April 2, 2020
Dear Chicago Wilderness Alliance Partners,
For the past several weeks we’ve been focused on slowing down the spread of Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19). This means that our partners have been transitioning employees to remote work environments, hosting online meetings, suspending travel, re-thinking how business is done, adapting to home schooling and e-learning, closing facilities and canceling programs/activities.
One of the opportunities afforded us through the chaos of this global pandemic is the public’s awareness of the healing value of nature and the physical and mental health benefits of staying active in the great outdoors. While many businesses and public places are closed, many of our conservation areas and trails across the region have remained open for essential activities such as walking, hiking, biking and wildlife viewing. We are, in essence, essential healthcare providers albeit not on the front lines in an ICU.
Chicago Wilderness Alliance Partners are striving to be part of the solution by educating the community on how to safely utilize parks and trails through this difficult time. Partners are also seizing the opportunity to adapt existing programming to meet current needs and they are adjusting their messaging and public outreach in creative and strategic ways.
The Chicago Wilderness Steering Committee has been meeting weekly through ZOOM and has established a COVID-19 Response and Resource page on our Chicago Wilderness website and Chicago Wilderness has been active on social media.
As this news of COVID-19 was breaking, Chicago Wilderness made a critical decision to cancel the April 2, 2020 Conservation Congress at UIC out of concern for the health and safety of our attendees. We want to thank the Conservation Congress Planning Committee and our Visioning Mapping and Metrics Working Group for their amazing leadership and work. We also want to express our appreciation to our sponsors who stepped up to assist with this endeavor and are investing in our future work. All of this important work will be retooled and repackaged in the weeks and months to come with an important discussion on next steps during our Executive Council Meeting on April 15, 2020-which, of course, will be held by virtual conference through ZOOM.
As Chicago Wilderness leaders you play a vital role in sustaining a resilient region and through our collective work we will continue to make a difference. Our mission and green vision for the region is as relevant as the arrival of spring, which brings with it hope for humanity - nature nurtures. The early blooms and songs of our migratory feathered friends share their gifts of inspiration for a healthier tomorrow. We accept these gifts of the natural world knowing that we are all in this together.
Yours in Conservation,
Elizabeth S. Kessler, MBA, CPRE
Chair, Chicago Wilderness
Executive Director, McHenry County Conservation District
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