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Demonstrating the viability of sustainable concepts and practices in urban environments through research, education, and hands-on projects.

Conferences and symposia

Chicago 2175: Creating the Change

Thursday, August 13, 2009 · 8:30 AM

Event summary
Schedule and lecturers
1. Mike Repkin
2. Blake Davis
3. Dave Hampton
4. Emily Lake
5. Nicholas Petty
6. Brian Lutey
7. Paula O’ Connell

Location
Media content
Acknowledgements

Event summary

Urban Habitat Chicago presented its first conference, Chicago 2175: Creating the Change from August 13-15, 2009, at the campus of Northside College Preparatory High School.

This event featured lectures on 6 diverse but interrelated topics, ranging from composting, urban agriculture, and vertical gardens to better buildings and healthy interiors. Attendees had hands-on training in installing Ozinga Filtercrete, a pervious concrete product, and received certification to install the material. Over 30 people became certified as a result of this event!

Other event highlights included all hands on deck to pour a section of the accessible pathways at the in-progress Joy Garden using Ozinga’s permeable concrete; hands-on training in vermicomposting and other composting techniques, solar cooking, and solar water distillation.

See photos from the event here.

For more information, contact us!

Schedule

This conference was organized into 3 days: 1 indoor lecture session day and 2 outdoor hands-on training days.

Day 1 | Wednesday, August 13, 2009

Indoor Lecture Sessions

Featured a multidisciplinary group of speakers on a range of topics which addressed the most pressing environmental, social justice, and economic challenges of our day, and offered creative and effective solutions.

8:30 am
Registration and Coffee

9:00 am
Welcome and Introduction

9:15-9:30 am
Changing the Way Humans Inhabit the Earth
Michael E. Repkin, Repkin Biosystems, Inc.
Audio clip (MPEG audio, 62.3 MB)

9:45-10:30 am
Composting Regulations and Techniques
Blake Davis, College of Architecture, Illinois Institute of Technology
Audio clip (MPEG audio, 83.8 MB)

10:30-11:35 am
“Rethinking the Life of Buildings”
Dave Hampton, Hampton Avery Architecture
Presentation (PDF format, 15.9 MB), Audio clip (MPEG audio, 109 MB)

11:35 am -12:15 pm
“Designing Edible Landscapes”
Emily H. Lake, Terra Madre Landscapes
Presentation (PDF format, 4.8 MB), Audio clip (MPEG audio, 86.6 MB)

12:15 pm
Lunch Break

1:15-2:35 pm
“The Role of Landscapes in Human Habitat”
Nicholas Petty, MLA
Presentation (PDF format, 4.4 MB), Audio clip (MPEG audio, 190 MB)

2:35-3:40 pm
“Pervious Concrete: Filtercrete”
Brian Lutey, Ozinga Concrete, Inc.
Presentation (PDF format, 1.0 MB), Audio clip (MPEG audio, 123 MB)

3:40-4:25 pm
“Interiors and Your Health”
Paula O’ Connell Environmentally Sustainable Designs, Inc.
Presentation (PDF format, 1.8 MB), Audio clip (MPEG audio, 91.9 MB)

4:25-4:30 pm
Closing remarks

Day 2 | Friday, August 14, 2009

Pervious Concrete Installation Training and Certification

presented by Ozinga
9:00am to 4:00pm

Skills to help make our cities permeable, cooler, and ultimately more livable.

Day 3 | Saturday, August 15, 2009

Outdoor Hands-on Workshops

Presented by UHC staff, interns, and students of Northside Preparatory High School
12:00 noon - 4:30 pm

Solar cooker construction, solar distillation of water, composting techniques, SDGG (solar dried ground garbage) creation, and demonstration tour of Joy Garden