By: IEC Staff
Empowering environmental champions in Illinois’ General Assembly requires building strong relationships with our legislators. These educational tours are a critical piece of that work. We share great experiences with our legislators and partners. We even took a record number of tours by canoe this year! From forest preserves in Cook County to farms in southern Illinois, Illinoisans are demonstrating environmental stewardship is alive and well. Read on to see the places we went and the folks who made these tours memorable.
Check out IEC Conservation Director Lindsay Keeney’s blog on why we started these tours and the value they bring to our movement.
Pawnee School
Jan 11, 2024
Pawnee Schools CUSD #11 invited IEC staff to a lunch reception highlighting the story of how a local food system came together to provide healthier lunches for their students following HB4813 becoming state law.
Since Governor Pritzker signed HB4813 into law, Beyond Green Partners (a B Corp food service committed to zero-waste cooking and sustainable sourcing) founder Greg Christian and his staff got to work implementing a pilot program in Pawnee Schools. Beyond Green was contracted by Sangamon County to explore the potential feasibility of farm-to-school lunch, with Pawnee being their first project. Greg and his team built this new food system from the ground up, coordinating with farmers and encouraging them to grow for the district.
Our food trays contained goods from several local farms and local food growers: Maple acorn squash from Mueller Family Farm, herb-roasted chicken from Bland Family Farm, blueberry muffins from Janie’s Mill, homemade apple sauce from Gregory Farmhouse and a spinach salad with lardon, radishes, and citrus fruits from Moon Girl Farm, Reeman’s and Golden Gate Farms.
All in all, the food program that Beyond Green Partners implemented was very inspiring to all who attended, including local legislators Sen. Doris Turner and Rep. Wayne Rosenthal and the Sangamon County School Board members, who were exploring the program’s potential for scalability.
Read more about this huge success in this blog post.
Emiquon National Wildlife Refuge
April 29, 2024
In late April, as our conservation community worked diligently to pass a wetland protection bill, we took Sen. Tom Bennett, Rep. Nick Smith, Rep Jeff Keicher, Sen. Joyce Mason, Sen. Bill Cunningham and our partners including The Nature Conservancy (TNC), Environmental Law and Policy Center, Prairie State Conservation Coalition out to TNC’s Emiquon preserve. We marveled at the beautiful landscape and learned about all the ecosystem services a wetland provides. We heard from TNC staff about the history of Emiquon and the community conservation principles used to manage the site. Our group explored the site by boat and visited the water control structure and other locations within the preserve.
Old Capitol Farmers Market
May 15, 2024
Representatives Janet Yang Rohr, Maura Hirschauer, Sonya M. Harper, Kelly M. Cassidy, and Senator Laura Fine
Our annual tour of the Old Capitol Farmers Market is a highlight of our year. This year we were joined by partners from the Illinois Stewardship Alliance, Downtown Springfield Inc, and a handful of local food champions in the Illinois legislature. We discussed the importance of an Illinois SNAP fund, the barriers local food farmers face with lack of infrastructure and community investment, and the value of farmers markets as small business incubators, community hubs, and food access points.
Jaycee Park
Apr 10, 2023
IEC’s Lindsay Keeney and her family joined Sen. Steve McClure and staff from Rep. Wayne Rosenthal’s office for a ribbon cutting ceremony at Jaycee Park in Petersburg.
This ceremony highlights the importance of continued funding for the Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development Grant (OSLAD), which helped make this park project possible. We are thrilled that the Illinois General Assembly passed a state budget that left these critically important funds—housed within the Department of Natural Resources—intact.
OSLAD funds projects that vary from small neighborhood parks or tot lots to large community and county parks and nature areas. IEC and our partners will continue working to ensure that funds for projects like these are protected and hopefully expanded so that more communities have access to project funds like this.
Chicago River Canoe Tour
Jun 15, 2024
On a nice June morning, IECEF joined affiliate member, Friends of the Chicago River, and Alderpersons Carlos Ramirez-Rosa and Andre Vasquez to paddle along the northern branch of the Chicago River. We got a chance to learn about the industrial history of the river as well as Friends’ work to help wildlife like this turtle to reclaim the riverbank.
Chicago Botanic Garden Dixon National Tallgrass Prairie Negaunee Institute for Plant Conservation Science and Action Seed Bank
Jul 16, 2024
On a picture-perfect July day, Zero Waste Policy Manager Liz Kunkle joined Cook County Commissioner Scott Britton and others on a tour of the Chicago Botanic Garden Seed Bank. We learned the Seed Bank supports works to fight plant extinction, habitat loss, and climate change through scientific research and action on conservation initiatives and that it is like “Tinder for plants.” In 2016, IEC worked with its partners to ensure seeds could be saved and shared in Illinois through seed banks like this one without being subject to burdensome state-mandated regulations.
Greenbelt
Jul 29, 2024
On August 29th, IEC Chief of Staff Chelsea Biggs and Chicagoland Conservation Manager Sergio Vargas joined Rebekah Snyder, Director of Community Engagement & Partnerships, for a legislative tour of the Greenbelt Forest Preserve and farm. Rep. Joyce Mason and Legislative Director Mike Cotter (representing Rep. Bob Morgan) attended to discuss the critical role of conservation funding and public access to nature. The tour highlighted Lake County Forest Preserve District’s work including invasive species removal and the cultural programming that resonates with Greenbelt’s diverse community.
Light rain underscored the ecological value of wetlands, which reduce flood costs and improve water quality. The visit celebrated wetlands’ role in climate mitigation. The tour concluded with a visit to Greenbelt’s longstanding urban youth farm, a community resource backed by the College of Lake County, which aims to expand food access through a new facility in Waukegan’s historic environmental justice community.
