| |  | | Photo "Icicles in Lincoln Park" by Flickr user Jon Vitale from our pool. |
by Shana Alford
12/10/09 When I think of winter I often think of ice skating, the holidays, hats and gloves, hot chocolate, and many more fun and cheery things. However, I also can’t help to think about the necessity of heat during the very cold days and nights especially. The State of Illinois, like some other states, has a weatherization assistance program aimed to help people who need it the most. Weatherization simply means to insulate or protect a home or building from moderate to more extreme weather conditions such as sunlight, rain, wind, snow, etc. We in the northeastern region of the state can attest to extreme cold! Another very appealing aspect of weatherization is the opportunity to reduce energy consumption, which will decrease costs. The weatherization of homes for families can result in savings of 32 percent on heating bills, according to the Department of Energy. Recently the federal government released $5 billion nationally toward weatherization assistance programs as part of the American Recovery Reinvestment Act stimulus funding. The State of Illinois received $242.5 million of ARRA funding which is anticipated to help weatherize approximately 27,000 homes. The funding will be distributed throughout the region to 35 local agencies. This is a success! Want to learn more about weatherization and its benefits? Click here.  permalink
   
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| | by Shana Alford
10/23/09 Aggressive efforts toward cleaning up water pollution are increasing across the nation. Although Congress enacted the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (Clean Water Act) decades ago, water pollution remains a critical issue. Regulators have been learning more about the sources of water pollution and are progressively making violators more visible and accountable.
A Chicago Tribune series on water pollution specifically highlighted dry cleaning facilities as contributors to air and water pollution. Illinois EPA identified slightly more than 400 dry cleaners statewide, where the toxic chemical perchloroethylene, also known as PCE or perc, has contaminated soil or poses a threat to nearby water supplies. Many of these sites are within the northeastern region. Exposure to perc could lead to to cancer, liver damage, neurological problems and other ailments. Although this chemical has been used for decades, little was known about its lurking contamination. A lawsuit filed by the Sierra Club against the US EPA further highlighted the role that regulation plays in keeping the environment healthy and clean.
View high priority cleanup areas in the Northeastern Region and statewide, as provided by the Chicago Tribune.
CMAP has included brownfield redevelopment and wastewater management in the GO TO 2040 plan because of their critical links to environmental health and safety in the region. Please also view the latest Air Quality Snapshot in the region.
Interested in finding eco-friendly dry cleaners in your area? Click Here.
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Comments (2)
| Just a comment regarding PCE replacement. The siloxane based product marketed by "GreenEarth" and perhaps others is not perfectly environmentally friendly. There are hidden costs.
Early reports indicate a significant increase in siloxanes received at wastewater treatment plants in communities with this type of dry cleaner. Siloxane becomes a problem when treatment plants attempt to be energy efficient by producing and using methane gas for heating and electric power generation. When siloxane is burned it reverts to sand which fouls and damages expensive equipment. Siloxanes can be effectively removed from the methane but that process costs money to build and operate.
This issue has yet to draw much attention but is real and should be considered in the permitting of dry cleaning facilities.
Posted by: Administrator on 10/26/2009 |
| Arthur, Thank you for your comment on this very important topic. It is good to keep in mind how to replace these contaminating products for the best results to the environment.
Posted by: Administrator on 10/26/2009 |
| | by Shana Alford
7/13/09 The projected population growth and changing demographics make public health a concern for planners. Just recently, Illinois was cited as having the 10th highest percentage of children ages 10-17 who are overweight. The National Survey of Children’s Health listed Illinois as having the 4th highest childhood obesity rates in the nation. This should be an alarming concern for everyone. If the health of the next generation is at risk then so is their quality of life and their ability to become the workforce of the future. Childhood obesity has often been linked to a decline in physical activity combined with unhealthy diets. What foods we choose to eat and allow our children to eat affect their growth and development. How does one choose the right food according to food labels? This question increases the attention that regulators and watchdogs are paying to how companies label food. A recent Chicago Tribune article highlighted confusion with food labels and terminology. Dean Foods, the largest organic dairy producer in the nation, is rolling out new products that are labeled “natural.” The concern is that “natural” may be confused with “organic;” some people even think that “natural” is healthier. Organic is a label that can only be applied to food products that meet standards met by the USDA. On the other hand, the term “natural” can be defined by the company. In this case, Dean Foods says that “natural” means “without added hormones, artificial sweeteners, artificial colors, flavors, preservatives or high fructose corn syrup.” While this is healthier than many other options available to kids, it does not mean that the food is free of pesticides, herbicides, or antibiotics. The article posits that consumers need to be well-informed and warns of companies seeking to profit from the lack of awareness about food products. It is important to find preventative, community-oriented solutions that keep future generations healthy. CMAP has completed research on a number of subjects that can help to build healthier communities, such as open space & parks, conservation design, improvements in the location of schools, and improved bicycle facilities and conditions around the region. Let us know how you’d like to see your community improve! Attend one of our 50+ Invent the Future workshops and have your say. permalink |
Comments (2)
| Interesting piece. Timely, too- I was with my mom over the weekend when she ordered a "kid's meal" from a fast food restaurant, and it included so large a soda and so many fries and fried fih pieces that even a grown woman couldn't finish it off! We discussed the portion size that children are being served up. In this case, less is more!
