The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning kicked off a series of panel discussions Thursday about our city’s future and what we need to prepare for 2050. The first conversation centered on how climate change will affect the region’s infrastructure and neighborhoods and what we need to do to not only survive but to thrive. It’s all part of CMAP’s development of ON TO 2050, a comprehensive plan for the region’s future.

Morning Shift talks to two people involved in the climate change panel. Michael Hawthorne is an investigative reporter with the Chicago Tribune where he focuses on environmental and public health issues. He was the panel’s moderator. Kristin Ihnchak is a principal planner at CMAP where she leads the organization’s climate planning efforts.