“Green” is at the center of the Southeast Side’s vision for the future, embodied in a motto often used by community leaders: “From Steel to Green, Pollution to Solution.”
Since 2008, over 20 organizations have collaborated on the annual 10th Ward Green Summit. It showcases the community's significant efforts around affordable green housing, open space, and gardens—like the Artists’ Garden pictured here, run by the South Chicago Art Center.
Claretian Associates, a nonprofit affordable housing developer, is spearheading green housing initiatives (photo courtesy of Kevin Murphy).
Since 2010, Claretian Associates has led the City-sponsored South Chicago Retrofit Project, which helps residents access free programs to make their homes energy efficient and comfortable—and lower their utility bills in the process. Photo courtesy of City of Chicago.
The South Chicago Toolkit project is a community-wide exhibit aimed at spreading the word about the South Chicago Retrofit Project. It was designed by youth and includes nine displays, two outdoor decorative planters, and a website.
The youth organization The Zone, which created part of the exhibit, is also helping lead longstanding environmental justice efforts advocating for green development that provides local jobs.
