Creative Chicago Reuse Exchange Holding Annual Auction Soon
By Brian Marchetti Villager Contributor A local non-profit has spent nearly a decade turning one’s trash into another’s treasure. The Creative Chicago Reuse Exchange takes in surplus supplies that would otherwise find their way to a landfill and redistributes them to teachers, artists, and community organizations. From Oct, 25 through Nov, 9, CCRX will run […]
Vote Yes for Clean Air, Clean Water, and Wildlife
On election day – Nov. 8 – we have a chance to vote yes to approve a small property tax increase of .025% (about $1.66 for the majority of homeowners) that will help protect water and air quality as well as wildlife habitat by protecting, restoring and expanding the forest preserves of Cook County. With […]
February Green Guide: Use Salt Sparingly
Using salt to melt ice on sidewalks and streets is a must in Chicago, but over applying salt can damage plants, animals, insects, vehicles and infrastructure, and contaminate water supplies. As ice and snow melt, road salt is washed into sewers and soaked into the ground. In urban areas like ours, salting roads and […]
Stepping Up Litter Control with Litterati
By Cathriona Fey BAPA Community Outreach Community-Wide Litter Pick-Up Challenge Inspired by Local Resident and Powered by Technology Communities across the country are testing ways to prevent littering and keep their hometowns clean. Signage, more trash cans, catchy marketing campaigns, fines, and street cleaning teams have all been explored. However, according to Beverly/Morgan Park resident and Behavioral Scientist Natalie Hallinger, the best answer may […]
Calabria Imports Going Green
By Cathriona Fey BAPA Community Outreach While working events at the Shedd Aquarium and Field Museum, Julia Roberto of Calabria imports, had no other choice but to “go green.” Eco-friendly policies guide the plates, cups, and disposal processes that are required for weddings, corporate gatherings, and other events that take place at two of our city’s most important tourism destinations. Roberto gained not only […]
BAPA Seed and Garden Supplies Drive Embraces the Free Box Spirit In Honor of Megan Robb
By Cathriona Fey BAPA Outreach Liaison Megan Robb was a regular in the Beverly Free Box Facebook group. She appreciated the sense of community that the group created, and when the announcement was made about Robb’s passing after battling metastatic breast cancer, it was clear the community appreciated her. While several people knew Robb as a good friend or familiar face in the neighborhood, those […]
BAPA Awarded 192 Milkweed Plugs to Propel Save the Monarchs Initiative
With Spring just around the corner, some of Beverly/Morgan Park’s community gardeners are gearing up to add fresh milkweed to their gardens. Monarch Watch, a nonprofit education, conservation, and research program based at the University of Kansas, recently selected six of our neighborhood gardens as recipients for flats of milkweed to promote more monarch and pollinator-friendly habitats in the […]
Bird Watching in Winter
By Kristin Boza Bird afficionados tend to, pardon the pun, flock together. Like many interests in Beverly/Morgan Park, there’s a Facebook group for that! The 19th Ward Birding group is a great way for local bird lovers to share their knowledge and bond over the interesting birds that can be seen right in our own backyards. Carolyn Leeb is […]
Making Green Resolutions for 2021
By Cathriona Fey BAPA Community Outreach Liaison As we welcome in the New Year, many people are creating resolutions. In 2020 we found ourselves cleaning more, disposing of more, clicking on and ordering more; not necessarily prioritizing the impact of these actions on the environment, but more so the importance of these actions to our day-to-day lives during a pandemic – and […]
BAPA Takes Pledge to Save The Monarchs
By Cathriona Fey BAPA Community Outreach Liaison Over the last two decades, the eastern monarch butterfly has experienced a more than 80% decrease in population. This orange and black-winged species, the Illinois state insect, contributes to the pollination of plants throughout the Prairie State. The migratory and overwintering habitats needed to promote monarch breeding are disappearing, and the drastic drop in population has sparked urgent conservation efforts to save the monarchs. […]