What children- and adults alike- do need is more organic and/or natural food choices. Choices that are actually options for those on a budget! Real good to know that "natural" is defined by the company- not by the USDA.
There was a grocery store featured on the news in the last week or so that was promoting that they've identifyied "healthier" food options in their stores as well and that people can shop to those guideelines. Like the food companies though, grocery stores stand to gain profit from how they market foods. So while the info they provide can be a starting point, it seems to me that self-education is our best option.
Thanks for the opportunity to educate myself about natural/organic foods through this op-ed, and at the community-based Invent the Future workshops. Good idea!
Posted by: Malii on 07/13/2009 |
| Thanks for sharing..
regards
SBL
http://www.sblgis.com/gis_service-industries.aspx
Posted by: GIS mapping services on 07/16/2009 |
| | by Shana Alford
4/20/09 A major announcement was made late last week that may be one of several regional transportation solutions to the issue of congestion in our region. Chicago Tribune announced the new express bus route that will use I-55 shoulders.
The new bus service will reach out to commuters in the southwest suburbs in Will County who commute to the Loop. This service will be operated by the suburban bus agency Pace, and is scheduled to begin no later than spring 2010. According to the RTA, there will be limited stops from the Bolingbrook area in Will County to a terminus in the City of Chicago. This is exciting news for many commuters and for the entire region. It is anticipated that substantial time will be slashed from the 90 minutes it often takes during peak travel times for a bus rider using the existing Pace bus route No. 855/I-55 Flyer service. We anticipate that this travel time savings may make bus transit more attractive to commuters in the corridor, reducing auto trips and the Stevenson’s serious congestion problem (see the congestion scan to the right, showing average speed by time of day by milepost). This new service will be the product of thoughtful planning by our regional partners, including IDOT, going back to the early 1990’s. An I-55 high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane was studied in the 1990’s, and has been partially completed as the expressway was reconstructed. This process likely saved substantial funds and disruption for travelers compared to building the lane now under a separate contract. While not complete at this time, the wide shoulder lane is set to facilitate faster trips for commuters in our southwest suburbs using this proposed bus service enhancement.
Increasing transportation options is a great way for the region to kick off a new decade!
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| | What's Hot About Local Food? by Shana Alford
3/23/09
The Illinois Food, Farms, and Jobs Act signed in 2007 is legislation that promotes local food systems. The goal of this act is to increase local food production, which could increase access to fresh food in communities and job opportunities. Learn more in a new executive report released by the Illinois Food, Farms and Jobs Taskforce. Additionally, urban agriculture in the City of Chicago has gained momentum across neighborhoods. Overall, growing food for consumption and supporting local food production may be regaining popularity as consumers realize the distance at which food travels to reach their plates. It is estimated that on average food travels about 1500 milesfrom farm to plate; this distance aligns with the global food marketplace. I just recently started checking labels and found that blackberries I bought in a local supermarket were from Guatemala! There are many reasons to consider buying local food products. If you are interested in supporting local food production and farming, you can check out Local Harvest's website or the Chicago Reader's guide to community supported agriculture, CSAs around the region. Bon appétit! Other places to learn about local food in our region: Chicago Food Policy Advisory Council City of Chicago And of course, you can also read and comment on CMAP's strategy report on Agricultural Preservation for the region. permalink |
Comments (2)
| I loved the article. Perhaps you can follow up with a blog about the farmers markets downtown and community gardens.
