About Omni

Omni Ecosystems integrates science and design into working landscapes to improve resiliency within the built environment and empower healthier, happier humans.

Omni Ecosystems leads the industry with deep expertise in two branches - providing landscape architectural design services (Omni Workshop™) and living infrastructure products (Omni Rewild™). These two branches collaborate to inform better results for clients and are engaged independently.

• Omni Rewild equips design & trade professionals to grow soil & life anywhere through Omni Infinity Media material & process. ​​

• Omni Workshop designs spaces for people, embracing nature to test and advance the ecology & culture of place.​​

This structure provides clients with direct access to Omni's industry-leading technology and design ideation while maintaining flexibility to engage their trusted partners. Our unmatched innovations unleash the possibilities - let's collaborate!

 

Bringing nature & humans together to enhance environmental performance and the aesthetic dimension of landscapes.

Omni designs working landscapes and invents & supplies engineered growing media, which support environmental, social, and financial benefits beyond a typical landscape. Working landscapes provide natural beauty and co-benefits, such as managing stormwater, growing crops, creating habitats, and serving as engaging spaces for people.

Integrating natural and dynamic landscapes into the places we live, work, and play is a fundamental building block of resilient cities. By infusing nature into our daily lives, Omni brings balance to the built world, and nurtures a meaningful connection between people and nature.

Our team includes experts in microbiology, ecology, landscape architecture, horticulture, and green infrastructure.

Where To Find Our Work

Omni is a certified Women Business Enterprise (WBE) headquartered in Chicago, with built work spanning the country.

Community Engagement

Omni cares about and supports its local community Bronzeville.

 

Omni Milestones

  • 2006

    First green roof application using Omni Infinity Growing Media™.

  • 2009

    Company founded. Molly Meyer and Michael Repkin begin collaboration on commercial development of Omni Green Roof™.

  • 2012

    The Omni Green Roof goes to market, and the Omni Tapestry™ is invented for the Thompson Hotel in downtown Chicago.

  • 2013

    Molly Meyer and Michael Repkin define their alternative green roof system in “Beyond Extensive and Intensive: Defining the Comprehensive Green Roof,” published in the Cities Alive Conference Proceedings.

  • 2014

    Omni® wins its first Award of Excellence from Green Roofs for Healthy Cities for the Kimball Avenue project. Molly wins the Urban Land Institute Chicago Young Visionary Award, Curbed National Young Gun recognition, and ENR Midwest Top 20 Under 40.

  • 2015

    Omni Terrain™, a new method for greening and remediating brownfields, is developed and used in its first application. Omni is featured in Conscious Company Magazine and Landscape Architecture Magazine.

  • 2016

    Molly and Michael Skowlund found the landscape architecture studio Omni Workshop™. Omni grows a rooftop wheat field and organizes the first-known green roof grain harvest, prompting a visit and public recognition from Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Omni expands its work nationwide, completing projects from Boston to San Francisco.

  • 2017

    A year of accolades: Omni wins two Awards of Excellence from Green Roofs for Healthy Cities and the Social Equity Green Building Market Leadership Award from USGBC Massachusetts.

  • 2018

    Omni completes landmark projects at McDonald’s new corporate headquarters and McDonald’s flagship restaurant located in Chicago. Omni and Recover Green Roofs win joint Award of Excellence from Green Roofs for Healthy Cities for their green roof at the Harvard Business School. Omni wins a Merit award in Landscape Architectural Research from the American Society of Landscape Architect. Molly gives presentations for USGBC Greenbuild, ASLA Annual Meeting, ULI Chicago Women’s Leadership Initiative, CREW Chicago, Chautauqua Institution, Chicago Architecture Foundation, IIT architecture guest lecture, and GRHC’s Cities Alive Conference, representing Omni as an expert in urban agriculture, green infrastructure, and resilient landscapes. In addition, Molly received the Emerald Award for Individual Leadership from the Illinois Green Alliance.

  • 2019

    The Green Infrastructure Foundation launched the Living Architecture Performance Tool (LAPT), and all three of the first three LAPT certified green roofs were Omni Ecosystems projects: Omni designed, supplied, installed, and maintains the platinum-certified Adlai E. Stevenson High School East Building Addition (Lincolnshire, IL); Omni designed, supplied, and installed the gold-certified Carroll Rooftop Farm (Chicago, IL); and Omni designed and supplied the silver-certified Harvard Business School McArthur/McCollum Building (Boston, MA). Omni received many accolades including the Silver Ribbon from the Chicago River Blue Awards; the Strategic Planning Award from the American Professional Association; and the Sustainable Landscaping Award from the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District. Molly received the CREW Network Entrepreneurial Spirit Impact Award.

  • 2020

    Omni finishes construction and officially moves into its new corporate headquarters in Bronzeville. Molly is named Small Business Person of the Year by the Illinois District Office of the U.S. Small Business Administration, Omni receives two Green Roof and Wall Awards for its installations at McDonald’s Headquarters and District House, in collaboration with SOM, Omni Workshop’s Wild Mile Framework Plan is named a finalist for Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas. Omni is awarded USPTO utility patent #10745307 for its wastewater cleaning technology Omni Capture™.

  • 2021

    Omni is awarded a grant through the Rebuild Illinois Regional Economic Development program (RIRED), which will help launch the next phase of development at 4131 S. State Street. Molly is named one of Crain’s Chicago Business’ Notable Women in Construction and Design. Omni receives a Green Roof and Wall Award of Excellence for its living wall at Hatch 41. In collaboration with The Chicago Architecture Biennial, Omni activates a 1-acre former industrial site into Seed A Lot: Sidewalk Share, an immersive rewilding landscape and template for future activations of vacant land.

  • 2022

    Omni re-envisions its mission and launches Omni Rewild to equip design & trade professionals to grow soil through Omni Infinity Media. Omni launches Omni Meadow, the proven future of green roofs. Omni Workshop is featured in Landscape Architecture magazine for its contributions to the Wild Mile intervention on the Chicago River. Omni Infinity Media is installed at the Salt District project, a milestone in Chicago's use of green infrastructure and innovative soils to achieve stormwater requirements. Omni receives an ILASLA Merit Award for the Salt District project. Molly is named one of Crain’s Chicago Business Notable Leaders in Sustainability 2022.