Uptown Coastal Initiative
The Uptown Coastal Initiative began in 2016 as an ICA program focused on building awareness of Uptown as a coastal community and creating a community-based process for residents and organizations to engage with planning related to Uptown’s coast
Out and About Uptown's Coast
The Out and About Uptown’s Coast series was a public educational series offered from May 2017 through April 2018, supported by an Illinois Coastal Management Program (ICMP) grant administered by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) with funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The series focused on increasing awareness, access, and stewardship of the coastal zone in Uptown. Specifically, the project aimed to a.) raise public awareness of Uptown’s public lakefront and parks, b.) educate residents on ecological and environmental relevance of the area through a multidisciplinary lens, and c.) provide opportunities for residents to meaningfully engage with these resources.
The Uptown Coastal Initiative project team used ICA’s Image Shift theory and tools, a part of the organization’s Technology of Participation (ToP®) program, to design an innovative educational series tailored to residents, workers, and visitors in the Uptown community. The educational series consisted of nine events, each featuring local experts sharing historical and present-day content expertise on a topic related to coast during ‘classroom’ time, followed by an experiential learning component to help embed the learning.
Overall, ICA partnered with 18 local experts across nine sessions that collectively drew in 219 participants. The session topics included Urban Ecology, Cycling Uptown, Underutilized Community Spaces, Urban Agriculture, Alternative Transit, Historic Preservation, Mental Wellness, Eco-Justice, and Green Infrastructure. Through pre-event and post-event surveys, participants reported an increased understanding of environmental issues, ways to access and provide stewardship to the coast, their role in creating a more sustainable environment, and the health benefits of the coast. The area of greatest increase in understanding was regarding ways to provide stewardship to the coast.
The Uptown Coastal Initiative project team used ICA’s Image Shift theory and tools, a part of the organization’s Technology of Participation (ToP®) program, to design an innovative educational series tailored to residents, workers, and visitors in the Uptown community. The educational series consisted of nine events, each featuring local experts sharing historical and present-day content expertise on a topic related to coast during ‘classroom’ time, followed by an experiential learning component to help embed the learning.
Overall, ICA partnered with 18 local experts across nine sessions that collectively drew in 219 participants. The session topics included Urban Ecology, Cycling Uptown, Underutilized Community Spaces, Urban Agriculture, Alternative Transit, Historic Preservation, Mental Wellness, Eco-Justice, and Green Infrastructure. Through pre-event and post-event surveys, participants reported an increased understanding of environmental issues, ways to access and provide stewardship to the coast, their role in creating a more sustainable environment, and the health benefits of the coast. The area of greatest increase in understanding was regarding ways to provide stewardship to the coast.
Urban Ecology
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At the May 21, 2017, event, local partners Susan Ask of animalia project, Melanie Eckner of the Uptown Coastal Initiative, and Ted Jindrich of the Chicago Park District Natural Areas stewards shared their collective expertise covering Uptown’s past, present, and future. Following the presentations, the group walked to the Montrose Beach Dunes and Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary to take a tour and learn about ongoing opportunities to help preserve and provide stewardship for the natural marvels along Uptown’s coast.
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Photo credit: Weiss Memorial Hospital
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Cycling Uptown
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At the July 19, 2017, event, local partners Melanie Eckner of the Uptown Coastal Initiative, Kyle Whitehead of Active Transportation Alliance, and Dan Black of Divvy and Slow Roll Chicago shared their collective expertise about historical and current bike infrastructure; opportunities to provide feedback into future bike infrastructure; and bike safety.
Following the presentations, the group walked along US Bike Route 37, Lawrence Avenue., to the site of the proposed Lakeshore Trail separation and finished the walk at the Margate Park Divvy Station for test rides. Most participants had not previously ridden a Divvy bike, so the rides were a fun way to end the night. |
The event would not be complete without a group selfie by the Divvy station!
