For July, consider “Irreplaceable: The Fight to Save our Wild Places” by Julian Hoffman.
During COVID, I caught up a little on my pile of books, magazines and handouts, brochures, etc. that I have picked up at various conventions and workshops that I love to attend. One of those was the 2019 Annual Report of The Wetlands Initiative that included 25th anniversary plans for 2020. The celebration didn’t happen as planned, but the guest of honor, author and naturalist Julian Hoffman, did write an essay in the report to launch the next 25 years of ecological restoration, with TWI (The Wetlands Initiative) leading the charge.
Julian travels the world exploring the most remote regions as well as local communities trying to engage us in protecting our natural resources. Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie, right in our own backyard, impressed him and it is featured in this book, exclusively on six pages! Originally a prairie that was home to Potawatomi, Ottawa and Ojibway Indians, it became the Joliet Army Ammunition Plant where munitions were manufactured during World War II, the Korean and Vietnam Wars. In 1978, environmental impacts and locations of where waste was disposed was documented and in 1987, placed on the National Priority List to clean it up. A new name was needed for this area, and the Potawatomi word “midewin” (pronounced “mih Day win”) that means “healing the natural world” was chosen.
Located near Route 53 in Will County, a day in the tallgrass prairie will restore your soul.
Almost 9,000 acres are open to the public for biking, hiking and horseback riding. Check Midewin’s website for current information, but at this writing, the trails are open from 4AM to 10PM. It’s a beautiful place to see birds, bison and wildflowers as well as learning about the prairie restoration projects. Volunteers are welcome!
