Grasslands offer our communities ecosystem services like flood abatement, water quality, carbon sequestration and pollinator services. Prairie restoration and better land management are improving the quality of the 63,485 acres of grassland in northeast Illinois six country region. While things may be headed in the right direction many grassland birds are still seeing their number decline, other species are just hanging on. Chicago Wilderness has produced its first ever State of the Grassland Report to help build a regional strategy and public support for improving our grasslands. Co-authors Stephanie Beilke and Daniel Suarez from Great Lakes Audubon Tells us about the ambition and the findings of the first State of the Grassland Report.