Chicago needs 150 volunteers across the city on the Activation Day!
2023 Heat Watch Participating Cities
Why:
Identifying these hotspots, called urban heat islands helps local decision-makers take actions to reduce the health impacts of extreme heat, which often target the most vulnerable.
The data collected by volunteers will be analyzed and used to give Chicago residents and government decision-makers a clearer picture of ways to improve Chicago’s heat safety strategies.
When:
June – Volunteers will be contacted to be trained on the campaign. July – Activation Day (Date/Time TBD: To be Determined)
On the Activation Day, over three shifts (morning, midday, and evening), volunteers will travel the routes with heat sensors on their own cars. Each sensor records temperature, humidity, time, and location.
Heat sensor to be used to collect the data (source: NOAA)
Since 2021, Chicago Muslims Green Team (CMGT) has been an active member of the Community Tree Equity Working Group in supporting Our Roots Chicago, the City of Chicago’s tree equity program.
Our common goal is to expand the tree canopy coverage through an equitable approach. In simpler words, we want this Chicago map to go all green.
Tree Canopy Coverage Percentage By Census Tract. Source: chicago.gov
We want every neighborhood in the City to reap the benefits of trees. Trees provide shade for our home from the sun and blocking winter winds. Trees improve air quality, absorb water, thus help to prevent flood. Trees promote physical activities, increase walking traffic, and bring communities together. Trees reduce stress and anxiety. Trees also help to repair urban biodiversity. In conclusion, trees help to lower our energy bills, increase our property values, and improve the quality of life in our neighborhood.
Source: chicago.gov
The City of Chicago has a goal to plant 75,000 new trees in neighborhoods with low tree canopy. The City also has developed CHI311 App for anyone who wants to get involved.
Tree Equity Working Group Year-End Report. Source: Raed Mansour
However, it is still not an easy task without the support from community members. It would be a waste of tax payers’ money if the trees end up dying due to lack of water, being ignored, or vandalized by people who reject trees around their properties or in their neighborhood.
From 2021-2022, CMGT has been educating ourselves, spreading awareness to our diverse communities, connecting to other organizations by attending and organizing trainings, hosting webinar, giving talks at events, and attending tree planting events. Here is the clip to see our activities.
2021-2022 Tree Planting Program activities
In 2023-2024, CMGT is grateful to be one of seven organizations who receives the Resilience Grant to expand our Tree Planting Program. Under the guidance of CRTI (Chicago Region Trees Initiative) Morton Arboretum we believe that together we could achieve our specific goals in greening our beloved city and spreading the benefits of trees to our diverse communities in Chicago this year. InshaAllah!
The Resilient Grant Kickoff event on December 13, 2022. Source: Caroline
Green fuels are types of energy sources that are considered environmentally friendly because they produce fewer greenhouse gasses when they are used compared to traditional fossil fuels. These fuels are also referred to as clean, renewable, or sustainable energy sources. Some examples of green fuels include:
Solar energy: This is energy that is produced by the sun and can be harnessed using solar panels. Solar energy is a clean and renewable energy source because it does not produce any emissions when it is used.
Wind energy: This is energy that is produced by the wind and can be harnessed using wind turbines. Like solar energy, wind energy is also a clean and renewable energy source.
Hydroelectric energy: This is energy that is produced by the movement of water and can be harnessed using hydroelectric dams. Hydroelectric energy is a clean and renewable energy source, but it does require a large amount of water to produce.
Biofuels: These are fuels that are produced from organic matter, such as plant material or animal waste. Biofuels can be used to power vehicles and other types of machinery, and they produce fewer greenhouse gasses compared to traditional fossil fuels like gasoline or diesel.
Source: Mohammed Faheem
In a recent interview on ‘The Turning Point Podcast’ (www.theturningpointpodcast.com) hosted by Mohammed Faheem, Terry Marker, senior scientist at GTL Technologies spoke about the ongoing research and development in the field of green fuels, as scientists and engineers seek to find more efficient and sustainable ways to generate energy. Some of the latest research in green fuels includes:
Advanced biofuels: Researchers are working on developing advanced biofuels that can be produced from a wider range of feedstocks, including non-food crops and waste materials. These fuels have the potential to be more efficient and cost-effective than traditional biofuels.
Carbon capture and storage: Scientists are developing technologies that can capture carbon dioxide emissions from power plants and other industrial sources and store them underground, rather than releasing them into the atmosphere. This could help to reduce the carbon footprint of traditional fossil fuels.
