Media
Articles by Freshwater Lab affiliates
Op-ed: Fix for the Chicago-Joliet water deal — give recycled water to industry
By Rachel Havrelock, Chicago Tribune
July 2023
Hook, Line, and Sinker
Invasive species are a problem not only of trade and climate change but also of language
By Kathleen Blackburn, Guernica
July 2022
My Life in Oil
Detroit, the tar sands, and burying my father in toxic ground
By Rachel Havrelock, BELT Magazine
June 2020
EPA suspends enforcement as a nation needs to breathe
By Rachel Havrelock, Chicago Reporter
April 2020
What to Do with the Chicago River?
Reimagining the waterway for the twenty-first century
By Rachel Havrelock, BELT Magazine
February 2020
Rust Belt no more: Chicago should be capital of the Water Belt
By Rachel Havrelock, Chicago Tribune
April 2018
Watershed politics unite clean water advocates
By Rachel Havrelock, Great Lakes Echo
May 2017
Articles featuring Freshwater Lab affiliates
When the water wars come: Inside the plans for a pipeline between Joliet and Chicago
By S. Nicole Lane, The Chicago Reader | November 2023
Flooded basements are becoming more common in Chicago. Here’s what you (and city officials) can do.
By Jessica Pupovac / Curious City, WBEZ Chicago | October 2023
Groundwater depletion is a big problem, even in the Great Lakes region
By Landon Jones, WBEZ Chicago | September 2023
Chicago suburbs, running out of water, will tap Lake Michigan
By Brett Walton / Circle of Blue, Bridge Michigan | September 2023
Why—and How to—Engage Artists in Science
By Kimberly Blaeser, Dwight Owens, Sarah Zhou Rosengard, Kathryn Semmens and Mika Tosca, Eos | August 2023
Rio de Bienvenida / River of Welcome
Cynthia Weiss & Delilah Salgado, Chicago Public Art Group; Educational Partners: Citlalli Trujillo & Dr. Rachel Havrelock, UIC Freshwater Lab | August 2023
Floods Destroyed West Side Homes — And Climate Change Will Keep Battering Underserved Communities, Experts Say
By Kayleigh Padar and Trey Arline, Block Club Chicago | August 2023
Plan calls for recycling wastewater to avoid Chicago region water crisis
Smart Water Magazine | July 2023
The environment is at the center of new mosaic Pilsen art project
By Noel Brennan, CBS News Chicago | May 2023
Artists and advocates are reclaiming a Pilsen park in an industrial corridor along the Chicago River
By Maddie Ellis, Chicago Tribune | September 2022
At the Edge of the City, There’s Life
By Adrian Naves, Classic Chicago Magazine | April 2022
Not Just Another Pipeline
By Louise Erdrich, New York Times | December 2020
‘The River Speaks’ Personifies Six Branches Of The Chicago River
By Jason Marck, WBEZ Chicago | December 2020
Despite pandemic, UIC Freshwater Lab interns expand hands-on experience
UIC Today | June 2020
Some Chicagoans May Be Facing Coronavirus Without Water At Home
By Fernando Diaz, Alden Loury, and María Inés Zamudio, WBEZ Chicago | April 2020
As EPA backs off enforcement, states and cities have little capacity to fill gap
By Kari Lydersen, Energy News Network | April 2020
The Freshwater Lab: The Glue of a Community
By Erica Williams, Classic Chicago Magazine | April 2019
The Future of the Great Lakes
By Anna Clark, BELT Magazine | December 2018
How Healthy is Lake Michigan? A Checkup on the Great Lakes
By Nicole Cardos, WTTW Chicago | July 2018
Bringing humanitarian values to Great Lakes issues
By Gary Wilson, Great Lakes Now | November 2017
A ‘Toxic Tour’ of the Whiting Refinery on the Shores of Lake Michigan
By Ryan Schnurr, BELT Magazine | August 2017
The Oil Pipelines Putting the Great Lakes at Risk
By Ryan Schnurr, BELT Magazine | July 2017
Chicago water summit to focus on people, not “technocratic solutions”
By Gary Wilson Great Lakes Now | May 2017
Stormwater Surge Puts Chicago In A Pickle
WBEZ Chicago | May 2017
Great Lakes Clean Water Project In Jeopardy, Officials Warn
CBS News Chicago | May 2017
The State of the Lake
By Michal Kranz, South Side Weekly | May 2017
Threats to Great Lakes Topic of Summit at UIC’s Freshwater Lab
By Alex Ruppenthal, WTTW Chicago | April 2017
Good Water, Good Neighbors
By Sara Trappler Spielman, Hassadah Magazine | August/September 2015
Environmental policy center to convene Great Lakes mayors
University of Illinois at Chicago | November 2016
Great Lakes connects Midwest with Middle East in Chicago
By Holly Drankhan, Great Lakes Echo | April 2015
Jordan River water project hopes to re-energize the Middle East peace process
WBEZ Chicago | April 2011
Video
Moving Forward with the Chicago River
Learn about the future of the Chicago River from the UIC Freshwater Lab, with Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Commissioner Eira Corral Sepulveda, Dr. Rachel Havrelock, and members of the Freshwater Lab.
October 2022
Who Owns the Waters of the Upper Midwest?
Naomi Davis, Frank Ettawageshik, and Liz Kirkwood in conversation with Rachel Havrelock
Chicago Humanities Festival
September 2021
Aquatic Animals of the Great Lakes
Andrew Yang, Sarah Lewison, Robert Hirschfeld in conversation with Rachel Havrelock
Chicago Humanities Festival
September 2021
Speculative Infrastructure
Can we adapt infrastructure to withstand the effects of climate change? Derek Hoerferlin, Juanita Irizarry, and Toni Anderson in conversation with Rachel Havrelock
Chicago Humanities Festival
September 2021
Open Dialogue: Generational Inequality and the Environment
Pope L., What Pipeline, Jenny Kendler, and Rachel Havrelock
The Museum of Contemporary Art
April 2020
Fresh Water in the Time of COVID-19 | Webinar
Dr. Rachel Havrelock, founder and director of the UIC Freshwater Lab, shares how access to fresh water has been impacting Chicago residents during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum
April 2020
Freshwater Stories
Frank Ettawageshik, Debra Shore, Melissa Mays, Caroline Kason and others discuss the importance of freshwater and the fragility of the Great Lakes.
The Freshwater Lab
2017
Rachel Havrelock: Diversity & Interdependence
Rachel Havrelock speaks to the nature of borders, shared space, and understanding the lines that are drawn across our world.
Chicago Humanities Festival
December 2012
More Video
Chicago Stories: The Race to Reverse the River — Full Episode
WTTW Chicago | November 2023
Great Lakes Summit to Tackle ‘Environmental Racism’
WTTW Chicago | May 2017
Elective Studies with Rachel Havrelock: “The Politics of Fresh Water”
Illinois Humanities Festival | November 2015
Audio/Podcasts
Freshwater Radio
A show about society’s relationship to water in the Great Lakes watershed. Join host Anish Tailor as he sheds light on a variety of issues, and learn about where our water comes from.
Stories from the Floodplain: Long Live the Great Lakes Republic, a Conversation with Dr. Rachel Havrelock
Source, Path, People
Teach Me About the Great Lakes (Audio with transcript) | March 2022
Contact
thefreshwaterlab@gmail.com
(312) 996-6352
The Freshwater Lab
Great Cities Institute (MC 107)
College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs
University of Illinois Chicago
412 South Peoria Street, Suite 400
Chicago, Illinois 60607-7067