Jasmine Hollow
Aug 12, 2024
In August, on the heels of a groundbreaking report from our partners at Prairie Rivers Network, we toured Jasmine Hollow Land and Water Reserve. This location is a privately owned Land and Water Reserve. Like many natural areas in our state, it is experiencing the effects of herbicide drift.
Our partners, Friends of the Illinois Nature Preserves, Prairie Rivers Network, and The Nature Conservancy helped to facilitate conversations with Sen. Sally Turner about the scope of the problem and potential policy solutions. In addition to herbicide damage, we discussed tax incentives for conservation, river access, and the wetlands protection bill.
DuPage River Paddling
Aug 24, 2024
On August 24, IECEF coordinated a beautiful morning kayaking tour along the DuPage River with Sen. Laura Ellman and Rep. Janet Yang Rohr to showcase the importance of river access, clean water, and vibrant local habitat and ecosystems.
The tour highlighted the river’s role as a vital waterway spanning approximately 28 miles through DuPage and Will Counties, providing habitat for native wildlife such as herons, turtles, and fish, as well as offering recreational opportunities for the community. The river faces challenges from urbanization, leading to increased stormwater runoff, pollution, and habitat loss. Conservation efforts along the DuPage River include the reintroduction of native freshwater mussels, which play a crucial role in maintaining water quality and ecosystem health.
In 2017, the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County released approximately 24,377 native mussels along 13 miles of the West Branch DuPage River. These mussels act as natural biofilters, with a single adult capable of filtering up to 18 gallons of water per day, thereby removing bacteria, algae, and other particulates. This is an incredible example of nature based solutions in action!
Greenbelt
August 27, 2024
After IECEF’s successful tour at Greenbelt a month earlier, Sen. Adriane Johnson’s team was eager to connect and tour the preserve as well. IECEF hosted another tour for them on August 27, which ended up being one of the hottest days of the summer. Sen. Johnson proved tenacious and powered through the intense heat.
Sparks Pond
Sep 4, 2024
In September, IEC and our partners gathered together with Sen. Neil Anderson to observe herbicide damage at Sparks Pond State Natural Area near Manito, Illinois.
This is one example of many sites managed by our state being actively damaged by chemical trespass. Big thanks to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Friends of the Illinois Nature Preserves and Prairie Rivers Network for helping shed light on this important issue.
Indian Ridge Marsh and Big Marsh Park
September 4, 2024
On September 4, IECEF and the Chicago Park District brought decision-makers including Rep. Nick Smith, Commissioner Precious Brady-Davis, and our friends from Southeast Environmental Task Force, and The Wetlands Initiative out to these two key sites located in southern Cook County. Our visit highlighted wetland conservation success stories, historical environmental justice issues, pollution, site restoration, and the need to build trust with the community and serve them through intentional design choices.
Both sites were teeming with life and demonstrated a clear juxtaposition between the beautiful scenes of nature with the remnants of industry and busy roadways. We know how important wetlands are to our state. Just like our prairies, wetlands are integral to who we are.
Skokie Lagoons
Sep 12, 2024
On September 12, IECEF joined the Forest Preserves District of Cook County to bring Leader Gabel and several community members to Skokie Lagoons to learn about the fascinating history of the Civilian Conservation Corps there and how Skokie Lagoons became the largest conservation project in the country. Along for the tour was The Nature Conservancy’s Tarik Shazad, an avid birder, who documented over 30 different species of birds during our 1.5-hour walk.
Southern Illinois
Sep 27, 2024
This fall, we took a trip to Shawnee National Forest in Southern Illinois and explored with Rep. Lilian Jiménez, The Nature Conservancy, botanist Christopher Benda, and staff from Rep. Patrick Windhorst’s office.
We hiked and paddled through some most beautiful wetlands in the Midwest, witnessing firsthand their significance in flood mitigation as Hurricane Helene sent buckets of rain to Illinois. We spent time at Giant City State Park where we saw waterfalls that only flow during rain storms and had a lovely family style meal together.
This year we welcomed families along for the trip and made core Illinois environmental memories. We know it’s something our children will remember and carry with them as environmental champions in their future.
Midwest Organics Recycling
July 25, 2024
In late July, IEC Zero Waste Policy Manager Liz Kunkle joined a tour of the Midwest Organics Recycling compost facility in Lake County with Sen. Adriane Johnson and a small group of Illinois Food Scrap & Composting Council stakeholders. This tour highlighted the need for compost market development and infrastructure to increase in advance of and connection with requiring food scrap diversion from landfills. We also discussed the benefits of compost for soil health generally, reducing water consumption, decreasing soil erosion and stormwater runoff, conserving water during flood and drought events, sequestering / storing carbon, and more.
Patriot Acres Compost Facility
Oct 2, 2024
On a beautiful fall day in early October, we coordinated a tour with our partner, the Illinois Food Scrap & Composting Council, to see composting in action at Patriot Acres’ Des Plaines facility, which opened in 2023. Senate Leader Laura Murphy, Rep. Michelle Mussman, their staff, and staff from Rep. Bob Morgan’s office joined us on this tour, where we got to see first-hand how organics diversion and composting improve human and environmental health in Illinois while reducing methane emissions and waste and creating a more circular and equitable economy for all.
About the Author
IEC works to safeguard Illinois—its people, its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends by building power for people and the environment.
The Illinois Environmental Council (IEC) was created in 1975 to ensure that the collective voice of Illinois’ environmental community was amplified in public policy debates and legislative action. Today, IEC is proud to be leading the strongest, most effective environmental community in the state’s history.
Representing over 100 environmental organizations operating in Illinois, IEC carries out our mission to advance equitable public policies that create healthy environments across Illinois through collaboration, building power, and advocacy.