Chicago

The City in a Garden

Chicago is a dynamic and fascinating city with spectacular architecture and a dramatic setting on the shores of Lake Michigan. The largest metropolis between the coasts, it has the biggest population, the most problems ... and the greatest potential.

The city is home to a number of effective community-based organizations known under the umbrella of Chicago Wilderness. The alliance is made up of 163 public and private organizations working together to study and restore, protect and manage the precious and vital natural ecosystems of the Chicago region for the benefit of the public.

On a smaller scale, Eden Place brings nature to the urban Southside. At Elgin High School, Deb Perryman, Illinois Teacher of the Year, uses the outdoors as her laboratory to train tomorrow's environmental stewards.

We intend to tell Chicago's story by threading together the stories of a diverse group of its active and committed citizens including volunteers, professionals, students and community leaders -- among them, the city's mayor, Richard M. Daley. His administration has sponsored:

• The Campus Park Program which has created over eighty neighborhood parks by tearing up asphalt; planting grass, trees, shrubbery; adding benches and playground equipment to neighborhood schoolyards across the city.
• NeighborSpace which turns vacant lots and river edges into small parks and gardens.
• Millennium Park in the heart of downtown is 24 acres built atop a new parking garage; and a 17-acre addition to Soldier's Field.
• The award-winning City Hall Roof Garden and the Green Roof initiative.