Welcome to another episode of the Everyday Environment podcast where we explore the environment we see every day. I'm your host, Abigail Garofalo,

And I'm your cohost, Amy Lefringhouse.

And all season long, we've been talking about all things climate change from the basics to urban tree responses, invasive species, pollinators, human health, empowering youth, carbon markets, agrivoltaics, and composting and food waste. Wow. That's a lot.

It is.

So and it's been pretty great, and it's been so exciting to go on this journey. And we wanted to conclude this season with some really wonderful messages of hope and action from our very own climate specialist in Extension and friend of the pod, Duane Friend. Welcome, Duane.

Thank you for letting me be on. It sounds like after all this great stuff, I'm just happy to be here.

We're happy to have you. It's gonna be, it's been really exciting to explore this in such a long project for for us hosts, and so it's kind of it's just great to see it all come together and and, our listeners learn so much. And so I'm excited to leave people with this kind of message of hope because climate change can feel so dismal. My joke I like to tell people is, you know, they say, oh, denial, just ain't a river in Egypt. Well, despair ain't just something you keep in the back of your car, like a tire in the back of your car. So so we wanna leave people feeling a little hopeful about, you know, there's some things that we can do, some changes we can make, and we've been touching on it all season and hitting on it with our webinars and our podcasts and videos and blogs. But, I think devoting a whole, episode to it is really important. What about what do you think, Amy?

I love I yeah. I I always want to end some end things with, like, what can I do? Yes. This is, you know, an issue. We know it's an issue, but what can we do? So I'm I'm excited to talk about what we can actually do in getting our hands dirty and doing some work.

So let's jump into it, Duane. What are some of the most impactful ways that people can contribute to climate action in their everyday lives?

Well, like you say, a lot of folks when they think about this thing, they think about climate change and just that terminology, sometimes you get that deer in the headlight look from some folks and they go, what can I do? What what what what things can I do with related to climate change? But, really, a lot of the things that people are already doing or already thinking about, it's related to climate change because we're really talking about, in a lot of cases, energy usage. If we're talking about people living at home, in their residences, we're talking about energy usage, water usage, what they're doing with their landscapes. All of those things are related to it because all of that involves carbon in some way or carbon dioxide if we're talking about going in the atmosphere.

So, you know, we've been talking for years about energy usage and trying to set those thermostats, in the wintertime, as low as you can and still be comfortable to save energy. We talk about water usage, trying to to keep that water usage low, which also relates to how much energy is being used by water treatment plants or or water processing plants. And in the the if they have a garden, if someone has a garden, if someone has a landscape, thinking about what kind of things will work in there where you're not gonna be using as much energy. And I know earlier this year that we had that no may or no mow may. You know, thinking about things like that out in the the yard or the landscape where you're not using that power mower as much, where you're planting native plants that will be there for a long period of time, and you don't have to throw a bunch of, chemicals or fertilizer on them.

All of those things relate to energy use, which then relates to climate change. So a lot of those things that people are are thinking about doing, maybe already doing, they're they're adding to that aspect of of helping mitigate that change that's that is taking place, but we still have an opportunity to mitigate some of it. And we are gonna have to adapt in some cases, but we still got that opportunity there to mitigate what's going from this point on.

I love that. And it's about finding the adaptations and mitigations that work for you and your family and, you know, you're doing the best at doing. Right? So me, for example, I'm a lazy gardener. The least I can do, the better. And so that keeps the system healthy. And so I'm like, you know what I love about native plants? They're perennial typically. They come back every year. They're eventually gonna provide a nice leveling mulch for me that I don't have to mulch, and they keep my little, sidewalk stream at bay in the in the so. And so that's kind of a a an adaptation effort. Right? It's like that we're gonna see more stormwater. So I'm implementing things that are gonna allow for more infiltration to manage that stormwater on my landscape. And so that's what works for me. That's what works for my family. That's something that, you know, I've given thought into. Right? It's about that thoughtfulness as well. So very cool.

