Pollinators Archives

Have You Discovered the Salt Creek Greenway Trail?

by OpenlandsOctober 6, 2017April 10, 20231 Comment

Have you tried enjoying the outdoors along a long-distance trail yet? Our region’s recreation trails are among the easiest ways to enjoy the area’s natural landscapes. Find peace and solitude or share an experience with family and friends while you run, walk, bike, or hike in natural serenity!

One of the region’s best known trails is the Salt Creek Greenway Trail, which spans two counties of forest preserves, offers access to the Salt Creek Water Trails, and provides excellent wildlife viewing opportunities.

Spanning 25 miles from Busse Woods in Elk Grove Village to the Brookfield Zoo, the Salt Creek Greenway Trail connects 12 communities and over 300,000 residents overall. The Salt Creek Greenway includes both a paved land trail and the water trail, the latter of which is featured in our Paddle Illinois Water Trails guide. Both trails connect through the Forest Preserves of Cook County as well as the DuPage Forest Preserves.

Whether by land or on the water, you will pass under shaded canopies, through open prairies and savanna, and through protected Illinois nature preserves along the Salt Creek Greenway Trail.

BMO Harris Bank Gives Back in Community Gardens

by OpenlandsJune 26, 2017October 5, 2020Leave a comment

On June 14, approximately 50 volunteers from BMO Harris Bank weathered blistering 90 degree heat to assist the school gardens at Hearst Elementary and the Academy for Global Citizenship (AGC). The neighboring schools on Chicago’s southwest side are home to schoolyard gardens supported by Openlands’ Building School Gardens program.

BMO Harris Bank is the Principal Sponsor of Building School Gardens, and through this program, approximately 33,000 students are directly impacted by the school gardens each day in addition to hundreds of teachers, parents, and community members.

“Volunteer workdays should be part of a company’s DNA,” said Bill Clarkin, Openlands Board Member and Vice President at BMO Harris Bank. “Being visible in a community is a two-way street, and as a business we have a responsibility to give back.”

This volunteer event was a part of the BMO Volunteer Day. All employees were encouraged to get out of the office and give back to their communities. Throughout the day, nearly 5,000 BMO Harris Bank employees assisted with projects across North America. In the Chicago area, more than 800 employees contributed over 2,200 hours of service to 17 projects.

Many volunteers helped with weeding, planting, and mulching, while Openlands’ staff assisted the volunteers in building raised plant beds and providing tree care. Other volunteers worked with the school staff to facilitate outdoor lessons for the students.

The school gardens at Hearst and AGC, which are planted with a mixture of annual and perennial plants, edible plants, and native plants, are used to connect students to the natural environment. This year in the garden, third graders practiced fractions using seed depth and square foot gardening; fourth graders applied their knowledge of erosion by planting cover crops; and middle schoolers explored and designed their own biomimicry, using patterns and concepts found in nature to create solutions to human problems. The garden is also an essential space where students can meditate, relax, and take breaks.

“It is always so great to have volunteers out in our garden space,” said Marney Coleman, a teacher on the garden team at Academy for Global Citizenship. “Not only does it really help with the heavy lifting as far as time and labor, but with all the district budget cuts this year, the impact of Openlands being able to bring supplies like compost, plants, and tools to do this kind of work has a tremendous impact.”

Even BMO Harris Bank’s newest commercial banking summer interns — and one of their partners, Chicago Blackhawks’ Tommy Hawk — joined the workday and helped make this possible. As a commitment to healthy communities, BMO Harris Bank and Chicago Blackhawks have a standing partnership to support schools in the Chicago area.

Marc Romito, Vice President of Commercial Banking at BMO Harris, explained the decision to volunteer with Openlands. “Partnering with Openlands is an example of leadership in giving back. We recognize Openlands as a partner in caring for communities, which is why Bill serves on the Board of Directors and why we volunteer with them.”