Solar energy technologies: There is ongoing research into ways to make solar panels more efficient, as well as developing new types of solar energy technologies, such as solar paint and solar windows.
Wind energy: Researchers are working on ways to improve the efficiency of wind turbines and to make them more cost-effective. They are also exploring new designs for wind turbines, such as vertical axis turbines and turbines that can be deployed offshore.
Hydroelectric power: Scientists are studying ways to improve the efficiency of hydroelectric power plants and to make them more environmentally friendly. They are also exploring the use of small-scale hydroelectric systems, such as micro hydro systems, which can be used to generate electricity in remote areas.
Atomic Fusion: Nuclear fusion is described as the “holy grail” of energy production. It is the process that powers the Sun and other stars. It works by taking pairs of light atoms and forcing them together – this “fusion” releases a lot of energy. Nuclear fusion produces far more energy, and only small amounts of short-lived radioactive waste. And importantly, the process produces no greenhouse gas emissions and therefore does not contribute to climate change. This is in the experimental stages now.
Source: Energy.gov
GTL: Gas to liquid technologies: These processes are already in place in many countries. In Saudi Arabia, ‘Green Hydrogen’ is produced from sea water by separating hydrogen from oxygen and ‘Blue Hydrogen’ is produced by reducing Ammonia. Blue Hydrogen is currently exported to Japan from Saudi Arabia and is used to power several types of vehicles.
Overall, the goal of these and other research efforts is to find more sustainable and efficient ways to generate energy that will help to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and mitigate the impacts of climate change.
A plastic recycle vending machine has been installed at Istiqlal Mosque, the largest mosque in Southeast Asia, located in Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia (click here for the virtual tour of the mosque).
A plastic recycle vending machine in Istiqlal Mosque
As reported by VOI, the collected plastic bottle waste can be exchanged into Plasticpay Points through an app which can later be converted into electronic money that widely used in the city, such as DANA, OVO, Gopay, LinkAja, and INACASH.
According to Antara News, the Istiqlal Mosque recently became the first mosque in the world to receive an Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies (EDGE) certificate, as a green place of worship, from the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
The certificate has been awarded to the mosque since the worship place has been renovated based on an environmentally friendly concept. It has increased the efficiency of water and energy usage of the building by applying energy-efficient roofs, outer walls, and lighting; installing smart energy meters; as well as using solar panels, which support more than 13 percent of the building’s electricity consumption.
Waste Bank
Another green news comes from Tanjung Burung Waste Bank – or “bank sampah” as they are called in Indonesian.
At the Waste Bank, customers deposit their household waste and receive money in their bank account based on the rates and weight of the waste. Customers separated the waste into two, inorganic and organic. Inorganic waste is recycled and turned into bricks. Organic one is processed into compost.
Composter to turn organic waste to compostThe flowchart of the process to turn organic waste into compost, it includes storage (gudang) and marketing (pemasaran)Bricks made from plastics wasteAnother alternative to recycle plastic waste to build a wallRecycle plastic bottles used to build a decoration fence
Reported by Jimmy Kalempouw CMGT Ambassador from Indonesia
As reported by AP on July 21, The International Union for the Conservation of Nature added the migrating monarch butterfly for the first time to its “red list” of threatened species and categorized it as “endangered” — two steps from extinct.
Screenshot of monarch news on July 21, 2022
It means, the job is far from being done to prevent the monarch’s extinction.
In 2019, CMGT and Homes4Monachs hosted “Save Our Monarch” workshop at Downtown Islamic Center. At the workshop, participants learned how to harvest milkweed seeds and plant them. Milkweeds are the required host plants for caterpillars of the monarch butterfly and thus play a critical role in the monarch’s life cycle.
Thanks to the milkweed seeds shared at the event, Caroline from CMGT was motivated to grow milkweeds in her backyard. She was happy to see a monarch visited her milkweed plants in summer. She is also happy whenever she finds milkweed plants wherever she goes. For example, when she was at Forest Preserve Bemis Woods North to attend Hiking Leadership Training, she took a picture of milkweed plant there.
Caroline’s picture of Monarch visited her milkweed plant last Summer
In 2018, a documentary titled “The Guardians” was released to raise awareness about the incredible monarch migration in North America. It also shows how an indigenous community in Mexico fought illegal loggers who destroy their ancient forest, the home of the people and millions of monarchs.