Right. And, you know, economically, saving energy in your homes and trying to not use as much energy, you're, you know, saving some pennies there, which is a win win. Right? You're saving money and you're also whether you know it or not, you're working on climate action, you know, and climate mitigation. So communities. So we're we talked a little bit about individually, you know, what we can do, but how important is community involvement and group involvement in climate initiatives, and what are some effective ways that people can, engage in their local community?

Well, obviously, the more more groupings that you've got, the more, cohesiveness that you've got, the more people involved, the better your point to have, something effective happen. So communities are obviously really important in this. And as time goes on, we're seeing more and more things like grants for green infrastructure and different things that are related specifically to communities come into play. And, you know, one of the things that, especially is true for smaller communities is even if they have access to some of those grants, a lot of times, they may not be that inter well, maybe they're interested, but they feel like they don't have the time or maybe they don't understand exactly what is needed to go into those grants. So, really, if if someone has has got the the background expertise, maybe they're they understand the terminology and they could help those communities with things like that.

That's really where, an individual can get involved with a community. You know, if they have that background knowledge in that basic climate science, if they understand the right way to communicate about climate change to other people no matter what what their beliefs are, and even having an understanding of how climate change affects people in different communities. Because in some communities, they are more affected than what other communities are. So having those background knowledge and skills set, is really what's gonna help people get involved in a community aspect of of things. And we we have an opportunity with Extension to help out with that. There's a a program that we're just starting called Climate Stewards. So this is a a a new program that started by University of Illinois Extension. It's called Illinois Extension Climate Stewards. In fact, we just finished the pilot program for this, this spring. It's a it's a rigorous course.

It was actually something that we licensed from University of California at Davis. They've been running it out there for several years. We saw it, and instead of reinventing the wheel, we thought, well, we'll just we'll take what they have. And we spent most of last year adapting it, though, to Illinois because, obviously, a lot of the things that happened in California, like wildfires and and those types of things don't happen as much here in the Illinois or the Midwest. So we re rework some of the information, some of the content so that it's related more to Illinois and the Midwest.

But this is a, a program. It's it's basically the equivalent of, about a 3 semester hour college course. So it's it takes a time commitment from from folks, but, it does provide those skills and the knowledge base that people would need to go out in the communities and help folks with this. So, it provides that basic climate science. It spends a lot of time. Really, the a a big focus of the course is on those climate communication skills because that's just vital to be able to work in communities and to work with other individuals. We also talk about climate justice and equity issues. And then, of course, we provide a lot of resources that people can use as they go out and try to help communities. So we are are starting that. We're having a a class this fall.

We're hoping that we can offer this multiple times throughout the year in different parts of the state depending on, what the interest level is. But then we hope that people who take the course will go out and be willing to volunteer, be willing to go out and help those communities. I do wanna emphasize that I know a lot of folks are familiar with our Master Gardener and Master Naturalist courses. This is not like one of those classes or one of those courses because once a person gets done with the climate stewards course, you're not gonna get a little badge that says you are now an Illinois Extension Climate Steward. They will get a certificate in which, they actually could use if they wanna use it, for resume building, if they wanna use it to show someone that, hey.

I've got I've taken this course, and I've I've learned about these different skills and and knowledge bases. But, it it is a a different type of system and different type of course than those systems. On the other hand, because it's not a formal volunteer course, nobody has to go through all the paperwork involved that's that's associated with Master Gardener or Master Naturalist, but it would take, around 35 to 40 hours to complete the basic course. We we usually are looking at probably around at least a minimum of a 12 week course to complete it. We do include, even though it's mostly a virtual program, we are going to include some in person sessions, and we'll also have some live Zoom sessions, where we'll bring in speakers, and then we'll also have times for time for, sharing ideas and reflecting on those types of things. So we hope people will be interested in in the course and be able to use it, down the road within their community.

Mhmm. I love it. And I love the course because you the big thing is you don't know what you don't know. And, people who do feel really passionate about climate work maybe don't feel comfortable talking about it because they feel like they need to be equipped with more information. And I I teach I focus very closely on climate communications in my Master Naturalist course, and, you know, what we learn is is you can have all the information you want, but if you don't know how to talk about it, it's not going to get many places.

