook Academy of Art. His lens-based practice explores themes of identity, ancestry, community, land, and ecology. His work has been featured in publications including Vogue Italia and Three Fold magazine.
Currently Communications and Engagement Manager at Detroit Parks Coalition, Solomon sees his journalism as an extension of his organizing work.
“As a Black Detroiter dedicated to helping my community connect to the abundant outdoor space around them, Planet Detroit’s commitment to reporting on all things environmental through an equity lens feels like a natural extension of that work and a meaningful partnership with a team already doing impactful, values-driven journalism,” he said.
Solomon emphasized the connection between access and equity.
“The first step to getting more people enjoying their outdoors is ensuring that the outdoors is equitable, healthy and supporting the necessary material conditions of a community. Planet Detroit makes this step every day.”
In his new role, Solomon plans to tell stories that link access to nature with broader systems and engage communities that don’t always see themselves reflected in environmental media.
“I’m especially looking forward to working with Black and brown Detroiters whose relationships to land and recreation are shaped by both historical and present-day barriers. I hope my work with Planet Detroit expands who feels included in environmental conversations and helps expand a greener narrative of the city I love dearly.”
Building sustainable support for accountability journalism
Woods Branch comes to Planet Detroit with extensive experience building sustainable business models for independent news organizations. After founding Detour Detroit in 2017 as one of the first newsletter startups focused on a single city, she led its growth and eventual merger with Outlier Media in 2022, where she served as Senior Director of Audience & Growth.
Most recently, Woods Branch served as Vice President of Growth and Publisher Success at BlueLena, helping nonprofit and community-focused media organizations grow loyal audiences and earn reader revenue. She also led the Fund for Equity in Local News as Interim Executive Director, transitioning it from a fiscally-sponsored project to an independent nonprofit.
A 2018 Knight Visiting Nieman Fellow at Harvard University and Wayne State alum, Woods Branch has worked with partners including the Google News Initiative, the Local Independent Online News (LION) Publishers Association, and the Lenfest Institute for Journalism. She previously worked at the Detroit Free Press before entering the startup news ecosystem.
As Chief Officer of Partnerships and Revenue, Woods Branch will work to diversify Planet Detroit’s funding and deepen relationships with donors, businesses, nonprofits, and community members who share the organization’s values.
“I come to Planet Detroit as a mom and as someone who believes that every child—really, every human—deserves clean air to breathe, safe water to drink, and a future worth inheriting,” Woods Branch said. “I care deeply about transparency around data centers, the health of the Great Lakes, and how policy decisions, made with or without public input, shape daily life here in Michigan.”
Woods Branch emphasized the urgency of the moment: “If 2026 has taught us anything, it’s that protecting the values worth fighting for is up to us. Democratic accountability, environmental health, and community voice don’t just sustain themselves. It takes all of us to save them.”
She described Planet Detroit’s work as building coalition: “That’s what drew me to Planet Detroit. Its work is intentionally big-tent: preserving Michigan’s natural resources and holding decision-makers accountable isn’t the job of one newsroom or one organization—it’s everybody’s work. In my role, I’ll be working with donors, businesses, nonprofits, and everyday residents to build a coalition strong enough to ensure that our voices and values are heard.”
Woods Branch concluded: “Planet Detroit isn’t just about keeping you informed. It’s about meeting you where you are and showing how you can be part of the solution.”
Strengthening community-centered coverage
Founded in 2019 as a bootstrapped project, Planet Detroit has grown into a recognized voice in Michigan environmental journalism. Solomon and Woods Branch join a team that includes managing editor Dustin Blitchok. accountability reporter Brian Allnutt, who focuses on corporate accountability and pollution; climate and energy solutions reporter Ethan Bakuli; and southwest Detroit reporter Isabelle Tavares.
The additions come as Planet Detroit continues to expand its coverage of critical issues, including data center development, lead service line replacement, climate impacts on caregiving, and environmental justice concerns across Metro Detroit and Michigan.
Founder and Executive Editor Nina Misuraca Ignaczak said the hires reflect the organization’s commitment to both editorial excellence and organizational sustainability.
“Ian brings expertise and community connections that will help us tell more complete stories about how people experience and interact with Michigan’s natural spaces,” Ignaczak said. “And Ashley’s proven track record building sustainable newsrooms will help ensure we can continue doing this critical work for years to come.”
Planet Detroit operates without paywalls to ensure its reporting remains accessible to the communities it serves. The nonprofit newsroom, based in Detroit’s Green Garage, is supported by foundation grants, individual donors, and community partnerships.
Woods Branch can be reached at ashley@planetdetroit.org. Solomon can be reached at ian@planetdetroit.org.