United By Nature brings water campaign to Chicago

United By Nature is stopping in Chicago on July 27 with Chicago Climate Week, Current and Shedd Aquarium as part of a 60-day road trip focused on local water solutions across the country. The visit highlights flood pressure, lead pipe replacement needs and a push to deliver petition signatures to policymakers in Washington later this summer.

Why it matters: - Chicago is part of a national water campaign that ties local infrastructure problems to broader calls for action on drinking water and watershed protection. - The stop comes as heavy rainfall has strained the city’s stormwater system and Chicago still faces the largest lead pipe replacement burden in the U.S. - The campaign is collecting public signatures in person and online to show policymakers that water issues have national backing.

What happened: - United By Nature is hosting a free community event at North Avenue Beach on Monday, July 27, with Chicago Climate Week, Current and Shedd Aquarium. - The event is part of the Great American Water Road Trip, a 60-day cross-country tour documenting local solutions to water challenges in more than 30 cities. - The tour has already stopped in more than 18 destinations. - Blair Carlyle, a Florida influencer known to more than one million followers as “Uncle Pappy,” is driving the 8,000-mile trip. - The campaign is also asking people to sign the van and add virtual petition signatures urging leaders to protect America’s waters.

The details: - Benji Backer, United By Nature’s founder and CEO, said the road trip is showing that “the people fixing it live there” in places from the Salt River and Great Lakes to the Carolina coast. - Backer said Chicago was chosen because it sits next to one of the world’s largest freshwater resources while many families still cannot trust their tap water. - Chicago Climate Week will also feature United By Nature at other events during the city visit, including a screening of The [Conserv]atives documentary and a panel on reimagining public lands at Aspen Ideas: Climate. - Mackenzie Siren, co-chair of Chicago Climate Week, said the partnership helps make climate conversations more accessible and brings people together around Chicago’s waterways. - The route will continue to Detroit and New York City before ending on Aug. 4 in Washington, D.C., where organizers plan to deliver signatures to policymakers. - The campaign will conclude on Aug. 10 in the Everglades, which organizers describe as a celebration of the largest water restoration project ever undertaken in the United States. - Americans can follow the campaign, attend a stop or sign the van in person or virtually at United By Nature's campaign site. - Signing up enters participants for a chance to win the campaign van, a rafting trip or Ticketmaster vouchers.

Between the lines: - The Chicago stop blends local organizing with a broader political message: water access, storm resilience and restoration are being framed as connected national issues, not separate city problems. - The campaign’s mix of events, social media reach and petitioning suggests an effort to turn conservation into a visible public movement ahead of the Washington delivery date.

What's next: - The road trip is expected to continue through Detroit and New York City before signatures are delivered in Washington on Aug. 4. - The campaign will wrap in the Everglades on Aug. 10 after the Washington stop. - United By Nature is encouraging people to keep following the tour and adding signatures through the campaign site.