Newsletter from Thursday, November 10th, 2022
Dear NCH2 Community,
Please, join me in offering a warm welcome to the new members of the NCH2 Steering Committee:
Marlene Fisher, Founder, Greasy Gardens
Sarah Flores Chusid, Senior Program Manager, Illinois Alliance to Prevent Obesity at the Illinois Public Health Institute
Raed Mansour, Chicago Department of Public Health, Director of Environmental Innovation
Jessica Mino, Kane and Kendall County Program Director, The Conservation Foundation
Natalia Ospina, Director of Health, Equity, and Nature Accelerator, The Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods
Cassandra Powell, Founder, Executive Director, Light of Loving Kindness
Aarón Siebert-Llera, Director of Inclusion, The Morton Arboretum
and Jacqui Ulrich, Director, Forest Preserves of Cook County
The role of the Steering Committee is to provide support, guidance and oversight for the activities of NCH2 to ensure it fulfills its vision and mission. NCH2 envisions a Chicago region where all its residents live, work, and play in a healthy and vibrant natural environment—with clean air, clean water, welcoming, safe and equitable access to nature spaces—as an essential resource positively affecting public health and community resilience. These new members of the Steering Committee expand the diverse and extensive expertise to help us meet that vision. Please, reach out to all members of the Steering Committee, returning and new to share your thoughts on how NCH2 can better serve our community.
NCH2 Team
Marlene Fisher, Founder, Greasy Gardens
Sarah Flores Chusid, Senior Program Manager, Illinois Alliance to Prevent Obesity at the Illinois Public Health Institute
Raed Mansour, Chicago Department of Public Health, Director of Environmental Innovation
Jessica Mino, Kane and Kendall County Program Director, The Conservation Foundation
Natalia Ospina, Director of Health, Equity, and Nature Accelerator, The Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods
Cassandra Powell, Founder, Executive Director, Light of Loving Kindness
Aarón Siebert-Llera, Director of Inclusion, The Morton Arboretum
and Jacqui Ulrich, Director, Forest Preserves of Cook County
The role of the Steering Committee is to provide support, guidance and oversight for the activities of NCH2 to ensure it fulfills its vision and mission. NCH2 envisions a Chicago region where all its residents live, work, and play in a healthy and vibrant natural environment—with clean air, clean water, welcoming, safe and equitable access to nature spaces—as an essential resource positively affecting public health and community resilience. These new members of the Steering Committee expand the diverse and extensive expertise to help us meet that vision. Please, reach out to all members of the Steering Committee, returning and new to share your thoughts on how NCH2 can better serve our community.
NCH2 Team
Index
Community Spotlight
Upcoming Events
Future Events: Save the Date
Job Opportunities
In the News
Connect with Us
Community Spotlight
Upcoming Events
Future Events: Save the Date
Job Opportunities
In the News
Connect with Us
Community Spotlight: Out Our Front Door
Have an event or organization to spotlight? Send it to us to be featured!
“Radically inclusive” is the first thing Out Our Front Door (OOFD) co-founder Glenn Schneider would want our readers to know about their nascent organization. OOFD is a non-profit, volunteer-led bike camp and nature community, committed to fun adventure and outdoor biking experiences. Creating opportunities throughout the year for anyone interested – individuals, families, and all abilities—OOFD facilitates immersions in gorgeous native landscapes, like exploring our nearby native ecosystems. Wanting to celebrate the wild spaces in the Chicago region, the co-founders developed the OOFD vision in late 2015: to “immerse and educate in the history, culture, and the uniquely beautiful natural habitats of the Lower Lake Michigan Basin Area through bicycling".
Using a sustainable mode of transportation is important to OOFD while facilitating an immersive experience that allows participants
to “slow down, reflect, and absorb the beauty of our native landscapes such as wetlands, oak savannahs, and dunes." OOFD hopes that participants will appreciate the new knowledge they gain and support efforts to care for these spaces. Thankful for a strong partnership with the Chicago Park District and its gear library, OOFD helps connect anyone to camping gear, as well as to the Adaptive Bike Camping program for people with disabilities. For the curious and brave, the next OOFD outing is “Decemberg,” a December bike camping trip. And for those who want to plan for next year, stay tuned to their website for planned 2023 trips. For anyone looking for a gorgeous spot to visit, join OOFD at Illinois State Beach, pictured here, for a trip in the fall. This preserve is terrific to visit 365 days a year, including the day after Thanksgiving.
