Category: Schaumburg

Green Fire in Schaumburg (post-Earth Day Reflections)

Normally Friday nights are pretty quiet at RU’s Schaumburg Campus. But not this past Friday night. Despite pounding rain and a brief hailstorm, around 60 people converged on Alumni Hall for the special Earth Day screening of the new Aldo Leopold documentary film, Green Fire. In attendance were several Roosevelt faculty, staff, and students; but the bulk of the crowd came from the larger community. Folks like Steve and Jill Flexman, veteran restoration volunteers from the Poplar Creek Prairie Stewards; Jean and Jim DeHorn of the Chicago chapter of Wild Ones; and a prospective student from Joliet Junior College who drove all the way from Joliet (just like me) to see the film and meet some current RU Sustainability Studies students.

This small sampling of the eclectic audience at last night’s screening gives a hint of what proved to be a dynamic gathering of academics, environmental stewards, and social activists who live and work in the northwest suburban region . . . and beyond. After the film we engaged in a spirited discussion of Leopold and his classic 1949 book A Sand County Almanac, local environmentalism, the need for a more ethical relation to the land (and each other), and the value of ecological stewardship. Schaumburg’s Sustainable Future, a website created as a collaborative research project by the students in my SUST 210 Sustainable Future class this spring at the Schaumburg Campus, aims to provide a platform for keeping that exciting conversation going.

Special thanks go to Gavin Van Horn, Director of Midwest Cultures of Conservation for the Center for Humans and Nature in Chicago (one of Green Fire‘s co-producers), who helped me introduce the film and moderate discussion afterward; Jessie Crow Mermel, a Sustainability Studies major and educator at Angelic Organics farm in Caldonia IL, who planted the idea of getting Green Fire to screen at Roosevelt and provided a student’s perspective on the important of Leopold’s Land Ethic in her introductory remarks; Schaumburg Campus Provost Doug Knerr, who provided planning support and encouragement for this event from the get-go; RU professional staff Yvette Joseph, Jackie Talerico, Tim Hopkins, Jon Resele, and Sharon Del Prete for their incredible support and hard work in the planning and logistics for last night’s screening; and the students of my SUST 210 class — particularly Mary Beth Radeck, who provided superb content for and great student leadership on this project.

Dramatic View of Today’s Burn at RU

Here’s a photo of this morning’s prescribed burn of the wetland detention pond at RU’s Schaumburg Campus. A historic day — the first such use of controlled burning as a ecological management tool at Roosevelt; but certainly not the last, given the plans underway for revamping the physical landscape of the university.

Image credit: Kenton Franklin, Sustainability Studies major at RU. Click here for a full slideshow of photos from the burn event.

Wetland Burn at RU’s Schaumburg Campus

On Wednesday, April 13, a controlled burn will be conducted at the wetland detention pond on the northwest corner of Roosevelt’s Schaumburg Campus. Burning is an important management tool in ecological restoration of woodlands, prairies, and forests in order to remove invasive plant species and encourage the growth of native plant communities.

This is the first burn conducted at RU’s campus since the university purchased the property in 1996 (the year I arrived at Roosevelt). It is scheduled to begin between 10:30 and 11am, weather conditions permitting. Check back here on Wednesday morning for an update.

Green Fire Film to Screen at RU on Earth Day

On Earth Day — that’s Friday, April 22nd — Roosevelt University’s Schaumburg Campus is proud to host a free public screening of Green Fire, the new full-length feature documentary of Aldo Leopold, a remarkable conservationist, scientist, and writer who helped shape the modern environmental movement in the US and beyond. As the Green Fire website notes, Leopold’s ideas and writings (most notably the 1949 classic, A Sand County Almanac) “remain relevant today, inspiring projects all over the country that connect people and land.” This film is an extraordinary co-production by the Aldo Leopold Foundation and the Center for Humans and Nature; its world premier was on Feb. 5th in Albuquerque, NM. RU’s screening will be the one of the first in the NW suburban Chicago region.

We are very pleased to have Gavin Van Horn, Director of Midwest Cultures of Conservation at the Center for Humans and Nature, join us on April 22nd for the Green Fire screening and a post-film discussion. Popcorn and refreshments will be provided — this will be a fun movie night as well as a chance to connect with the environmental community at RU and in the Schaumburg region.

When:  Friday, April 22nd (Earth Day) — 7:00pm
Where:  Roosevelt University’s Schaumburg Campus (1400 N. Roosevelt Blvd), Alumni Hall
Cost:  Free!
RSVP / Questions:  Contact Prof. Mike Bryson at mbryson@roosevelt.edu / 847.619.8735

This public event is co-sponsored by the RU’s Sustainability Studies program as well as the Schaumburg Campus Provost’s Office.

