Prairies Over Lawns is a landscaping business specializing in native Illinois prairie restoration. As a worker-owned cooperative, we are a values-driven business that puts our workers and community first.
Our Team
Keith Couture (they/them) is originally a Hoosier who has lived in Chicago since 2015. Keith’s longtime love of plants and trees motivated them to work in urban agriculture and eventually become a certified Chicago Treekeeper, a role that led them to learn more about prairies and Illinois’s ecosystems prior to settler colonialism. Keith is a regular bicycler and relies on an 8-foot trailer to transport tools and supplies for prairie projects in order to reduce their negative environmental impact as much as possible. Keith is also an artist and regularly draws on their interests in prairies, trees, bicycles, basketball, and science fiction. Their art can be seen at www.keithcouture.com.
Ash Luciani (she/they) has worked in urban agriculture in Chicago since 2013, but has always been learning about, growing, organizing, celebrating and focusing their life around plants in one form or another. Some of their favorite projects have included restaurant rooftop gardens, job training youth farms, growing seedlings for sale, and organizing with their local seed library. Ash sees prairie restoration in our yards as integral to the urban agriculture movement, as it fosters a healthy environment for pollinators, while also reflecting our growing desire as humans to become reconnected to nature.
Hana Silverstein (she/they) is originally from the California Bay Area and has lived in Chicago since 2020. Previously a public school teacher who regularly used plants and gardening to engage children in the classroom, she dreams of giving everyone access to natural ecosystems directly via their yards. She is also an avid backyard vegetable gardener and an artist who creates beauty everywhere she goes.
Prairies Over Lawns 