In early March, the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition brought over 80 advocates from across the Great Lakes region to Washington, D.C. for Great Lakes Day—an annual event focused on the restoration and protection of the Great Lakes. The event gathered passionate environmental activists, local leaders, and concerned citizens who are committed to ensuring clean water and a sustainable future for the Great Lakes.

After nearly 40 years, the Rochester Embayment Area of Concern—a 35-square-mile portion of Lake Ontario near Rochester, New York—has shed its status as one of the most environmentally degraded places in the Great Lakes region. Learn more about this achievement happened in this success story.

Great Lakes supporters are in Washington, D.C., with the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition, to urge members of Congress to continue their support for federal investments to protect the drinking water, public health, jobs, and quality of life for the millions of people in the eight-state region.

This week the EPA removed New York’s Rochester Embayment Area of Concern on the shore of Lake Ontario from the list of most-contaminated sites in the Great Lakes region, drawing praise from the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition.

To help combat tree inequity, nonprofit environmental advocacy organization Faith in Place was awarded $1.99 million by the U.S. Forest Service’s Urban and Community Forestry Program to increase urban tree canopies in the Great Lakes region. Made possible by the Inflation Reduction Act, these funds will allow Faith in Place to facilitate tree planning and workforce development projects at faith institutions and 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations serving disadvantaged communities throughout Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin.

Deep in the heart of urban Chicago, a network of floating wetlands is restoring native wildlife habitats, increasing biodiversity, and encouraging recreation along the north branch of the Chicago River. Known as The Wild Mile, the interconnected islands were installed by grassroots environmental restoration organization Urban Rivers in 2017 and have since been dubbed the world’s first floating eco-park.

In 2019, Save the Dunes joined forces with the Indiana Dunes National Park and other regional partners to increase habitat connectivity and migration pathways for pollinators—some of the most important creatures in the global ecosystem.

Adding accessible ramps, boat launches, trails, and signage is helping visitors with disabilities access a culturally and environmentally significant Great Lakes destination.