View all Annual Accomplishment Summaries here

2021 Annual Accomplishments

HIGHLIGHTS
  • New name, brand, mission, vision, and strategic intentions!
  • Awarded an Environmental Law and Policy Center (ELCP) grant that produced four virtual town halls, which welcomed in hundreds of participants and new partnerships!
  • Worked in collaboration with key stakeholders to reopen the Vedgewater Community Garden! Volunteered and hosted multiple events during the season!
  • Granted Chamber of Commerce Grant and created a pilot composting project with ten storefront restaurants!
  • Joined 500 individuals and 70 organizations urging the mayor halt the permitting of General Iron!
  • Second annual Pumpkin Smash & Holiday Lights Collection Events. Awarded Big Blue Stem Award for Environmental Impact for EEC Pumpkin Smash!
  • 166 volunteer hours over 6 workdays with thousands of plants planted at the Kathy Osterman Beach Natural Area!
  • Joined new coalitions: Save the Ash Tree Coalition (STATC) and Indigenous People's Day Coalition!
  • 27 trees planted with Openland's Treekeepers Program!
  • Advocated for city, county, and state ordinances and resolutions; such as Native Garden's Ordinance and the Clean Energy Jobs Act!

JANUARY
  • New Branding of Edgewater Environmental Sustainability Project (EESP) that became Edgewater Environmental Coalition (EEC) – After months of meetings updating EESP’s past 10 years and projecting the next 10 years, the process included a revamped mission statement, logo, and new name. All done in a communal setting of dedicated members.
  • 2021 Updated Mission Statement – We are a coalition of community members and environmental stewards. Bringing a green voice to local challenges, we empower people to build and maintain a more sustainable future through action, organizing, education, and advocacy. We are rooted in advancing a healthy and verdant Edgewater.
  • 2021 Updated Vision – We envision a clean, green, and healthy community with a diverse coalition of individuals and groups actively supporting local resiliency, sustainability, and equitability.
  • Refresh of community acknowledgements to be read at the beginning of EEC meetings: 
  • Developed our 2021 Action Plan –
    • Referred to as Strategic Plan or Strategic Intentions.
    • Building out EEC’s strategic intentions for the next 5 to 10 years
    • Annual Check ins on the vision to make sure we are staying up to date.
  • EEC awarded an Environmental Law and Policy Center (ELCP) Grant that produced four virtual town halls running January thru April with guests coming from grass root organizations, industry innovators & the decision makers from City Departments. Subjects: Waste, Housing, Water, and Transportation.
  • First Town Hall Virtual Meeting: Waste – The City’s status and future with municipal waste collection, recycling, reuse, and innovations and damage to bodies of water from microbeads of plastic. What can the city do moving forward rather than just focus on recycling?
CLICK HERE TO WATCH
  • Litter Free Edgewater Campaign – Every month Litter Free Edgewater engages community members to adopt a block to pick up litter.
  • Holiday Light Recycling – First holiday light recycling effort that w/in 4 hours, 65 lbs. of unusable holiday lights were collected and taken to a scrap yard end-user.
FEBRUARY
  • Vedgewater Meetings begin with Peterson Garden and LUC researching the restoration of the defunct community garden.
  • EEC Supports Native Plants Registry Ordinance 
  • Second Town Hall Virtual Meeting: Housing – Preservation, Affordable (Housing) Requirements Ordinance, Altgeld Gardens Toxic Land, Recovery of building materials and building material innovations.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH
  • Lakefront Reopening – After Covid closing of lake, EEC writes letter to Mayor and Chicago Park District demanding the opening of the lake front safely and officially for the well-being of the community.
  • General Iron permit – EEC joined 500 individuals and70 organizations urging the mayor to halt the permitting.
MARCH
  • Third Town Hall Virtual Meeting: Water – Lead in water, runoff, lakefront erosion on north side and south side, lakeshore damage protection equality, flood analysis in Edgewater, overview of all the water issues.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH
