Bat Week kicks off today, showcasing how great these furry little flyers are for the planet, the economy, and local plants. Bats are facing some serious survival threats, though...and this Halloween is the perfect time to help them out.

New areas of the Riverwalk open to the public today, giving downtown guests a first look at the Jetty, Water Plaza, and Riverbank.  Friends' executive director Margaret Frisbie talks with ABC7.

The Chicago Riverwalk is more than just a great lunch spot with a spectacular view...it's also a terrific way to connect with nature and local history.  Get inspired with this video.

Friends’ nest installation project and other restoration efforts are helping  birds find reproductive habitat where there used to be none.  Take a look at this recent article on DNAinfo that highlights how important the river is to ospreys and countless other bird species.

Our efforts to tag and track turtles at restoration sites along the North Branch and in the Calumet have really paid off. Read more about this exciting development here.

What's this little critter? Friends' staff who were present aren't convinced that the medium sized brown animal swimming at Goose Island was a muskrat, but we do know that river otters are making a comeback. 

According to wildlife biologists from the Forest Preserves of Cook County, they have been seen downtown and in several forest preserves along the Chicago, Calumet, and Des Plaines rivers. 

While there are a lot of good reasons not to swim in the Chicago River system, they are becoming a fewer and Friends is pleased to be developing ideas and partnerships that will help make the river safe and more accessible every day. Check out the Chicago Sun-Times piece regarding a potential swimming event that ran last week. Also check out Friends' comments on why you should NOT jump in just yet.

One of Friends of the Chicago River's longest and most loyal volunteers, Tom Nelson, who sadly passed away last winter, was heralded in the Chicago Tribune because of his spirited style and dedicated to the Chicago Jazz.

Nelson met his wife, Laurie, at the Chicago Jazz Fest and on their first big date he brought her down the Chicago River in a big inflatable raft which he ended up bringing to Jazz Fest, using it as a couch to enjoy the sounds of jazz in the magnificent park.

The Columbia College Chronicle highlights the need for investment and collaboration to make the rivers that flow through the Chicago and the collaboration through Great Rivers Chicago and the "Our Great Rivers" plan that was released this summer.

On August 27, 2016 David St. Pierre, the executive director of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD), the agency in charge of our sewers and stormwater, and the biggest discharger to our waterways, jumped into the Cal-Sag Channel downstream of the Calumet sewage treatment plant to prove that he believes the water is clean enough for swimming.

St. Pierre’s jump, inspired by Steve Buchtel, executive director, Trails for Illinois, who jumped in with him (to benefit the Cal-Sag Trail), marks a moment in history that should be celebrated with brass bands and confetti.