Before closing out 2024, we want to take some time to celebrate some of the clean water wins this past year. The Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition is grateful for our partners across the eight-state Great Lakes region and these successes wouldn’t have been possible without their continual efforts; thank you, all!

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.

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.

Removing an unsafe low-head dam in Indiana’s Mississinewa River leads to increased fish habitat, safer recreation, improved water quality, and increased flood prevention.

Learn more about the work of Brown Faces Green Spaces, a nonprofit environmental education organization dedicated to helping People of Color connect with nature in Indiana and beyond.

In northwest Indiana along the East Branch of the Little Calumet River, ecologists are working to restore populations of native mussels, an often-overlooked natural resource that improves water quality in tributaries off Lake Michigan.

The Northwest Indiana Paddling Association has done great work to establish seven universally accessible boat launches to help people of all abilities enjoy water sports—a feat that has given the Hoosier State a new claim to fame.

Restoring wetlands in northwest Indiana helps reverse loss of vulnerable marsh birds, supports clean water and engages the community in the area’s beautification.