Sustainable Landscape Design and RU’s Campus Plan

On Thursday, Feb. 17th, landscape architect Bill Bedrossian of Bedrock Earthscapes visited Mike Bryson’s SUST 210 The Sustainable Future class in Schaumburg and gave a special guest lecture on green landscaping practices. Bill is working with a faculty/staff/student green campus committee led by Paul Matthews, Asst. VP for Campus Planning/Operations, to design a new look and sustainable landscape plan for the Schaumburg Campus. This past Thursday, Bill updated us on this ongoing planning process as well as presented his knowledge about sustainable landscape design and maintenance, a topic that connects with a variety of themes in SUST 210 this semester. Also in attendance that night were members of Prof. Greg Buckley‘s seminar in natural science (who among other things are working on a project of identifying all the tree species on the Schaumburg Campus grounds), SUST major Alan Swartz, Paul Matthews, and a few other members of the Schaumburg Campus community.

Excellent discussion ensued about the advantages of various landscape design features for energy and water conservation, as well as about the in-progress ideas for the Schaumburg Campus redesign, which includes extensive native vegetation replacing the bulk of the current turf grass; a restored wetland at the detention pond site; native plant demonstration beds and a potential orchard; bioswales, a rain garden, a cistern, and pervious paving in the parking lots for on-site water retention; a composting site and possible “edible wall” vertical garden; and better outdoor recreational space, including a baseball field. Open areas near McConnor Parkway on the campus periphery will be planted in native grasses in the short-term, but could be re-developed later as a small-scale urban farming operation.  

A pdf version of Mr. Bedrossian’s presentation to SUST 210 is included here: Sustainable Site Practices and RU Concepts. Slides 46-49 address RU’s campus grounds planning process, and slide 48 is the current draft Sustainable Landscape Plan Map. Take a look at that map (zoom in on it to see details) and as you analyze it, ask yourself some questions:

  • Who are the various groups of people that would use and experience this landscape — students, staff, faculty, visitors, etc. — and what are their needs and interests? (Think about, for example, the value of a walking/biking trail that could wind through the campus.)
  • What kinds of learning and leisure activities should the campus landscape support and encourage? How can it connect the university to the surrounding community of Schaumburg?
  • What about the plan at present do you like, and why?
  • Is there anything missing that you’d like to see incorporated into the plan?

If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions about the plan, please post them here on this blog post (if you’d prefer to simply email me feedback privately, you may do so at mbryson@roosevelt.edu ). I’ll make sure your suggestions find their way to the Schaumburg Campus committee working on this plan. Thanks for your input!

Sustainability of the National Parks: New Summer SUST Travel Course

This exciting new course, offered for the first time at Roosevelt University by Professor Gregory Buckley of the College of Professional Studies, provides a detailed look at the sustainability of America’s National Parks. This course examines the historical impetus and individuals that launched our national park system, and how the mission of the National Park Service has evolved to reflect the emerging ideals of conservation, environmentalism and sustainability.

SUST 390 will also explore historical and contemporary issues of National Park sustainability, such as the historical threats to park wildlife and ecosystems, commercial and political exploitation, and the ever-increasing stress put on the most popular parks by an escalation in the number of visitors. Readings and discussions will also examine procedures put into place by the National Park Service to make  park facilities and their operations more “green.” Field trips include a visit to a local forest preserve, as well as a 10-day trip to Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota.

For more information on Professor Buckley’s course, including required meetings at RU’s Schaumburg Campus and the travel itinerary for the North Dakota trip, see his course preview page for SUST 390 National Parks.

Greening the Schaumburg Campus: A Presentation

A detention pond with native planting along its banks, one of the landscapes restored by Bedrock Earthscapes

 

During the Week 4 Thursday class session for my SUST 210 Sustainable Future class in Schaumburg, we will have a guest presentation by landscape architect Bill Bedrossian of Bedrock Earthscapes. Bill is working with a faculty/staff/student green campus committee to design a new look and sustainable landscape plan for the Schaumburg Campus. He will update us on this ongoing planning process as well as present his knowledge about sustainable landscape design and maintenance, a topic that connects with a variety of themes in SUST 210 this semester. 

All 210 students as well as Sustainability Studies majors are particularly encouraged to attend; RU students/faculty at large are also welcome. Light refreshments will be served. Please RSVP to me at mbryson@roosevelt.edu by Monday, Feb. 14th, if you plan to make it. 

When / Where:
Time: 6:30pm (45-min presentation followed by 20-min Q/A discussion)
Location: Schaumburg Campus, room 627
Travel Info: Check out the Shuttle Service from the Chicago Campus if you’re coming from downtown

Spring Online Classes Begin Monday, Jan. 24

This spring semester at Roosevelt, most campus-based classes already have begun. My spring courses, PLS 392 Humanities and SUST 210 The Sustainable Future, begin on Monday, Jan. 24th. At that point the Blackboard (Bb) sites for these classes will be “live.”

The on-campus section of SUST 210 will have its first meeting of the semester on Thursday night at the Schaumburg Campus, 6:30-9pm. See you then!