Right? And so even if you don't have all the information, but you have those communication skills, you will probably be more successful, in in communicating because you know how to kind of troubleshoot different scenarios and, you know, best practices in talking about these things. And I think that's so important in having this empowered citizenship in these communities of people who just know, and have that influence. And I love that it's actually not a volunteer model because something that I feel like is a little restrictive of Extension of the volunteer model is, it can only be used for volunteer activities versus, you know, if I have somebody in an organization who wants to take this as part of their work, their supervisor really feels like this is an important initiative. They wanna have this person be their, like, climate change expert in the company to help guide policy or whatever.

They could have them do that, and then they could do that as part of their paid work, which is really cool and, because all of that is valuable. It all adds to the actions on climate change, which is really amazing. So I'm excited to see this. I'm I my I had my some of my community members as part of the pilot, and they really enjoyed it. And I've been seeing it grow from the beginning, and I hope to get trained as well to be an instructor. So we'll be offering it more in Cook County. I know there's a lot of interest up here, so very cool.

And that example you gave about the the the work skills and those types of things, that's a perfect example of of how we hope it gets used in a lot of cases.

Yeah. Or government leaders, you know, like, having someone who knows. I feel like there's a interest that we you know, the people who personally call Extension. Right? Like, they have phone calls. They don't just email us. They phone call us in or they stop by. I had an individual who did that the other day. They stopped by. I wasn't there, so I called them back. And they wanted to know a lot about how oak trees are going to be affected by climate change and parkway trees and specifically because they're replacing a lot of the ashes in their community. And I was like, this is a person who's, like, thinking and has as a a member of their community, can talk to their community leaders as and say, like, I'm thinking about these things. Are you? And the answer is probably yes. Right?

Because cities are investing a lot of time and money in trees, and so you wanna make sure that they are thinking about these things. But it's good to have voices in your community to make sure those things are happening or to at least just say, this is something that I, as a community member or this community in general, cares about because I'm investing money and time in this community.

And so I had a little bit to add to that. Just going back to where you said, you know, you don't know what you don't know. And sometimes we don't realize the connection that is happening in your yard or in your streets or, you know, on the electrical grid, you know, you don't realize that connection to then our climate and our weather patterns, and those two coming together and and affecting one another. And this course kinda takes you through, you know, internally, how does climate and weather incorporate into your life, what are the outside weather patterns and things that are happening in your neighborhood that are affecting you, so then in your neighborhood, then in your community, you know, it it kinda goes through just different, levels of your life and how climate can impact those, and then how to talk about it, how to, you know, look for solutions that might be applicable in your community. And I really like that model, in the course because, you know, what affects you, you're gonna you're you're gonna really care about. But it is a good way to get involved in in climate action. Just that step one, informing yourself, educating yourself.

And, Amy, you brought up a good point. It's the Master Gardener, Master Naturalist model is this, but the stewards is is without the volunteer element. Is this idea that, you know, we educate community members because we recognize that content and work in communities coming from their own community is better received and more likely to create change and positive impacts. And, also, they're able to bring that feedback back to us that, like, that's actually not good for my community or that is what we need versus what we don't need. And so training stewards of communities for them to go be kind these stewards or ambassadors in within them, are able to make more of an impact than if every single one of us went and visited each of these individual communities ourselves and came as the Extension professional talking about these things.

This is what you should know. You know, of course, we don't really teach like that anymore, but that's that's how it could come off versus, you know, my neighbor who took this class and was really impressed and applied it to their own learning and their own knowledge and their own skills. And now they're talking to me about it. Wow. I trust them way more than I trust Abigail, who I have met once. You know? So I think it's really cool.

That's a great point. Yep. A great point, Abigail.

Well, we've been talking about some some, more specifics, and you've been I've been giving some examples, and we've been talking about those. But what are some success stories that you've encountered when, individual or community actions have led to significant environmental improvements?

Well, if we wanna look at at Illinois altogether, most of the work is up in your area, Abigail. It's, for as far as community.

