WP+D 2009 Distinguished Speaker Series:
PART II: Open Space and Water Impacts
DATE: June 2, 2009. Tuesday.
TIME: 6:00pm-8:00pm
WHERE: Chicago Cultural Center, Claudia Cassidy Theater, 78 E. Washington Street
PARKING: Grant Park Underground Garage (enter from Michigan Avenue)
TRANSIT: Many CTA and Metra options
COST: Free with registration*; donations accepted
*Click here to register for this free event via email
Featured Speakers
-Jan Metzger, Senior Project Manager at the Center for Neighborhood Technology and Author of What would Jane Say?
-Debra Shore, Commissioner at Metropolitan Water Reclamation District
-Joyce O'Keefe, Deputy Director of Openlands
Event and Speaker Overview
The Women in Planning + Development Distinguished Speakers Series is a four-part series looking at specifically at women and their relationship with the Burnham Plan. This is event is Part Two of the Series, where our focus will be on open space and water. Jan Metzger, author of "What Would Jane Say?" will read from her book and discuss parks, water, and open space. Debra Shore and Joyce O'Keefe will then give an overview of today's issues relating to water & open space and discuss their work at various levels of community and government organizations. A panel discussion of all three speakers will review past and current successes and challenges of water and open space, among other topics including Q & A from the audience.
Jan Metzger
Ms. Metzger will survey some of the achievements of Jane Addams and the large network of women active in 1909, with particular emphasis on their ability to create great impact with small investments. Burnham's plan established expensive infrastructure (big plans) as the pinnacle of urban planning, but omitted investment in the region's residents. To this day we live with the consequences of those lost opportunities.
Jan Metzger has worked on city-building efforts of the last three decades, including Mayor Washington's school reform summit, affordable housing, environmental issues and transportation reform. She is a Senior Project Manager at the Center for Neighborhood Technology and author of several CNT reports on planning, including "Planning Matters" and "Changing Direction: Transportation Choices for 2030."
Joyce O'Keefe
Joyce O'Keefe is deputy director of Openlands, a nonprofit conservation organization that works throughout northeastern Illinois and the surrounding region to protect natural areas and open space. Ms. O'Keefe was instrumental in the establishment of the State of Illinois' water supply planning effort currently underway. She represents the environmental community on the Northeastern Illinois Regional Water Supply Planning Group. Ms. O'Keefe has also played a leadership role in a number of land preservation projects including the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie and Fort Sheridan. She is a past chair of the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission and currently is a member of the Natural Resources Advisory Board of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Her interest in planning as a tool for protecting the region's natural resources stems from her experience as a former Highland Park City Councilman and former Plan Commissioner.
Debra Shore
Debra Shore is currently a Commission for the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District, which was established by the Illinois State Legislature in 1889 as the Chicago Sanitary District and was charged with protecting the drinking water supply for the burgeoning metropolis of Chicago. Debra has a long history of working with water issues and environmental project and for more than 15 years Debra has been an active volunteer helping to clean up and restore the forest preserves along the North Branch of the Chicago River in Cook County. This work has taught her that the waters and woods are the real Discovery Zone in our region, essential for our quality of life, for cleaning our air and water, for recreation and contemplation. Debra served on President John Stroger's Community Advisory Council on Land Management from 1997 to 2007 and is a founding board member of Friends of the Forest Preserves.
*Click here to register for this free event via email