Posted by: Administrator on 03/23/2009 |
| This article is very informative. I believe more people would support local food production if they knew where to go to purchase goods, so its great that links were included with this article. Many families would benefit from knowing they may have a community garden in neighborhood. Or they would be simply proud to support a local producer.
Posted by: Administrator on 03/24/2009 |
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| Image of UIUC's Alma Mater statue
by Kevin Dooley under Creative Commons license |
Rising Costs of Higher Education by Shana Alford
12.22.08
Every year hundreds of thousands of kids look forward to going to college. For the fall of 2008, the University of Illinois system, the largest higher education institution in Illinois, enrolled more than 10,000 freshman students at three campuses: Urbana-Champaign, Chicago, and Springfield. Education is critical to global competitiveness but the rising cost of obtaining higher education has many people worried.
The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education recently released a report, Measuring Up, showing that rising tuition costs could make getting a degree implausible for many Americans. The report found that tuition and fees have risen 439 percent from 1982 to 2007, while median family income rose 147 percent.
The report projects an annual increase of 5% on tuition and room and board costs, meaning that a four-year public college could cost as much as $100,000 or more and double that for private colleges. In a survey of 800 parents, 43% percent of said they have saved nothing at all, compared with 27 percent in 2007. Experts continually encourage parents to start early with college savings. This challenge is even greater for many low-income and some middle-class families who are unable to contribute greatly to college costs, shifting the debt burden to students. Continuing awareness, discussion, and innovative ideas on how to provide affordable higher education to students will keep it as a priority issue to address.
In northeastern Illinois, population is expected to grow by about 2.8 million people by 2040. This means that many more families will need to address the issue of college affordability. CMAP recognizes education as an essential regional issue as it relates to sustainability, quality of life, and human capital. Currently CMAP and the Chicago Community Trust are working with leading education experts to examine education as part of the GO TO 2040 plan. |
Comments (1)
| Education is our guide to have a successful and progressive life in the future but how can we obtain this success if the government can’t provide a high-quality education that we need? What will happen to the future generation? A college degree is a virtual guarantee that a person will earn extra money, so the cost of education is viewed as a worthy investment, perhaps the greatest investment a person can make. However, in these tighter times, people are wondering just whether or not going to a more exclusive private college is worth the money. SmartMoney ran the numbers, and private universities come up short in cost of attending versus career earnings and extra money. In fact, the crème de la crème of all private universities, the Ivy League schools, have some of the worst career returns on four year degrees of all.
Posted by: Administrator on 01/08/2009 |
| | Cultural Context: The Art of Savingby Shana Alford
10.17.08 Various headlines in the media articulate the deep concern that most people have during these hard economic times. However, there may be some comfort in knowing that leadership at your local museums are making budgetary adjustments so that they can still provide a high quality experience for visitors.
According to the Tribune’s “Breaking News” website, the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum has recently had to cut jobs by 16%, although no programs have been eliminated. This was a preventative move as they saw income drop by about 45% compared to the same two months of the previous fiscal year. Additionally, areas like event planning are suffering because of tightened budgets. Many institutes  dependent on donations and foundation giving—like museums—are being cautious, understanding that donors may not be able to give as much as they have given in the past.
However, saving creatively can overcome! One way that Peggy Notebaert museum is hoping to cut costs is by reaching out to local produce markets for donations of old bananas, mangoes and oranges to feed its butterflies. Additionally, employees are required to use communal garbage bins, which saves them about $2,500 annually on trash bags, and has the added benefit of increased recycling. So if traveling far away has become less of a reality during this season, maybe regional museums can serve as a buffer for family fun.
Here are just a few popular museums within the region:
For more museum details visit here. 
Do you have suggestions of other great museums in the region? |
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| | Chicago as a Global City: Through the Lens of Fashionby Shana Alford
10.7.08  In case you didn’t know, Chicago has been front and center in the world of fashion this week. The City of Chicago is hosting a series of fashion events which began on October 1st and are wrapping up tomorrow; this is the fourth year anniversary for fashion activities in Chicago. I attended the World Fashion Show, presented by Chicago Sister Cities International, last Thursday. I had a phenomenal time and was reminded of how much Chicago is truly a global city. Chicago Sister Cities total 27 cities and fashion designers from every sister city were represented at the fashion show; more interestingly people from many of these countries represent the diverse ethnic population of the Chicagoland region.
