In a world where the environmental news is often dreadful it’s nice to get a chance to help influence the creation of a new wildlife refuge. The Hackmatack Wildlife Refuge (http://www.hackmatacknwr.org) is still very much in the planning stages, but momentum is building. There are upcoming open houses and petition and polls circulating about. The proposed refuge will be between Fox Lake and Lake Geneva straddling the state line.

I have been a horticulturist for thirty years working in the Chicago area and beyond. I have lived in Oak Park for over thirteen years. My writing has recently appeared in the journal Ecological Restoration... More by Dave Coulter