We have a lot of people. It's not because the work is being done elsewhere. Yeah. There's a lot of people and a lot of resources invested into my area. So

And, actually, the one that I was gonna mention, and I'm I'm not sure I'm gonna get the the the complete name right, and then you probably have heard of it, Abigail. So if I get the name wrong, correct me. I think it's Crossroads Community Climate Collaborative, C4. So this is, basically, a multi community collaborative where they're looking at, a number of different initiatives depending on what the community what each community needs, but it's it's something that's going on in the, I think, the west side of Cook County in particular. But, there are, I think, over 30 initiatives that they're hoping to work on, you know, things like improving, or adding green infrastructure, community gardens, composting, then they get into talking about, you know, individual well-being.

So there's just a number of different sections, and one of the in each sections, they've got 3 to 5 different initiatives. And so that's kind of a work in progress. And I think in some cases, you know, if we wanna talk about successes, we we probably have to wait a little bit on some of those. But, I think that's just a great example of how these communities can come together as a larger grouping and look at these things, but then take these things that that maybe have been planned out and see how they apply to their individual communities. So, I think that's just a great example of some community involvement and community planning that can go into some of these things.

Definitely. And if sometimes too these kinds of successes go a little bit under the radar. Maybe they're, like, little really local. So if any of our listeners as well have, like, something that they feel is like a really big success or it even doesn't even have to feel like a big one, a little one, and they wanna send that our way and, we can kind of highlight those things and give some kudos to that climate action that you all are making in your local communities, we would love to hear it. So you can find our contact information all on the website. And however you're listening to this now, it's probably on there as well. So, feel free to reach out to us and tell us your successes. It always makes us feel good about this work too. So

I think it's neat communities. The readiness of, you know, communities. Some communities are further along in some initiatives. Maybe they've had long term initiatives, you know, food waste composting. Maybe they've had long term, initiatives happening, but then now they're all kinda putting it together to just show their impact, you know, on climate now. You know? Some other communities might not even climate initiatives might not have even been in in communicated or talked about or discussed in in city councils or, you know, village meetings or things like that. So the there's different readiness levels, I guess, of each community, but it's cool to see those success stories that have come along just to just to see see where we could go, you know, where a community could go.

Well and if we wanna look at at the state too, I mean, Illinois as a whole is doing a lot of different things to to try to do climate readiness. I was gonna give one example there for the town of Pembroke, which is out, east of Kankakee. It's a small community, kind of an underserved community. They don't have natural gas lines into that community, so, they've had to use, like, wood or propane, and in some cases, for their energy usage. So there was a program that went in and provided for some houses upgrades in terms of their energy efficiency for, heating and cooling. And, again, energy efficiency, so we're cutting down on that carbon footprint. So, again, it's relating to the climate change in that regard also.

I also think in the agricultural community, there are lot more talking about climate smart agriculture, cover cropping, funding coming down from the government, and cost share programs that are funding cover cropping, pollinator planting, tree planting, all of those climate smart practices are really being discussed and realized that it that it connects again to to climate change. And

Well, I was just gonna say, and in terms of of a really big impact, I mean, when we look at at the the ag side of things and we look at soils and we look at the amount of carbon that goes into organic matter, which carbon's our organic matter is 58% carbon. You know, when we when they can cut down on that soil erosion so they keep that soil in place, the less tillage that's done, you're destroying less of that structure so you have less organic matter decomposition. I mean, we're talking about millions of tons potentially of carbon that can be, if not kept in place, that much can be added to soils as well. So it's just a a huge area where where that carbon can be used in storage.

Mhmm.

Well, and that's, in thinking about too, sometimes it's just a matter of success is, like, recognizing and conglomerating that efforts aren't just happening in small spaces, right, or in small areas. One of my favorite things I like to point to is the, the Chicago living corridors map. So that is a map of organizations' landscapes that they have either certified or or, like, recognized in some kind of way of doing environmentally friendly practices. And so so that map showcases that in this big area, each dot is a is a property that's making efforts in reducing chemical usage, reducing stormwater runoff, improving wildlife habitat, things like that. And so it shows that, like, oh, what you're doing on your small property matters, and being able to showcase that connecting them makes a difference and impacts the environment in that area is so, valuable because that changes the culture of it.

