WJW visits the Omni Ecosystems Green Roof

Hosted by WJW alum Will Prescott, members of the WJW staff recently visited the downtown Chicago headquarters of Omni Ecosystems for a tour of their green roof and to learn more about the organization’s sustainable products for buildings.  

Founded in 2009, Omni Ecosystems is a manufacturer of living infrastructures that seeks to bring nature to the built environment via green roofs, green walls, landscape architecture, clean growing media for contaminated sites, and more. Their goal is to create a healthier, stronger, more sustainable future for the urban landscapes around us by infusing the city experience with nature. 

Green roofs provide a variety of benefits for building owners and city dwellers. They are able to reduce energy costs, decrease noise pollution, improve urban air quality, retain stormwater to manage runoff, provide natural safe harbors for migratory species such as birds and butterflies, and improve access to fresh, hyper-local foods with the creation of gardens and farms on acres of underutilized rooftop space -- among so much more! 

The Omni Ecosystems mission of “making an impact through striving diligently towards goals that improve the Earth and the human experience” is shared with WJW, where we specialize in the integration of sustainable techniques into the architectural process. It was great to visit the Omni space to experience first-hand how they are making green roofs and other green products work for urban environments.