Over the weekend the World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers hub dedicated time to volunteering in Chicago. The hub and our guests partnered with Urban Rivers to help clean up a part of the city. Urban Rivers is a wonderful non-profit organization that is working to transform “city rivers into wildlife sanctuaries, to provide spaces where people of all backgrounds can connect with nature in new and innovative ways.”
My Experience Volunteering With Chicago’s Urban Rivers: The First Floating Eco-Park:
Our group cleaned up The Wild Mile. The Wild Mile is a public park with an ADA accessible boardwalk. There are two ways to pick up trash and care for the area. And so, our group was split in half and we began working. The first group cleaned up the river in kayaks. While the second tended to the garden. At the halfway point, we switched. I appreciated being able to participate in both forms of the clean up day. It was great having the opportunity to pick up litter in the river and learn about how to care for the floating garden.
Important: If you don’t want to kayak, you don’t have to. Urban Rivers lets people tend to the garden for the entire volunteer period, if that’s where folks are more comfortable.
Tidying The Floating Garden
The Wild Mile is the world’s first floating eco-park. Garden plots are assembled to float on the river. Caretakers and volunteers are able to walk on these plots to pick up any trash that washed into them and to weed. Our group helped remove an invasive weed that if left, can damage the other plants growing in the plots. Urban Rivers showed us how to identify the invasive plant. From there, we spread out to remove the weeds. Uniquely, proper disposal of the weed is to toss it into the river. That was fun! Urban Rivers provided context that while the weed isn’t great for the garden’s eco system, it is fine to be a part of the river’s in this capacity.
What Was It Like Gardening On Water?
It took me a while to find my sea legs. I was wobbly for a while, but I stood on the wooden beams of the plot, which helped me find my balance. I didn’t fall overboard, which was fabulous! The fencing along the side also prevented us from backing up too far and falling over. But, just in case that were to happen, we were all required to wear life jackets.
As you can see on my life jack, in the photo above, there is a string with a whistle on it. Should we or anyone around us need help, we can blow it and help would arrive. Some of the garden plots had fencing that was taller than other plots. I found those difficult to enter. Thankfully a new friend and fellow volunteer helped me enter the plot and was someone I could quite literally lean on to gain balance.
For those who have motion sickness, this might not be the best option for you. However, I think there would be plenty of opportunity to still be a part of the volunteer experience. There were volunteers who helped monitor and teach us about the safety requirements, supply coordinators, and dock supervisors. I recommend getting in touch with Urban Rivers to communicate any of your or a fellow group member’s accommodations, prior. This way all of the details can be worked out and accommodations could be implemented as needed.
What Do You Need To Bring?
Urban Rivers had all of the supplies we needed. While they provided sun protection , it was in the form of sunscreen only. If you prefer something more than that, you will need to bring a hat or sunglasses. They do not have any available. Volunteers were also encouraged to bring a reusable water bottle. A jug of water was available for refills as needed. Here is a list of all of the supplies Urban Rivers had available.
Supplies Provided:
- Rain boots
- Life jacket
- Trash grabber
- Waterproof gloves/ gardening gloves/ work gloves
- Compostable garbage bag
- Bucket
- Kayak & paddle
Cleaning Up Trash In The Chicago River In A Kayak
This was my first time kayaking and wow, what an incredible introduction! Urban Rivers gave a demonstration for how to kayak, which included how to get in and out of the kayak, how to move around in it/ turn around, and how to collect litter without tipping over. I was the only one in my group who hadn’t kayaked previously, but it wasn’t a barrier or limitation. I was able to keep up/ hang with the other volunteers and work as a team to collect pieces the other couldn’t reach.
The group I kayaked with didn’t have as many things in our trash bags because the groups before us cleaned up a lot! However, we did still collect a good amount of litter. In my bag alone, I was able to pick up food wrappers, single-use plastic straws, pieces of building materials, micro-plastics, and medical supplies.
Kayaker Safety
There were many times when I bumped into the floating garden and other kayakers. Others in our group did the same. Urban Rivers said this is to be expected. Needless to say, Urban Rivers doesn’t require expert level kayakers. As long as everyone abides by the safety instructions they go over and doesn’t intend to harm anyone or anything, all level volunteers are welcome. There are rangers on the river to ensure everyone stays with the group and makes it back safely. Plus other safety precautions.
Kayaking Supplies
As mentioned in the supply list outlined in the first half of this post, the kayaks and other equipment are provided by Urban Rivers. Within the kayaks, volunteers are given a walkie talkie, trash grabber, gloves, and a trash bag. Kayakers were allowed to bring their water bottles with too. Otherwise, there is a table in the garden area where bottles can be left while on the river.
Overall, this was an incredible experience! Whether signing up for a volunteer event solo or coordinating a group of friends/community members, I think the uniqueness and the immediate results make for a great volunteer day. Plus, this location of Urban Rivers is next door to a Brewery. Grab drinks and pizza after a day of cleaning up the city and preserving local ecosystems/ wildlife sanctuaries. I highly recommend Urban Rivers if you’re looking for hours volunteering in Chicago.
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