Right? It's not just the standard of, well, this is what we do on our landscapes. This is what we do on our lawn. It's, oh, wow. Look at all these people who are also doing things seeing these things. Maybe I should try it too because I'm not just a like, you know, starting something brand new. I'm not starting from scratch. So, yeah, sometimes it's just about showcasing the cool things that are happening in the first place, and that's a success in itself.

I would agree. Recognizing those patterns that there are patterns out there and look. We're connected to a bigger picture.

And then it is connected to climate change in the first place. A lot of people too, like, forget that it's all climate related, like Duane was saying. Like, oh, just because you're doing this, that is climate related. Look at that. It's crazy. Like, we, picked this topic for a reason for this season or something.

So, Duane, how can people stay motivated and hopeful, in the face of daunting challenges sometimes that are posed by climate change? How can we keep going?

You know, I I think it's one of those things, and and I know you guys, you too, have heard me talk about this before. But me being a little bit older, I I lived through this, in the sixties and seventies. And if if anybody lived through the that time period, you know what the water quality was like back then. You know what the air quality was like back then. It was horrible. As I I mentioned in in multiple talks, you go back into the fifties and sixties. There were rivers that caught on fire because of so much stuff in there. Smog issues in in communities from vehicle emissions were just terrible. You know? And in the early seventies, we everybody we made a decision because Congress actually, went ahead and did something.

They passed legislation to set up ways to make water quality better, make air quality better. And just like we hear sometimes today, you know, there were people that said, oh, this is gonna ruin the economy, and and this is just gonna be terrible. And, you know, we got through it. We we went through it, and I don't think anybody can deny we're not at a better place. The economy is still fantastic and probably better off than it was before.

So I I think it's just one of those things where, yeah, it seems like it's daunting, and it will take some work to get through it. But we've done these kind of things before, and we can do it again. So I I don't see it as something that's impossible to do. Yeah. It's a worldwide issue, but we do our part. That's still cutting back on on what's happening. So you know? And and one person by themselves, you know, even if they're doing their part, they're doing their part. So I think people can feel good about that, when they are.

I always tell people who feel like I don't do anything related to climate change. It's just my house. Is that gonna matter? All these things that see these other big issues that are that are really these other big, organizations, corporations, whatever that I I can't I don't have any say in or whatever. And I'm always like, well, you never know if you're gonna talk to someone who could make a difference or influence someone or know someone who knows someone.

And, you know, that's that's the big thing that I work on, in Cook County is changing the culture of landscapes. Right? Like, what does it look like to have a pretty landscape? And I think that changing the culture of climate change, you never know if you're gonna talk to somebody about climate change or about something that's that's impacting our climate that in someone who is in a position to make a difference or or has those kinds of of, abilities and power. And so I I never want people to feel like they are powerless because their voice is power.

It what you were talking about, though, is kinda like when, when you're you're either sitting in class or you're teaching in front of a group of people, and you may have someone in the back back row that you think, oh, they're not paying attention or they're they're not really interested in what you're talking about. And you find out later, maybe that person comes back to you or you find out through somebody else that, you know,

that person has become very interested in whatever it was you were talking about and is doing something now. So you can't always just judge someone by, you know, whether they're they're they're sitting there, whether they're they're, you know, getting actively involved at the time because there are some folks like that that, maybe won't say a whole lot at the time, but you you've really affected them. Yeah. Talk about success stories.

You were talking about how, you know, the Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, things like that, the ozone layer. Like, all of those are success stories of large action that was collectively done to improve environmental quality and conditions. And, those are things that we need to tout as successes and say that's our that's it's possible. That's our light. Right? And the urgency is still there because the urgency still needs to continue, but that hope, I think, can be really motivating.

