Chapter 4

Activities

Activity 4.1
Many cities provide public data portals, which contain park boundaries or other types of green infrastructure information. Maps can be created using GIS or directly using the mapping tools embedded into the data portals. Below are some city links. Look on your own for additional ones.

Chicago

Activity 4.2
The full report “Green Values Strategy Guide: Linking Green Infrastructure Benefits to Community Priorities” from the Center for Neighborhood Technology details each of the benefits listed in Table 1. Their website also includes an interactive tool called the Green Values Calculator which
can calculate benefits and costs for a specific site.

Sidebars

Sidebar 4.2
A partnership in Chicago area called the Chicago Region Trees Initiative supports equitable and healthy tree investment. In 2022, the City launched a new program called Our Roots Chicago to advance neighborhood tree equity as part of the City’s climate action plan. The outcomes of these programs are critical as a recent investigation by the Chicago Tribune found decreasing tree cover throughout the city, with dramatic disparities in tree plantings by neighborhood over the past decade: “Chicago planted trees at a higher rate in wealthier, whiter neighborhoods over the past decade.”