HR0298 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0298 LRB103 32472 LAW 61966 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to congratulate Gerald W. "Jerry" Adelmann on the occasion of his retirement from serving as head of the environmental conservation organization Openlands; and

WHEREAS, Gerald Adelmann received undergraduate and graduate degrees at Georgetown University and George Washington University; and

WHEREAS, Gerald Adelmann joined Openlands in 1980 to coordinate a special program that led to the creation of the Illinois and Michigan Canal National Heritage Corridor, the first federal land designation of its kind; and

WHEREAS, Inspired by this model, Gerald Adelmann launched the Canal Corridor Association in 1982 to work within the heritage corridor; and

WHEREAS, In 1988, Gerald Adelmann was appointed as head of Openlands; under his guidance, Openlands launched the 21st Century Open Space Plan, which called for expanded parklands, greenways, and trails in northeastern Illinois and the surrounding region; and

WHEREAS, Gerald Adelmann played an instrumental role in establishing the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie and formed conservation partnerships across the region; and

WHEREAS, Gerald Adelmann has been involved in conservation and historic preservation projects in China since the early 1990s; and

WHEREAS, Since 2008, Gerald Adelmann has served as an international advisor to the Yangon Heritage Trust in Myanmar, advising on regional planning and sustainable development; and

WHEREAS, Gerald Adelmann lectures extensively throughout the United States and abroad; and

WHEREAS, Gerald Adelmann is the vice chair of the Center for Humans and Nature and an emeritus member of the National Board of Advisors of the National Trust for Historic Preservation; he also chairs the City of Chicago's Nature and Wildlife Committee and is a member of several other boards and commissions; and

WHEREAS, Gerald Adelmann's conservation and preservation work has earned him prestigious accolades, including the Hutchinson Medal from the Chicago Botanic Garden in 2012 and an honorary doctorate from Lewis University; he is also an honorary member of the American Association of Landscape Architects; and

WHEREAS, Gerald Adelmann has managed to save large swaths of the local landscape for future generations; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Gerald W. "Jerry" Adelmann on the occasion of his retirement from serving as president and CEO of the environmental conservation organization Openlands; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Gerald Adelmann as a symbol of our esteem and respect.