[column width="47%" padding="6%"]Beyond the Same Old 'New' Ideas John Michael Greer asks his audience to acknowledge that one of the least recognized and most pervasive challenges we face in moving toward a saner relationship between natural systems and human communities is the way that a set of repeatedly failed ideas about the future keep being recycled in the popular imagination. By recognizing these stereotyped “new ideas” for what they are – business as usual under another label – we can step past some of today’s least useful controversies and engage creatively with the emerging deindustrial future. John Michael Greer is ... READ MORE

Stories from the Heartland Citizens Against Longwall Mining Speak Out Longwall mining at Deer Run Mine and its “planned subsidence” now threatens over 5000 acres of highly productive farmland in Montgomery County. The mine is owned and operated by Hillsboro Energy LLC, an affiliate of the Cline Group. Coal baron Chris Cline is one of the driving forces behind expanding Illinois Basin coal production.  Chris made his fortune in Appalachia before acquiring rights to high-energy, high-sulfur Illinois coal. Spending $300 million on mining rights and equipment in Illinois, he predicted that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency would require power plants to use scrubbers ... READ MORE

Overpopulation, climate change, peak net energy, limits to growth, and economic malaise – are creating crises in human civilization never before experienced. But they also are causing an ongoing search for alternatives that not only meet human needs, but also protect and restore the environment upon which we all depend. Watch this presentation on Eco-Villages response to climate change by Albert Bates, Director of Global Institute for Appropriate Technology and get inspired to act! ... READ MORE

While much of the country is talking about fracking, corporations such as Peabody Coal and Foresight Reserves LP are quietly extracting coal from America's Heartland. Strip mining, room and pillar and longwall mining for coal are destroying some of the best agricultural farmland in the world, displacing once cohesive farming communities, and polluting clean water across the Illinois coal basin, which includes the state of Illinois and portions of Indiana and Kentucky. At the other end of the coal cycle, burning coal is contributing to toxic coal ash dumps, which threatening the health and safety of nearby residents, and destroying ... READ MORE

From Friday, November 1 through Sunday, November 3, Great Lakes Bioneers Chicago presented their 2nd Annual Event, "Celebrating Community Resilience". Great Lakes Bioneers Chicago is a local, self-organized affiliate of National Bioneers. Eco-Justice Collaborative served as lead for this event with 6 keynote speakers and 75 workshops, along with the participation and support of the Great Lakes Bioneers Chicago Core Team; Program Planning and Outreach Teams. As one attendee said: "Rejuvenating and inspiring, this event fueled my creative spirit to work on sustainability and resilience projects in my community. Plus, I now feel I have broader connections and more resources ... READ MORE

A report released today by the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability and Downstream Strategies estimates that in the 2011 Fiscal Year, the coal industry drained nearly $20 million from the Illinois state budget in subsidies and expenditures related to supporting the coal industry. The report, The Impact of Coal on the Illinois State Budget, was commissioned by the Sierra Club, Prairie Rivers Network, Faith in Place, and Eco-Justice Collaborative ... READ MORE

A 50 Year Plan for Surviving Climate Change by Blake Davis

The economy is the “canary in the coal mine” of climate change. No one is prepared for the devastating consequences of the collapse of the ecosystem and the economy. Government and business are committed to actions that will exacerbate the problem and cause tremendous hardship for the average person. By projecting where current trends are taking us, we can all take immediate personal actions to protect ourselves, our families and our communities.

Watch Blake Davis' presentation A 50-Year Plan for Surviving Climate Change sponsored by Eco-Justice Collaborative, Great Lakes Bioneers ... READ MORE

Consilience, Concinnity, and The Way Keynote Address by Dr. Gerould Wilhelm, Bioneers Chicago, 2012 When our cultural behaviors are in harmony with land and the native plants and animals around us, we are in consilience with our place and ourselves. Strictly adhering to what many indigenous cultures call “The Way” is critical to our survival. In this address, Dr. Wilhelm uses native prairie, woodland, and riverbank landscapes to illustrate the importance of following "The Way".  Our survival depends upon creating a healthy relationship with the natural world, rather than viewing it as a backdrop or “playground” for our own ... READ MORE