See, I agree. Whenever I've heard you say that before, Duane, in other talks, and it does make you like, oh, yeah. I mean, that was 1970. Wasn't that long ago,

thank you

and we made a shift in right.

It wasn't.

It really wasn't that long ago. We did make a quick shift. I mean, in society and, you know, big picture, that was a quick turning of the the boat, you know, to start making environmental improvement. So we can do it. It's it's I always love it when you when you say that story.

And the one thing I challenge some folks that maybe are out there getting their masters, getting their PhD, and, or thinking about that, what what area they wanna go into, I challenge someone out there in that realm to think about doing research on if you're looking at energy usage, find doing research on finding some ways to change our change away from carbon based fuels. If someone can do that, not only will they be will they get the Nobel, they'll probably be very rich for doing it. So that's and someone on the ag side, if they can find a way to make if they could find a way to make, no till farming with cover crops an option that would be equal to or better than the way farming is done for the most part today, be the same thing with that. So I challenge someone to go out there and do that.

Mhmm. Yeah. And even, the every person, I challenge you to think about, you know, what are you doing? What's what where are your voices in your company you're working for, your local community to think about, you know, what is, you know, what is my community doing towards climate action? What is my organization doing? Do I have a voice in that? Alright. Well, kind of our last question. What are some common misconceptions about getting involved in climate work, and how would you address them?

I think one of the big things with this, a lot of people, first of all, think that there's a lot more denying from other folks on climate change than there's really out there, and I think folks are afraid to talk about it, in light of that. Mhmm. So I I think that's one of the the one of the most common misconceptions is there's a lot more deniers out there than people think there's a lot more deniers out there than what's actually out there. And then I think people are very apprehensive about talking to someone that may be thinking along those lines. And, hopefully, that's one thing with this Climate Stewards course, shameless plug, that hopefully would give people at least are they gonna be experts on it by the time they get through with the course? No. But they're gonna have have at least a knowledge of those skills that they can work on to be able to to talk to different audiences, different groups no matter what what side of the the spectrum they're on and to be able to do that in a civil fashion.

Yeah. That's such a good point. I have, an assignment I give my Master Naturalists every year is to have a conversation about climate change with anyone, and the first assumption they make, and it's not written in the assignment, is they have to talk to a denier. And like the then I'm like, that I never said that. You're welcome to, or someone who does deny climate change. And I was like, you don't have to do that. Like, you can talk to your person perfectly like minded friend or neighbor, but they're always very surprised. And when they do talk to someone else because there's usually even similar sentiments, or and sometimes too, it's like the despair concept as well. But it I don't know. So every every, reflection I get about it is everyone always says, yeah. It was kinda sad, but it felt really good to talk about it. And I think that's pretty cool, to kinda have that little bit of anecdotal information from people that feels good to talk about it because it feels heavy on everyone's minds.

Yeah. I just like to I'm more of a non confrontational communicator. So I'm always like, well, what do you think? And so we just have a convert it's more just have a conversation about, you know, what's happening. Do you do we know any data? What is the data that we both, you know, share in knowledge? What's the knowledge that we both share, I guess, is what I was trying to say, but I don't know. Just talking about it and bringing it up and having a conversation, that's, like, step one, and it's very nonthreatening. And, you know, again, climate stewards course, you know, gives you gives you some of those tools to to be able to have those conversations.

And, hopefully, as we get more and more people that have gone through the course, especially within local regions, they can maybe even form their own groups.

Mhmm.

Climate stewards communities and Yeah. Go off and change the world there.

Change the world.

I love it. I love well, that's a great, kind of endnote for this this kind of topic, and we really appreciate it, Duane, sharing all of your knowledge and and, thoughts on action related to climate change and what we can do. So we are gonna finish today's episode with everyday observation where we highlight the mundane and normal of our environment that is actually really interesting. Amy, you're gonna kick us off.

