Chicago Wilderness, launched in 1996, is a regional system of nature reserves that includes more than 200,000 acres of protected natural lands from southeastern Wisconsin through northeastern Illinois and into northwestern Indiana. The protected lands include forest preserves, state parks, federal lands, county preserves, and privately owned lands.
Chicago Wilderness is a coalition of more than 160 public and private organizations working together to protect, restore, study, and manage the precious natural ecosystems of the Chicago region for the benefit of the public. Their vision, as described in the Biodiversity Recovery Plan, includes "a network of protected lands and waters that will preserve habitat for a complete spectrum of the region's natural communities. . . A critical mass of sites will be large enough to maintain a sustainable complex of interdependent species and natural communities. Carefully monitored habitat corridors will connect sites, both small and large, opening paths for ancient patterns of migration and dispersal."
For more information on this project, see Related Links at bottom right of screen.
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