02-03-2025
Conservation experts gather for Wild Things Conference
ROSEMONT, Ill. – The leading experts on conservation converged for the Wild Things Conference in Rosemont on Saturday.
The biennial convention is one of the largest conservation gatherings in the Midwest.
'It's like our Christmas,' said Amy Doll of Friends of Illinois Nature Preserves. 'It's an energetic and inspired group of nature nerds.'
The topics might not seem attractive for some, but the questions of conservation and climate are king and queen-bee here.
'Our public lands really belong to all of us, and it's up to all of us to protect them and steward them,' volunteer coordinator Jessie Crow-Mermel said.
Crowds gather in Channahon to watch bald eagles
The very first 'Wild Things' was 20 years ago and has become the largest conservation conference in the Midwest, bringing together experts on ecosystems from bats, birds and bees to bioswales.
'Clean water and clean air and also how to advocate and talk and share about those things with our community, and also the tools and resources they need to care for nature where they live,' Doll said.
'I'm just here to learn and glean from so many great people who put in time and effort and energy into keeping our ecosystem vibrant and restoring our prairies,' Beersheba Abernathy of Need An Angel Sons & Daughters Association added.
WGN's Sean Lewis got a front row seat at the conference Saturday morning. To see the full story, watch the video in the player above.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