Using a sustainable mode of transportation is important to OOFD while facilitating an immersive experience that allows participants
to “slow down, reflect, and absorb the beauty of our native landscapes such as wetlands, oak savannahs, and dunes." OOFD hopes that participants will appreciate the new knowledge they gain and support efforts to care for these spaces. Thankful for a strong partnership with the Chicago Park District and its gear library, OOFD helps connect anyone to camping gear, as well as to the Adaptive Bike Camping program for people with disabilities. For the curious and brave, the next OOFD outing is “Decemberg,” a December bike camping trip. And for those who want to plan for next year, stay tuned to their website for planned 2023 trips. For anyone looking for a gorgeous spot to visit, join OOFD at Illinois State Beach, pictured here, for a trip in the fall. This preserve is terrific to visit 365 days a year, including the day after Thanksgiving.
Upcoming Events
Photo from Out In Nature
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Safe Space in Nature Birding Event at Lincoln Park Zoo
Date: November 19th, 2022 Time: 10:00 AM -12:00 PM Location: Nature Boardwalk at Lincoln Park Zoo 2121 North Stockton Drive Chicago, IL 60614 This event will center LGBTQIA+ peoples, experiences and allies and is open to attendees of all ages! Bring some coffee, tea, or other morning drink of choice for a leisurely morning of birding at the Lincoln Park Zoo's Nature Boardwalk. We will have some pairs of binoculars to share during the event. Entry to the zoo and the boardwalk is completely free and non-ticketed. This event will also promote a new zoo program, Safe Space in Nature, upcoming in June of 2023. This program will provide queer and ally middle and high schoolers an opportunity to connect with various field ecologies and scientific methods while being mentored by queer science professionals. Learn more and register here. |
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'Go Run Chicago at Jackson Park
Date: November 12th, 2022 Time: 9:00-11:00 AM Location: Museum of Science and Industry 5700 S. Jean Baptiste Pointe DuSable Lake Shore Drive Chicago, IL 60637 'Go Run is a community partnership between the Chicago Area Runners Association and the Chicago Park District with an objective to activate neighborhood parks, build communities and encourage active lifestyle through running and volunteerism. 'Go Runs aim to become a core part of neighborhood culture, encouraging organic community engagement at, and long after, each run. Learn more here. |
Photo from Chicago Parks District
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Photo from Forest Preserves of Cook County
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Forest Preserves of Cook County: Orienteering 101
Date: November 12, 2022 Time: 10:00-1:00 PM Location: Miller Meadow-South 1st Ave, south of Roosevelt Rd Cook County, IL 60130 Learn the history and basics of orienteering. Orienteering is a sport in which participants find their way to various checkpoints across rough country using a map and compass. Put your new skills to work by completing an orienteering game. Drop-in program. Meet at Grove 6. Free to all! Learn more here. |
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Resources for Celebrating Veterans Day this November 11th:
The Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods holds a year round program called "At Ease: Nature and Art for Veterans". Brushwood Center’s At Ease program is an innovative approach to empower military veterans’ wellbeing through a series of nature-based art and photography workshops.This program is offered at no charge to Military Veterans thanks to Brushwood Center's supporters and partners. Brushwood Center collaborates with the James A. Lovell Federal Healthcare Center and local partners to connect veterans to the arts and the opportunity to explore and restore in nature. Participants immerse themselves in the peaceful sanctuary provided by Brushwood Center at the pristine Ryerson Woods, and discover a new side of themselves and the natural world through the creative arts. All veterans and their families are welcomed! Learn more about their newest venture here. |
Photo from USDA Forest Service.
