In spring of 2022, an inspired group of climbers became the first all-Black team to summit Everest, the highest mountain on earth. And as stated on the project’s website, Team Full Circle hopes that their historic trek will “inspire the next generation of outdoor enthusiasts, educators, leaders, and mountaineers of color to continue chasing their personal summits.” More than 6,000 have summited Mount Everest. Fewer than 10 of those climbers have been Black.
Monty and Rose are the two beloved piping plovers that surprised the Chicago birding community by settling at busy Montrose Beach to nest and raise their young for three consecutive years. When they first arrived in 2019, the number of their endangered species had diminished to 70 nesting pairs in the Great Lakes region.
After Monty died recently after making the spring migration back to Northern Illinois, and after Rose did not return, we reached out to Bob for his thoughts and those of others in the birding community.
One of the last remaining prairies in Illinois—8,000-year-old Bell Bowl Prairie in Rockford—is slated for destruction as the Chicago Rockford International Airport expands. Bell Bowl is a gravel prairie—among the rarest type of remaining prairie—and it contains some of the most intact and undisturbed natural plant communities found anywhere in the state. If the expansion occurs as the airport currently proposes, then rare, threatened, and endangered species will be destroyed—driven by growth in international shipping and Rockford’s role as a cargo hub for Amazon and UPS.
Q: You spent 14 years at the Chicago Tribune and three and a half years at the Chicago Sun-Times as an editor/writer. Do you miss those days when print dominated? Or do you see advantages to digital news dissemination?
A: Digital brings a speed and urgency that didn’t exist during the old print days. Seeing my own industry change is what it means to be in this business. A big part of journalists’ work is to document our constantly changing world and how change impacts our lives. I like that more people now are able to participate in sharing information. I don’t like when people are irresponsible or purposely sharing misinformation. Journalism is a sacred public service that shouldn’t be misused.
What is a One Earth Facilitator? Every One Earth event has a facilitator for our insightful post film discussions, but what does this person do? Let’s hear long-time One Earth Facilitator Susan Lucci explain the role. Catch Susan again during the Earth Day Mini Fest facilitating our post-film discussions for Clean Energy Revolution: 3 Short Films on Tuesday, April 19, and Mottainai Kitchen on Sunday, April 24.
