"Saving Living Space for Living Things" through protection, restoration and stewardship of land, conservation of natural resources, and education.

PROTECT native plant and wildlife communities in the Barrington, Illinois area. Although accepting land donations is our primary means of acquiring land, occasionally we purchase property that has great potential and natural importance.

INFORM the community about the value of natural resources and promote a caring attitude toward the environment. Classes and field trips for both adults and children are a regular feature of our educational programs. We can verify and approve volunteered hours of applicants and members of the High School National Honor Society and Community Service programs (such as for local School District 220 in the Barrington area). Boy Scouts regularly perform service hours and Eagle Scout projects on our properties or in other areas under our guidance.

RESTORE and recreate native plant communities - prairie, savanna, wetland, and creek.  Restoration helps perpetuate the species of plants and animals that give these communities their special character. In acting as stewards of the land, we transplant wildflowers, remove weeds, clear brush, and conduct controlled burns. We work with developers who need space for wetland mitigation and have annual spring and fall native plant sales for people interested in landscaping their own yards with native vegetation.

We don't just hold land; we actively restore it, putting back in place the full biodiversity that once covered northeast Illinois. For this, education, and other efforts, we absolutely depend on volunteers, keeping our costs low and our productivity high. We own over 350 acres in several properties, provide conservation easements on properties owned by individuals, and work in selected critical areas in local Forest Preserves. All of the tracts are located in the vicinity of the Flint Creek watershed and School District 220 in the Barrington area of northeastern Illinois. More information on volunteers can be found on the Volunteer page.

If you wish to help us financially, receive our newsletter and be kept up-to-date on our events and activities, please download the membership form and mail it to us. We will thank you for it! (We are known for being thrifty, so at this time we do not have a method for online donations. Sorry!)

An Introduction to CFC

2010 CFC Newsletters: Winter Spring, Summer
2009 CFC Newsletters: Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall
(Older newsletters available on request).

CFC in the media:

• "Invention Nation" on the Science Channel (a series looking at the environmental contribution groups and individuals make) met with Tom Vanderpoel and helped launch a floating island for a segment in their Dec 2007 "Dirt Rules" episode.
• In July of 2007 "Chicago Tonight" on WTTW (Ch. 11 PBS) aired "America's Missing Birds", on the disappearance of some formerly common prairie birds, with several scenes of the prairie restoration at CFC's Grigsby Prairie and Spring Creek Forest Preserve. This was later repeated on the nationwide PBS Program, "The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer" with a transcript available.
• The Observer, in the UK described the city of Chicago and their trip in the fall of 2006 to Flint Creek Savanna

CFC is a member of Chicago Wilderness, the IL Environmental Council, Healthier Barrington Project, the Chicago Region Land Conservation Coalition, the Flint Creek Watershed Partnership, and the Land Trust Alliance (LTA). We also meet the LTA Land Trust Standards and Practices, the ethical and technical guidelines for the responsible operation of a land trust.