Details on Sept. 26th Social Hour event

Apologies for the delay...but here at last are the details for our next Social Hour event next week.

Date: Wed. September 26th
Time: 6p start to networking, 7p start for presentation
Location: Pilot Pete's restaurant in Schaumburg (see below for link to directions)
Guest: Martha Dooley from the Village of Schaumburg
Topic: Schaumburg's Biodiversity Recovery Plan

As previously noted, Martha Dooley, Senior Landscape Planner with the Village of Schaumburg, will be joining us to discuss the Biodiversity Recovery Plan they have implemented. This Biodiversity Plan is based on the principles of the Chicago Wilderness Biodiversity Recovery Plan. Schaumburg is the first village to adopt the goals of the Chicago Wilderness Biodiversity Recovery Plan. Schaumburg's Biodiversity Plan provides specific guidance on maintaining, restoring, and preserving the integrity of open space per the Comprehensive Plan, and provides a framework for implementing the Chicago Wilderness Biodiversity Recovery Plan objectives. Those objectives include:

1. Involve the citizens, organizations, and agencies of the region in efforts to conserve biodiversity.
2. Improve the scientific basis of ecological management.
3. Protect globally and regionally important natural communities.
4. Restore natural communities to ecological health.
5. Manage natural communities to sustain native biodiversity.
6. Develop citizen awareness and understanding of local biodiversity to ensure support and participation.
7. Foster a sustainable relationship between society and nature in the region.
8. Enrich the quality of the lives of the region's citizens.

Martha's presentation will take us through some of the thoughts behind the program and share some of the success stories to date.

Our location this time is Pilot Pete's, located at the Schaumburg Municipal Airport, which is at 905 W. Irving Park Rd. Here's a link to mapquest showing the location: Map of 905 W Irving Park Rd Schaumburg, IL 60193-9700, US

I'm looking forward to an interesting presentation and another great opportunity to mix and mingle with a diverse group of sustainability-minded folks. As always, feel free to pass this notice along to anyone you feel might be interested. Or have them email me to be included in the database for future events: shawn@thirdisolutions.com. Hope to see you there!!

Save the date...September 26th

Just a quick teaser announcement to communicate the details for our next Social Hour event. This month, we're pleased to have Martha Dooley from the Village of Schaumburg joining us to talk about the Biodiversity Recovery Program that the village has implemented. More details will follow shortly...

It's not easy being green...

A friend shared this with me recently, and I thought it worth posting here in order to provide a bit of levity as well as one of those 'remember when??' moments. With full credit to YouTube, Sesame Street, and to the marvelous creative talents of Jim Henson and his team. With no further ado...

August 25th Social Hour event

A bit of a change this month. We'll be meeting on a Saturday morning rather than the usual mid-week evening. The change is due to the topic for this month's event. We'll be hearing the Prairie Crossing story firsthand while touring the development. Given the time of year, trying to do a walking tour starting at 7p on a weeknight didn't afford us the opportunity to really see it in the same way that a morning outing will.

I'm guessing that, like me, many of you are familiar with the name Prairie Crossing but have not yet had the opportunity to see it for yourself. Prairie Crossing is the critically-acclaimed 'Conservation Community' that was designed to combine responsible development, the preservation of open land and easy commuting by rail. It is now considered a national example of how to design our communities to support a better way of life. For more detail on the community, which is located in Grayslake, check out this link: http://www.prairiecrossing.com/.

Our plan is to meet at the Colby Barn at 10:00 am. Map of 1561 Jones Point Rd Grayslake, IL 60030-3536, US We'll then take a tour through the development while hearing about its creation. Discussion will center on the genesis of the original vision, the realities of realizing the vision, and the end result. We've also lined up several homeowners to speak firsthand about the experience of living in this type of sustainable community.

We'll finish at around 12:00 pm in the Prairie Croissant Cafe. All those who are able are welcome to join me in lingering and enjoying lunch. Info and an online menu can be found at: http://www.prairiecroissantcafe.com/.

So, to recap:

Date: Saturday, August 25th
Time: 10:00 am
Location: Colby Barn, Prairie Crossing Development

This is a family-friendly outing, so please feel free to bring the kids along. A great way to live the lesson from last month (see previous post on the 'Leave No Child Inside' initiative by Chicago Wilderness).

As always, feel free to pass along the info to others you think might be interested. I'm also happy to try to coordinate ride-sharing options, so contact me if you'd like some assistance in that area. I look forward to seeing you all there.

Have questions, suggestions, or want to be added to the email list? Contact Shawn Stahmer at shawn@thirdisolutions.com.

Location for July 25th Social Hour event

We've finalized the location for our July 25th Social Hour event. We'll be meeting at the Ram Restaurant & Brewery, located at 1901 McConnor Pkwy in Schaumburg. For those familiar with the area, McConnor Pkwy is the street that runs north from Golf Rd (just west of 53) past IKEA. The Ram is about a block north of Golf on the left (west) side of the street.

Here's a mapquest link: Map of 1901 Mcconnor Pkwy Schaumburg, IL 60173-4389, US

We'll be meeting in the Counselor's Row Room, which is at the front of the restaurant to the right of the entrance.

Event details remain the same: Networking begins at 6p, Presentation on Leave No Child Inside begins at 7p. The Ram Restaurant & Brewery has been kind enough to provide the room for us at no charge, so please bring your appetite for good food and drink and satisfy both prior to the presentation.

Please join us...and invite a friend or two!!

July 25th Social Hour event

Hi all...hope everyone's summer is going well. We're back on track again with a Social Hour event lined up for Wed., July 25th. We'll be in the Schaumburg area, though the exact location is yet to be finalized. As usual, we'll plan on starting the networking at 6p, with a presentation to begin at 7p.

This month, we'll be featuring Martha (Marty) Kenahan as our guest. Marty is with Chicago Wilderness, and is the Regional Coordinator for the Leave No Child Inside initiative. I'm excited to have Marty joining the group to tell us more about this recently launched initiative. Here's a bit of detail:

A growing body of scientific evidence is demonstrating how important direct contact with the outdoors is to healthy childhood development. Structured and unstructured playtime in nature can help combat such health issues as ADHD and child obesity while promoting creativity and cognitive functioning.

To address this issue, Chicago Wilderness is launching Leave No Child Inside, a multi-year initiative designed to promote children's health and foster generations of children that care enough about nature to protect it. One of the greatest gifts you can give your children is to share your love of nature: Enjoying the outdoors with them is fun, healthy, and a great way to spend quality time with your family.

More details can be found at the LNCI website: www.kidsoutside.info.

Stay tuned for details on the specific location. And as always, feel free to pass the word on to friends and associates you think would be interested in the event.

No events for June - Stay tuned for July announcements

We've decided not to host the Social Hour event this month due to difficulties in coordinating presenters, locations and vacation schedules. But don't despair - we've got some terrific topics and presenters in line for upcoming events. Stay tuned, as announcements regarding July's event will be posted shortly.