Current headlines

The outdoor education and celebration space at Four Rivers Environmental Education Center in Channahon has increased this year with the addition of a shelter along the Des Plaines River. 

The Forest Preserve District's General Use Ordinance No. 124 prohibits the feeding or baiting of wildlife in the preserves and violators will be ticketed. The prohibited activity can lead to disease transmission, overpopulation and illnesses in wildlife. 

The first person to test the new GRIT Freedom Chair at Four Rivers Environmental Education Center said she loved that she could travel over grass, roots and mud and feel secure while doing so. The wheelchair is available for public use at no cost. 

The next installment of the Healing With Nature series features Nick Wallace of Joliet. The combat veteran and former Marine sergeant picked up 70 bags of trash at a preserve recently. He said being in nature reduces his anxiety and provides pure enjoyment.  

An adaptive all-terrain wheelchair is now available for public use at Four Rivers Environmental Education Center in Channahon. The GRIT Freedom Chair – Spartan Model can be used by people of all ages and abilities. 

Off-leash dogs are not allowed in the forest preserves other than inside the dog parks. If your dog is loose, you could be ticketed. Off-leash dogs scare other preserve visitors and their pets and the loose dogs could be harmed themselves or do damage to the environment. 

A recent visit by a group from Little Friends in Warrenville highlighted just how welcoming the Forest Preserve's Four Rivers Environmental Education Center is to all people, regardless of abilities. The site is now nationally accredited for inclusivity, which means all are welcome and all can participate. 

Extensive, multiyear restoration efforts at the Forest Preserve District's Sand Ridge Savanna Nature Preserve have earned an "Excellence in Ecological Restoration" award from Chicago Wilderness. The District received the award on Jan. 17 at a “Celebration of Conservation” banquet at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle. 

The National Inclusion Project’s first nature center accreditation in the country has been awarded to the Forest Preserve District’s Four Rivers Environmental Education Center in Channahon. Months in the making, the accreditation shows Four Rivers is a facility where all visitors, regardless of ability-level, can participate. 

Need a wrench or an air pump while biking? No problem. The Forest Preserve District now has six bicycle repair stations along its trails thanks to funding by The Nature Foundation of Will County and the Joliet Bicycle Club.