Subject: A network connecting environmental and social action groups in Chicago

Description: Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai has worked for decades to create a more economically, environmentally, and socially sustainable world. Inspired by her example and by her 2007 lecture at the University of Chicago, the Civic Knowledge Project has catalyzed the formation of a network of individuals and organizations that are working to create a more sustainable Chicago. Partnering for a Sustainable Chicago--or Sustainability Partners--is an environmental and social action network in Chicago that will give many individuals and groups a voice, facilitating the spread of knowledge and building bridges within our community. Inspired by Maathai\'s Green Belt Movement, and by such allied recent movements as the Leave No Child Inside Initiative, we are developing new opportunities for connecting to each other and to nature. The CKP is uniquely positioned to help articulate and advance the philosophical fundamentals underlying the Green Belt Movement, the Leave No Child Inside Initiative, the movement to protect Biodiversity through Biophilia, and many other projects devoted to fostering a larger sense of justice that recognizes the crucial importance of sustainability, environmentalism, and biodiversity. We are committed to promoting creative and effective educational tools to help both young and old learn about these matters --tools that include environmentally educational bicycle clubs and food awareness programs that will highlight how our dietary choices can make a big difference, both locally and globally. Members of our network will have the opportunity to learn from each other\'s experiences and support each other\'s efforts by sharing information and resources through Specially designed and supported adult education courses, offered through the University\'s Graham School of General Studies, that will offer professional development creditWe invite you to join us in working together to make Chicago a more sustainable place for all of us to live in.If you would like to be added to our listserv or join our network, please fill out our Network Directory Form and email it to either nvasudevan@uchicago.edu or rschultz@uchicago.edu. And please feel free to call us at 773/834-3929 if you have any questions about our work!