The diversity of Chicago and northeastern Illinois is a valuable asset that gives us both a cultural and an economic advantage. Illinois has almost 80 Foreign Consulates. Illinois is a major destination for foreign investment; the state has attracted over 5,174 foreign establishments that have employed more than 280,000 Illinoisans. Additionally, Illinois hosted over 1.7 million international visitors in 2006 that spent nearly $2.0 billion (Global Access in Illinois).
Diversity is recognized throughout the 2040 Regional Vision statements, approved by the CMAP Board in June 2008. In particular, the vision statements discuss cultural diversity in context of quality of life, economic strengths, intergovernmental coordination and planning, and civic involvement. Although the value of diversity cannot quite be measured in the same way as energy efficiency, it undeniably adds a fabric of richness to the region. This richness can be seen in distinctive neighborhoods, art, festivals, architecture, food, and major events like Fashion Focus Chicago 2008. Diversity influences how Chicago and the region interact with the world and how the world interacts with Chicago and the region.
Photo used with permission from Chicago Sister Cities International. Technorati Profile |
Comments (4)
| The growth of the fashion business in Chicago, as well as the rise of its many great boutiques, really goes to show how the city is on the global map. I would never have thought Chicago would crack into the top leagues of the world's fashion and shopping cities. It isn't quite there yet, but it is knocking on the door. Meanwhile, for those of us who get to take advantage of it locally, enjoy!
Posted by: Administrator on 10/07/2008 |
| Yes, thanks for making this point, especially as Chicago vies for the Olympic bid. The fashion certainly carries more significance than fashion itself- it's a representation of, and testament to, the Chicago's interaction with local and global diversity. I'm proud to be a Chicagoan!
Posted by: Administrator on 10/08/2008 |
| Chicago sounds like a great city on the verge of international stardom. Thanks for all of the impressive facts!
Posted by: Administrator on 10/09/2008 |
| Thanks for this insightful commentary on Chicago's fashion week! It just further illustrates that Chicago is a progressive city that utilizes it's global presence to generate commerce that can, in turn, be utilized to further advance its diversity initiatives.
Posted by: Administrator on 10/09/2008 |
| | Midwest Flooding Damages Farmlandby Shana Alford
6.24.08 Heavy flooding this month has caused serious damage in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, and Wisconsin. Much of the damage was due to levee breaches along the Mississippi River, the second longest river system in the U.S. There were many disastrous outcomes including death, loss of homes and businesses and in some cases entire neighborhoods. The damage is adding up quickly and is estimated to be billions of dollars. Another very threatening result is that millions of acres of farmland were engulfed by floodwaters. The US Army Corps of Engineers identified 48 levees along the Mississippi from Dubuque, IA to St. Louis protecting over 285,000 acres of farmland that are already under water or at high risk of flooding.
What does this mean? Well, this means that there is very likely to be inflation in food prices and a lower supply of specific crops. This not only affects US consumers but also global consumers. Iowa and Illinois produce approximately 1/3rd of the US supply for corn and soybean; both crops are highly valuable because of their multi-uses. You may think, well I don’t buy corn or soybeans. But think again, because you probably do. There are hundreds of products that use some form of corn or soybean. Corn is used for a range of household items from cooking oil to industrial alcohol. Soybean, like corn, is used for foods and many other products too, from baked goods to cosmetics!
Let’s all hope that the Midwest can recover from this massive flood! Damage has yet to be assessed, but costs could be similar to the 1993 floods that cost the region over $20 billion in damage. Also, we cannot forget the damage from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Hopefully one outcome from these disasters will be much needed attention on improved engineering and planning around natural waterways such as the Mississippi River. It is usually during these times that we realize and reflect, even if for a few seconds, on how powerful nature is and how much our lives are interdependent on the health and productivity of the Earth. |
Comments (2)
| With climate changes bound to happen, the probability for abnormally high rains and droughts are high.
Do the storm drainage and water/power supply systems, Health and trasporation systems in cities cater for such disasters? Are there any steps being taken to mititgate this risk?
Would Chicago be prepared for a Katrina like disaster by 2040?
Posted by: Administrator on 07/01/2008 |
| Mani, Good question. Hopefully a regional comprehensive plan will better prepare many cities for disasters and command attention to transportation systems. The key issue is preparation and planning for highly probable events, in this case this means weather patterns.
Posted by: Administrator on 07/03/2008 |
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