Wild Things – a conference for people and nature!

On Feb. 25th, 2023 about two thousand people celebrated and learned together. The next Wild Things will be in winter 2025.

The sprawling scores of concurrent sessions comprise a coming together of scientists, activists, stewards, volunteers, and professionals – "a World leadership event." There’s nothing else like it on the planet. People choose among workshops, seminars, presentations, and happenings that offer opportunities to appreciate and get involved in birding, wildlife conservation, endangered species, ecosystem restoration, volunteering, job opportunities, wildflowers, identifying insects by their sounds, hiking, kids’ education, photography – in so many forms, as creative volunteers and professionals plan and convene them to engage and welcome you into a community of importance and fulfillment.

 A brief history of Wild Things can be found here. 

In 2023 Wild Things celebrated the 60th anniversary of the Illinois Nature Preserves System. Its staff and – equally important – its volunteer Commissioners and restoration stewards have a challenging job, in an age when biodiversity’s importance is only slowly becoming recognized, and thus only a pittance of needed resources are available, beyond what volunteers and local agencies provide. 

 

For the conference website, go to: https://www.wildthingscommunity.org