  • EEC votes to support the Indigenous People’s Day Coalition’s mission to honor Illinois Native’s as the only discoverers of Illinois and replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples’ Day.
  • Website refresh –
    • Updated information from the community on where there are gaps: greenspaces, playgrounds, directories, maps.
    • How-to guide: Solving specific environmental problems.
    • Climate change from an Edgewater perspective.
  • Spring Openlands, Treekeepers, and EEC Community Tree Plantings – 
    • Thirty-nine trees requested, 27 parkways, and nine block clubs. 
    • Edgewater Urban Forestry Report and Canopy Map Measurement: 
CLICK HERE FOR CANOPY MAP
APRIL
  • Fourth Town Hall Virtual Meeting: Transportation – Discussed public and mass transportation, active transportation such as biking and walking, and the future of sustainable and renewable energy in fuel use for car travel.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH
  • EEC votes to support the Save the Ash Tree Coalition (STATC) – Amend the 2022 City of Chicago budget so the Bureau of Forestry includes $6 million for Emerald Ash Borer ash tree treatments. Doing so will save the city $69 M, which can be used to plant new saplings.
MAY
  • Vedgewater opens with Vedgewater Workdays (3rd Saturday of the month)
  • EEC awarded Chamber of Commerce Grant creating a pilot composting project with ten storefront restaurants
  • Parkways for Pollinators – Four testing sites; plants donated from Loyola. 
JUNE
  • Star Farm Container Reuse & Care for Real Composting –
    • 146 containers!
    • Chicago Lights Urban Farm, used to grow seedlings for sale
    • 60 Chicago community gardens  
    • Composting through Care for Real 
    • Andersonville Native Planters
  • EEC awarded Big Blue Stem Award for Environmental Impact for EEC Pumpkin Smash
  • EEC Sunday Summer Solstice Celebration
  • West Ridge Preserve Stewardship – Third Saturdays 10 AM
  • Flax: Seeds, Soil, Spinning Workshop – with Melissa H. Potter at Vedgewater 6/19 CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO
  • Collective Resource Composting provided 12 weeks of composting pickup to 8 SSA businesses – Alice and Friends Vegan Kitchen, Edge of Sweetness, Lickity Split, Mango Pickle, Nebeb Ethiopian & East Mediterranean, Nori, Rewired Café, and Uncommon Ground. 30 other businesses in the SSA received educational materials about composting, and information about discounted services for the future. 480 gallons of organic matter have been diverted from area landfills through this trial service.
JULY
  • Urban Forest Advisory Board Passes
  • Loyola Service Day, Caretaker for Welcome to Edgewater Garden
  • Hollywood Beach Stewardship – 7/25, 8/29, 10/10, 11/21 CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO
  • Farmer’s Market and EEC Public Outreach – 7/19, 8/2, 8/16, 8/30
  • Soil Safari Workshop – with Nance Klehm at Vedgewater 7/17 CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO
AUGUST
  • EEC supports Clark Street Protected Bike Lane
  • Bioswales and Rain Gardens Workshop – with Carmen Vidal-Hallett and Amanda Betancourt-Szymanowska at Vedgewater on 8/21 CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO
SEPTEMBER
  • Yard Sale – $160 raised.
OCTOBER
  • Vedgewater – End of the season more than 50 participants planted a total of ~1400 sq. ft. of native gardens
  • Distribution of Native Planting Starter Kits
  • Openlands Fall Tree Planting – 20 trees planted
  • Flax: Seeds, Soil, Spinning Workshop – with Melissa H. Potter at Vedgewater 10/16 CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO
  • Put Your Bed to Bed! Workshop at Vedgewater, showing gardeners how to winter prep.
NOVEMBER
  • Federal Non-Profit Corporation finalized and Board of Directors chosen
  • Pumpkin Smash Event
    • 5.83 tons collected (last year = 2.27 tons)
    • Seventeen neighborhoods
    • Number of unique visitors = 179 (cars and walk-ins)
    • Number of people (in cars & walk up) = 344
    • Number of pumpkins = 757 
    • Percentage of people who compost at home = 34%
DECEMBER
  • Winter Solstice Celebration Evening – with 6018North and Colvin House 
  • Holiday Light Recycling – kicks off with Northcenter Neighborhood Association

Resources Vedgewater Workshops:  
Townhall Meeting Videos:  
 

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