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Future Events: Save the Date
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Nature Express Bus: Free Transportation to the Forest Preserves
Is your community group or nonprofit organization interested in visiting the Forest Preserves of Cook County? Have you been limited by the cost of transportation? Our Nature Express Bus program can help your group access Forest Preserves events and amenities, or visit our partner organizations, the Chicago Botanic Garden and the Brookfield Zoo. Best of all, it's free. To qualify, your group must have a minimum of 25 participants and demonstrate a need for transportation funding. In order to provide equal access, groups are limited to one free bus per calendar year. Learn more here. |
Photo by Felix Mittermeier
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Photo from Out In Nature
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Crane Sit at Jasper-Pulaski Fish & Wildlife Area
Date: December 3rd, 2022 Time: 12:00-5:30 PM Location: Jasper-Pulaski Fish & Wildlife Area 5822 Fish and Wildlife Ln, Medaryville, IN 47957 Please note that this event is for people who identify as LGBTQIA+ and/or Black, Indigenous, Latinx or People of Color. Join us for one of the most incredible wildlife experiences in the Midwest! Each fall, Sandhill Cranes pass through our area on their migration south for the winter. Jasper-Pulaski Wildlife Area is a key rest area for these birds on their journey. At dusk each day, observers can witness between several thousand and tens of thousands of birds landing to rest before continuing south. Unlike a nature hike, we'll be stationary for most of this event, viewing and listening to Sandhill Cranes and other birds from an observation platform. Learn more about Jasper-Pulaski Fish & Wildlife Area here. RSVP for the event here. |
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Decemberg: Winter in the Woods 2022
Date: Sat, Dec 10, 2022, 7:30 AM – Sun, Dec 11, 2022, 4:00 PM CST Location: 1000 S SHORE DRIVE Chicago, IL 60605 You know you can't wait til April to do another bike camping overnight trip. So join this rad crew and rock that winter bike riding life on a two-day loop leaving from and returning to Chicago. You’ll cruise by riverbeds and marvel at the big blue unsalted sea of Lake Michigan. If the weather cooperates, all of this splendor will be draped in a crisp white blanket. Throughout it all, our guides will be recalling stories of the dreams and plans of Chicago men and women whose modest yet hard work is to thank for the preservation of the Blue Basin’s natural beauty. Take a break from your winter hibernation and venture out with us on a frosty December ride. Learn more here. |
Photo by Glen Schnneider from Out Our Front Door
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Photo from Lake County Forest Preserves
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Lighted Trails: Lake County Forest Preserves
Having a hard time getting outside in nature now that the sun sets earlier? Taking an evening hike on solar-lit trails in the forest preserves will be an option starting Sunday, November 6. With small solar lights to guide their way, hikers, skiers and snowshoers can get some brisk evening exercise along the 1.3-mile fitness trail at Old School Forest Preserve in Libertyville, and along a 1.65-mile hilly section of the Millennium Trail adjacent to the Winter Sports Area at Lakewood Forest Preserve in Wauconda. "Walking the trails after the sun goes down is a nice way to gain a different perspective of the forest preserves," said Angelo Kyle, president of the Lake County Forest Preserves. "We realize that people are utilizing the trails more and more as a way to improve their well-being." The solar lights serve as a guide along the trails. It is recommended to bring a flashlight or headlamp along for additional illumination. Learn more here. |
Job Opportunities
Openlands is looking to hire a Garden and Nature Based Education Coordinator. Learn more here.
Cool Learning Experience is looking for a Deputy Director. Learn more here.
The Nature Conservancy Chicago Area is looking for a Community Stewardship Program Manager. Learn more here.
The Nature Conservancy Chicago Area is looking to hire a Director of Community Engagement. Learn more here.
The Field Museum is searching for a Senior Director. Learn more here.
Elevate is looking to fill several positions. Look through their career opportunities here.
Lake County Forest Preserves is looking for a Natural Resource Technician and Environmental Educator. Learn more here.
Please send us your job openings to be featured!
Cool Learning Experience is looking for a Deputy Director. Learn more here.
The Nature Conservancy Chicago Area is looking for a Community Stewardship Program Manager. Learn more here.
The Nature Conservancy Chicago Area is looking to hire a Director of Community Engagement. Learn more here.
The Field Museum is searching for a Senior Director. Learn more here.
Elevate is looking to fill several positions. Look through their career opportunities here.
