sustainability

From Shoe Factory to School: This Green Building's in a Class by Itself

From Shoe Factory to School: This Green Building's in a Class by Itself

Historecycle has emerged from fall hibernation with renewed energy, like an aging building newly retrofitted with LED lights. For the past several months, we’ve been Sherlock Holmes-ing a few “mystery” structures we’ve discovered, to dig into their murky past. And the rigorous pursuit of historical data has been like a shot in the arm.

Take, for example, the former B. & B. Shoe Company factory, which dates to at least the 1920s. Located in Chicago’s Old Town neighborhood, B. & B.’s workers used sewing machines to turn out footwear by the hundreds, starting most likely in the 1940s. By 1992 the three-story brick building had been sold to the current owners and reopened as the Catherine Cook School.

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Green Meets Grandeur: Rehabbing an Illinois State Fair Building

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Green Meets Grandeur: Rehabbing an Illinois State Fair Building

Every year, thousands of visitors flock to Springfield, the heart of the Land of Lincoln, to see Lincoln’s stomping grounds. But thousands more visit the city for another reason: to attend the Illinois State Fair each summer. One of the Fair’s key structures, the Coliseum, was designed for prizewinning ponies as much as for people. It recently was treated to a major renovation that focused on safety and sustainability while honoring its illustrious past.

Young Filmmakers Workshops Spread Near and Far

Young Filmmakers Workshops Spread Near and Far

Imaginations soared at the 2019 Young Filmmakers Workshops (YFW) with results ranging from a documentary about endangered box turtles to a humorous fantasy involving the Loch Ness monster, no longer able to hide in a dried up lake due to global warming.

With all Young Filmmakers Workshops, teachers focus content on the environment, encouraging but not requiring students to enter the Young Filmmakers Contest.