Chicago Wilderness
Chicago Wilderness (CW) is a regional alliance that preserves, improves, and expands nature and quality of life. By connecting leaders in conservation, health, business, science, and beyond, CW tackles challenging issues to ensure a resilient region. Building on a decades-long legacy of collaboration, this broad alliance of partners advances work in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Michigan.
Calumet Stormwater Collaborative
Calumet Stormwater Collaborative (CSC) is a diverse group of stakeholders working to improve coordination of knowledge, technology and financial resources to minimize the negative impacts of stormwater in the Calumet region. Facilitated by Metropolitan Planning Council, CSC aims to build intergovernmental and cross-sector partnerships to increase the effectiveness of stormwater management initiatives for the communities and ecosystems of the Calumet region through knowledge-sharing, coordination and deployment of interventions at appropriate scales.
Nature Culture and Human Health Network
The Nature, Culture, and Human Health (NCH2) Network connects people with interests in investigating and applying knowledge about the health benefits of nature to improve the health and well-being of Chicago-region communities.
Collaboration on Nature-Based Solutions is Key to Resilient City Infrastructure
World Resources Institute
Research shows that nature-based solutions (also sometimes called “natural” or “green” infrastructure) such as trees, wetlands, parks, open spaces and green roofs can address many of these problems at once. Nature-based solutions serve as multi-benefit infrastructure that meet core community needs while also providing co-benefits.
Joint Benefits Authority
World Resources Institute
The Joint Benefits Authority is an independent entity for collaboration that allows joint planning, funding, project delivery, and long-term stewardship for transformational projects that deliver multiple benefits to communities by scaling natural infrastructure approaches. As a tool/framework/approach, it provides a more effective way to address challenging cross-sector problems faced by communities through collaboration.
Using Green Infrastructure to Enhance Urban Biodiversity in the MMSD Planning Area PDF
Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD)
Recognizing that its activities to provide water reclamation and flood management services directly impact urban biodiversity, MMSD wrote this plan, with the support of local stakeholders, to help protect and restore native biodiversity within their planning area through the application of green infrastructure.
Healthy Chicago 2025: Closing Our Life Expectancy Gap PDF
City of Chicago Department of Public Health
Chicago’s five-year community health improvement plan focuses on racial and health equity, with an aim to meet the city’s goal of reducing the Black-white life expectancy gap.
Chicago and Calumet Rivers Watershed Council
In 2020, the Chicago-Calumet River Watershed Council (Watershed Council) established a forum to expand collaborative watershed-based stormwater management using multi-benefit nature-based solutions. The 16-member Watershed Council’s approach is to maximize multiple ecological, social, and climate resiliency objectives across jurisdictional boundaries.
Employing NBS to Repurpose Vacant Lots
Resilient by Nature Project (RxN)
There are more than 32,000 vacant lots in the city of Chicago. Once viewed as a symbol of disinvestment, such properties are increasingly being reclaimed and converted into creative community assets–both in Chicago, and around the world. Approaches to this work can range from simple improvements by neighbors to professionally designed, multi-functional spaces.
Developing a Vibrant NBS Ecosystem in Chicago
Resilient by Nature Project (RxN)
RxN’s inaugural webinar features leaders of two programs that are challenging the status quo and striving for greater coordination and collaboration around the implementation of NBS.
Tune in to our dynamic conversation about specific actions the Chicago region can take to again be recognized as the kind of leader the city’s Urbs in Horto motto suggests.