Lake County Forest Preserves is looking for a Natural Resource Technician and Environmental Educator. Learn more here.
Please send us your job openings to be featured!
In the News
Photo by Aleksandar Pasaric
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Even More Than Trees, Bird Can Boost Mental Health
A recent study in Scientific Reports found a link between seeing and hearing birds and mental well-being. A article by Linda Carrol on Today.com and Yahoo News described the British report and some reactions to it. She cites the study’s lead author Ryan Hammoud: “Our main finding is that there is a time-lasting association between seeing or hearing birds and improved mental well-being.” Co-occuring environmental assets such as trees, plants and water did not play a part in this mental boost, the study found. Read more here. |
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Bring the Outside In
The Chicago Botanic Garden offers some DIY ideas for using herbs to get through the coming gray days and early darkness. “Savor the Flavor,” the Garden’s “herbal fix for winter doldrums,” suggests making herbal butters, teas, vinegars and facial steams, along with ideas for using lavender and catnip. Read more. |
Photo by Mary Gavin
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Photo by Mary Gavin
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Trails, Not Trials, When Hiking With Kids
A recent post in Outdoorsyfamilies.com lists 20 ways to motivate children to hike. Give them some buy-in: They can help choose a destination, learn fun things to do and songs to sing along the trails, or bring a friend. And advice for adults: hike in all seasons, pack food and water and take breaks often. Read more. |
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Permanent Standard Time May be Better for Our Health
With Daylight Savings Time coming to an end this week, many people are anticipating the onset of the winter blahs. Legislators have considered doing away with the twice-yearly change in time in favor of permanent Daylight Savings Time. Scientists and past experiences say this would be a mistake, read more. Standard time is better for our health. We need sunlight in the early morning to help set our internal biological clocks. However, the fact that winter days have fewer hours of daylight may limit the total amount of bright light we see each day, which in turn may contribute to the winter blahs or even seasonal depression, read more. |
Photo by Jackson Jorvan
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Photo by Department of Planning and Development
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Healthy Lifestyle Hub Will Lift Auburn Gresham Community
Community members and local officials heralded the opening of a once-vacant building on 79th Street in Chicago as the anchor of a new, thriving and healthy Auburn Gresham community. The Healthy Lifestyle Hub, 839 W. 79th St., called by Maurice Cox the “Miracle on 79th Street” represents years of planning and $20 million in investment. The Hub will house a UI Health Clinic and Urgent Care Center, a high-tech kitchen and training center, a bank and a restaurant. Nearby, ground has been broken for a mixed-use apartment complex. Atavia Reed describes the Hub and the hope in an Oct. 10 story in Block Club Chicago. Read more. |
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Celebrating the Successful Passage of Clean Air, Clean Water, and Wildlife Referendum:
The results are in! It's a historic day as we celebrate the overwhelming passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Wildlife referendum, which will restore and expand protected lands, support and create new jobs, and invest in improvements like new trails, accessibility, and engagement in nature for all ages. This referendum is one of the most important environmental funding measures in Cook County history and it will support our forest preserves for generations to come. Now get outside and enjoy the local forest preserves! |
Photo from Openlands
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Connect with Us!
We are taking requests for any upcoming events to be added to future newsletters and our events calendar which can be done here. You can also submit materials for the next newsletter by emailing [email protected] by July 20th, 2022.
FOLLOW US on our social media by clicking the icons below!
CREATE your own stories on Instagram and tag @NCH2Network so we can share how you engage with nature; we would love to see them!
EMAIL US and keep us updated on local events, exciting opportunities in the area, or send photos of local nature to be featured on the website.
CONTACT US at [email protected].
We are taking requests for any upcoming events to be added to future newsletters and our events calendar which can be done here. You can also submit materials for the next newsletter by emailing [email protected] by July 20th, 2022.
FOLLOW US on our social media by clicking the icons below!
CREATE your own stories on Instagram and tag @NCH2Network so we can share how you engage with nature; we would love to see them!
EMAIL US and keep us updated on local events, exciting opportunities in the area, or send photos of local nature to be featured on the website.
CONTACT US at [email protected].