BMO Harris Bank has partnered with Openlands for their annual Volunteer Day on several past occasions. “Collectively, we give back and we connect with our communities no matter which position we hold,” said Clarkin. “It’s a great way to show we are part of the community and are helping the greater good.”

Many staff members and families commented that this was the best the garden had looked in a long time. Coleman expressed that a well-kept garden makes it much easier for students to learn outdoors, and helps build a sense of ownership, pride, and respect for the garden as a community space.

About BMO Harris Bank

BMO Harris Bank is committed to the principals of sustainable development and, in particular, to the belief that the quality of our lives improves when economic growth is achieved while respecting the environment. Our goal is to be one of the leading financial institutions in the area of Environmental Sustainability.

Openlands has discontinued our Corporate volunteer work days. If you are interested in learning other ways your workplace can get involved, please contact development@openlands.org or call 312.863.6261.

Openlands Director of Neighborhood Programs Leads Urban Conservation Plan

by OpenlandsMay 15, 2017March 7, 2023Leave a comment

On April 18, Openlands Neighborhood Programs Director, Elvia Rodriguez Ochoa, was recognized for her successful completion of the Chicago Conservation Corps Leadership Certificate Program. The Chicago Conservation Corps (C3) recruits, trains, and supports a network of volunteers who work together to improve the quality of life in city neighborhoods and schools through environmental service projects. The training includes 20+ hours of sustainability-focused study and execution of a final project. Elvia chose to present two Spanish-language workshops on vermicomposting for families in Pilsen and Little Village. Participants were assisted in creating a home for the worms which they took home at the end of the workshops.

Elvia was one of three members of Environmentalists of Color (EOC) that were recognized that evening. EOC is an interdisciplinary network of leaders of color who are passionate about an array of critical environmental issues, ranging from habitat conservation to environmental justice.

“My goal in participating in these networks is to increase opportunities for Openlands to serve as a resource and to partner with groups across the Chicago area,” explains Elvia. “I especially like introducing people to Openlands and the variety of work that we do.”

Photo courtesy of El Paseo Community Garden in Pilsen (elpaseogarden.org)

Elvia leads Openlands’ longstanding focus on pollinator conservation in community gardens, which encourages gardeners to plant pollinator-friendly plants like common milkweed to support monarch butterflies. For instance, the Hoxie Prairie Garden on the southeast side is an excellent example of a pollinator-friendly habitat garden while El Paseo Community Garden in Pilsen combines both food growing and pollinator support.

One recent garden project Elvia has supported and which ties together her work with C3 is the Phoenix Garden in South Lawndale. Funded through a grant by the Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation and building on substantial community engagement facilitated by the US Forest Service, the Phoenix Garden will combine art, restoration, community gardens, and even high school class lessons.

The new garden, located at Little Village Lawndale High School, will facilitate unique student art projects, help the environmental science program develop outdoor lessons in restoration, and create habitat for monarchs. Elvia will support both Enlace, a community organization based in Little Village, and the North Lawndale Greening Committee as they take charge of summer stewardship at the garden. This partnership will engage neighbors in both the North and South Lawndale communities in a neighborhood-wide pollinator conservation. The US Forest Service has done tremendous work with El Valor, another community agency, to raise awareness of best practices to support monarchs, and the new garden will offer a place for residents to release any monarchs they raise in their household gardens into a healthy habitat at the school.

Space to Grow Garden at Morrill Elementary School

The communities around Little Village Lawndale High School have a history of championing community-sourced solutions for the challenges they face, and this garden is designed around leveraging community knowledge to achieve great conservation potential. “When Openlands facilitates dialogue between neighbors then sits down and listens to community needs, we achieve our most successful partnerships,” says Elvia.

Developing this natural area around the school into the Phoenix Garden started as an idea from residents and students. “I’m excited we can support connecting people to nature while helping Monarchs on the school grounds,” explains Elvia. “Whether with community gardens, Space to Grow, or Building School Gardens, when we engage people normally not included in these kinds of discussions, we find some of the best solutions for urban conservation.”