Sure. I think I'm gonna share I don't know. I always have some kind of different thing to share, but I've been judging 4=H natural resource projects, and, obviously, we at Extension, 4-H is a big part of our youth development program, and I get to go in and and, talk to young people who are doing natural resource related projects every year, and every year I am always blown away. They are so awesome. The projects are awesome. Kids, you know, sometimes you get you might get into that thinking that, oh, kids play video games all the time and this and that, and, yeah, they might do that more than we did when we were young, but they're also doing some really neat things out there, and I I just get inspired every year, when I see their projects and the work that they're doing. And I encourage everyone all of our listeners, you know, volunteer to be a judge or encourage young young folks to do a natural resources related project. We always need more projects, but it always a fulfilling job.

I love this section because we always get little insights into the Extension life and people's work in Extension as well because I just feel like the job is a little weird. There's, like we're always doing something different and, so it's cool to hear that that's another part of it. So great. Well, Duane, what's your everyday observation?

Alright. So this happened just yesterday, and I'm gonna preface this by saying I'm just an occasional runner. I try to get out a couple of times a week. But late yesterday afternoon, I got out and, had several people say, oh, it's really hot out. And I said, no.

I'm I'm going. So I got out there and just being out there and seeing that blue sky and those clouds in the after the rain, there was that little bit of smell from the moist soil, going through trees or some areas where trees were over both sides of the road and just smelling that those trees, going past a cornfield, getting that little whiff of corn pollen. I just to me, that was just heaven. So, that was fantastic, just seeing that natural world out there.

I love how the how nature just opens all of your senses, right, and the smells and the sights and the sounds and just it's just such good therapy. Abigail, your turn.

Right. Yes. It's my turn. I was so I, have a native garden. I have a lot of different things that grow, and I think I've mentioned this previously at some other time and the times that we've done, you know, everyday observations and spotlights and stuff like that. But now is the time that my swamp rose mallow is blooming. And so those are, like, the native hibiscus to Illinois, and I actually got the seeds from a friend, and he and so I've been starting a little seed sharing with work and with with other people I know. And so I planted this, like, I don't know, like, 3 years ago. I threw the seeds out 3 years ago. I got them in April, and I was like, I don't think these are gonna come up this year, and they didn't.

And I completely forgot about them. And then last year, something tall started to grow up, and I had planted a dahlia right there, like, a big dinner plate dahlia, so it was really big. And so I thought it was the dahlia. Well, then I was like, this is not the same as that plant. These are different plants. And so it came up, and I was like, it's a swamp rose mallow. And they're really tall, but they're these gorgeous, like, hand sized flowers, and a hibiscus, nonetheless. So it's, like, really weird looking for, like, a native plant. Yeah.

And, they only each flower only blooms for a day. And so, it's, like, a little fleeting, but I have so many now. And so now this is their 2nd season. So now they, you know, they come up there a little slow at first, and then this year, they're, like, everywhere. And so I'm gonna actually end up transplanting them because they're a little tall. But, man, I like, every morning I wake up and my partner's, like, laughs at me because I'm always like, there's another one. There's another one. There's another one. Do you see another one? I'm, like, taking all the photos I can. I'm like, stop taking photos. You have 18,000,000 photos of this of this flower. But, man, are they just, gosh, like, blowing my blowing my brain every morning when I see a new one, and and then they're gone. By the end of the day, they kinda flop and just fall off. And then they do produce seeds, but I had, like, a weevil really eating them up last year, and I was like, you know what? You're hungry. It's fine.

Yeah. Yeah.

So but but yeah.

So that's my kind of everyday observation. I just get to really enjoy the the queen of my backyard for the next few month like, month or so of of, my swamp, rose mallow.

Oh, that's awesome. Nature gives. Right? You just put out a seed and you barely have to I mean, you said you just bloop, and then there it is.

I really forgot about it. I really was thinking it's a dahlia, and I was like, this is a dahlia. Nope. So

That's awesome. I love it.

Well, this has been another episode of the Everyday Environment podcast. This is our last episode of the season, and we have so enjoyed having all of you along on this journey as we explore all things climate change in our inaugural season.

This podcast is a University of Illinois Extension production, hosted and edited by Abigail Garofalo, Erin Garrett, and Amy Lefringhouse.

University of Illinois Extension.