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Underutilized Community Spaces
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At the August 29, 2017, event, representatives from Uptown Coastal Initiative, Full Moon Fire Jam, and Chicago Astronomical Society/International Dark Skies Association shared historical and present day perspectives on activating common space in Uptown. Following the presentations, the group took a coastal walk that highlighted upcoming community spaces, the Leland Greenway, the Lincoln Park Honeybee Grove, and a community drum circle associated with the Full Moon Fire Jam. The night ended with stargazing; the group was able to view Saturn and the Moon through a telescope.
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Urban Agriculture
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This September 24, 2017, event was planned in combination with the Second Annual Uptown Garden Walk. The day’s programming started with urban agriculture presentations, in partnership with the series Out and About Uptown’s Coast. Representatives from the Uptown Coastal Initiative, Animalia Project, and Weiss Hospital Urban Rooftop Farm shared historical and present-day examples of linkages between urban agriculture and Uptown’s coast and the resulting benefits and challenges.
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Alternative Transit
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The Alternative Transit event on October 26, 2017, focused on Leland Greenway, an upcoming community greenway. Melanie Eckner from Uptown Coastal Initiative shared a historical perspective on transit in Uptown. Kris Sorich, Senior Landscape Architect at Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT), and Lara Rivera, Project Designer at Site Design, shared details about the Leland Greenway, focusing on the Uptown Plaza. Following the presentations, the group walked over to the Uptown Plaza for additional opportunity to explore and ask questions. Find a more detailed report on the Uplift Plaza from reporter Josh McGhee on DNAinfo.
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Historic Preservation
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This January 3, 2018, event was designed in partnership with Christopher House’s Youth Leadership program. The session started with a reflection on the teens’ personal experience with preservation through family traditions, spanning food, holidays, and even use of public space in Uptown. Melanie Eckner from Uptown Coastal Initiative shared a historical perspective of Uptown’s coast and buildings. Lesley Showers, Property Manager of ICA GreenRise, presented on the ICA GreenRise as a historic landmark and shared plans for the upcoming renovation to make the building more energy efficient and welcoming. Following the presentations, the group toured the ICA GreenRise renovated common spaces as well historic marvels, including hidden treasures in the basement!
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mental wellness & uptown's coast
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The February 27, 2018, session started with individual reflections on ways to cultivate mental wellness, focusing the group on the topic for the evening. Teresa Horton, Research Associate Professor in the Dept. of Anthropology at Northwestern University, presented on the health benefits of nature and shared research findings about the various health benefits people experience after spending time in nature. Vincent Gomez, Manager of Horticultural Therapy Services at the Chicago Botanic Garden, presented on horticultural therapy and health benefits of therapeutic horticulture.
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Eco-justice
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The March 31, 2018, session started with a collective unpacking of the term “eco-justice.” Attendees brainstormed words associated with “eco” and “justice” and new associations that stood out. The ideas that deepened understanding of eco-justice were balance, wisdom, equity, and reciprocal relationship.
Fawn Pochel from the American Indian Center shared an indigenous perspective on eco-justice to revise their human-centered approach to environmental justice. |
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green infrastructure
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At the final session on April 28, 2018, Melanie Eckner started the presentations with a historical perspective on Uptown's coast, and Carl Giometti from Chicago Ornithological Society presented on bird-safe building design and shared ways for people in the room to take action in their own homes and advocate for bird-safe building standards.
During the coastal walk, Nelson Borelli and Jaqueline Roig from the Purple Martin Monitoring Program informed the group about their efforts as Chicago Park District volunteers to provide stewardship to the purple martin birdhouses and demonstrated some of the regular upkeep, such as raising and lowering the birdhouses. |
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To document the series and provide guidance to organizations or individuals who aim to design multidisciplinary educational events that are tailored for the community or demographic they are working with, especially around issues of sustainability and environment, ICA staff produced a series toolkit. The toolkit provides instruction on how to use the Image Shift tools to help with all parts of a project, outlines the process of curating topics and partnerships to reach those that might otherwise not be interested in coastal-related events, describes educational content shared by partners, and provides insights resulting from pre- and post- survey response data.
For more information about Out and About Uptown's Coast, please write to the Uptown Coastal Initiative at [email protected]. |
Thanks to our many partners:
