City Atlas

Earth2Class Workshop: New Insights on Ocean Acidification
2015-03-07 09:30 - 15:30 (America/New_York) | Columbia University Lamont Campus, 61 Route 9W, Palisades, NY, 10964, United States
Speaker: Taro Takahashi, Ewing Lamont Research Professor, Division of Geochemistry, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, The Earth Institute; Adjunct Professor, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences (DEES), Columbia University
Earth2Class presents “New Insights on Ocean Acidification”, with Taro Takahashi,Taro Takahashi, Ewing Lamont Research Professor, Division of Geochemistry, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, The Earth Institute; Adjunct Professor, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences (DEES), Columbia University.
E2C is a unique science/math/technology resource for K-12 teachers, students, the general public, and geoscientists. It is a collaboration among researchers and an Earth Science educator at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University; technology integration specialists from Colégio Bandeirantes, São Paulo, Brasil; and classroom teachers from New York, New Jersey, and elsewhere. It centers around Saturday Workshops for Educators held at Columbia’s Lamont Campus in Palisades N.Y. One key feature to E2C is involvement of LDEO scientists. Their availability through workshops, web site postings, and e-mail allow teachers and students access to cutting-edge research which can be used to develop learning activities directly linked to real-world problems, and provide scientists with an effective format to disseminate their discoveries more broadly.
Location: Columbia University Lamont Campus Marine Biology/Seismology Building Seismology Seminar Room, 2nd Floor
There is a charge on the day of the event to cover food and supplies. Columbia affiliates are $10, non-affiliates $25.
Pre-registration is required.
To register for this class, please contact Mike Passow at michael@earth2class.org.
Photo courtesy of: www.pmel.noaa.gov

TEDXManhattan: Changing the Way We Eat
2015-03-07 10:30 - 18:00 | TimesCenter, 242 W 41st Street, New York, NY, 10036, United States
FOOD & FARMING LUMINARIES TO TAKE STAGE
One-Day New York City TEDx Event Will Explore Sustainable Food & Farming on March 7, 2015
Union Square Hospitality Group CEO and Founder Danny Meyer and Food Tank co-Founder and President Danielle Nierenberg are among those who will take the stage at TEDxManhattan, “Changing the Way We Eat,” on March 7, 2015, in New York City. With an exciting roster of experts and innovators, TEDxManhattan raises public awareness about critical issues facing the food system while fostering collaboration within the food movement. In order to be inclusive, TEDxManhattan also invites communities, organizations, and individuals to organize viewing parties worldwide for the live webcast of this one-day TEDx event.
Supported by lead sponsor Change Food, this independently organized TEDx event will gather speakers and audience members from diverse backgrounds to create new synergies, connections and collaborations across disciplines. Since its inception in 2011, TEDxManhattan has become a nationally-recognized brand and a sought-after platform for individuals and organizations working on issues related to sustainable food and farming. As Environmental Working Group President Ken Cook recently said, “This institution, TEDxManhattan, has changed the food movement.”
Confirmed speakers for the 2015 event include:

Joel Berg, Executive Director, NYC Coalition Against Hunger
Henry Hargreaves, Photographer
Kendra Kimbirauskas, Farmer/CEO, Socially Responsible Agricultural Project
Nikiko Masumoto, Masumoto Family Farm
Danny Meyer, CEO, Union Square Hospitality Group
Danielle Nierenberg, Co-Founder and President, Food Tank: The Food Think Tank
Ali Partovi, Angel investor/advisor, Facebook, DropBox, Flixster, Break Media, Causes, Farmigo & more
Stefanie Sacks, Culinary Nutritionist, author, host, “Stirring the Pot” radio show on Hamptons NPR
Anim Steel, Director, Real Food Generation
Marcel Van Ooyen, Executive Director, GrowNYC

“TEDxManhattan is the perfect vehicle for raising awareness about critical issues in food and farming while at the same time encouraging action,” said Diane Hatz, TEDxManhattan organizer as well as Founder & Executive Director of Change Food. “Not only is the one-day event impactful, the videos from the presentations can be used as educational tools by everyone in the food movement for years to come.” TEDxManhattan videos have been viewed nearly 6 million times since 2011.
The full day of talks will be webcast live from NYC, providing access to viewers worldwide, including those at viewing parties. There is no fee associated with hosting an official viewing party, just compliance with TED’s rules. The day is scheduled to allow viewing parties time to hold discussions, bring in local speakers, and sample local foods. Learn more at www.tedxmanhattan.org.
There are 3 ways to watch TEDxManhattan:
1. Register and host your own viewing party.
2. Join a registered viewing party.
3. Watch the webcast on March 7th from your own computer 10:30am – 6:00pm eastern. You can even sign up to receive a reminder so you don’t forget to watch.
In addition, you can embed the webcast onto your blog or website – please help TEDxManhattan share the event as widely as possible!
More information on remaining speakers and the TEDxManhattan program will be provided as details are finalized.
Registration is required: http://www.tedxmanhattan.org/
Photo courtesy of: foodsystemsnyc.org

Queens Botanical Garden: Indoor Gardening Workshop: Start your Summer Veggies Indoors
2015-03-08 13:30 - 14:30 | Queens Botanical Garden, 43-50 Main St, Flushing, NY, 11355, United States
Grow your green thumb at QBG! Join Fred Gerber, Director of Education Emeritus for an adult workshop on starting your summer vegetables indoors. This program is an introductory workshop that should have something of interest for both the novice and experienced gardener.
Advance registration and payment ($6) required – register at https://eventbrite.com/event/15200769912/

Hearing on Proposal For Swimmable New York City Waters
2015-03-09 12:00 - 14:00 | US EPA Region 2 Office, 290 Broadway, Room 27A, New York, NY, 10007, United States
Your voice is needed to call for swimmable (and paddle-able) water in NYC!
The NYS Dept of Environmental Conservation has proposed to improve the quality of waterbodies in NYC by amending standards for Class I and SD waters. Those waters – including the Hudson River (south of the Bronx), Harlem River, Bronx River (tidal portion), East River, Flushing Bay, Newtown Creek, Gowanus Canal, Jamaica Bay tributaries, Kill van Kull, and Arthur Kill – are currently protected only for fishing and/or “secondary contact” recreation that involves incidental contact with the water.
Help call for a higher goal by explicitly including “primary contact recreation” as an officially designated use for these waters. We know that many of these areas are already being used for human powered boating – even swimming. Human powered boating exposes people to same risks of unclean water as swimming.
Learn more and turn out to this critical public hearing.
Can’t be there right at noon? Come as soon as you can and add your name to the speaker list while the hearing is going on.
If you can’t make the meeting at all, DEC has extended the public comment period for the proposed rulemaking until 5 p.m. on March 16. Comments should be submitted to NYSDEC, 625 Broadway, Albany NY 12233-3500, Attn: Robert Simson or by email to: Comments.NYCRR701and703@dec.ny.gov.
– See more at: http://www.riverkeeper.org/news-events/events/dec-hearing-proposed-rulemaking-for-swimmable-waters-in-nyc/#sthash.Mww4ySHc.dpuf
Photo courtesy of: http://www.riverkeeper.org/

Superfund: A Citizen's Guide
2015-03-09 20:30 - 22:00 | Brooklyn Brainery, 190 Underhill Ave, Brooklyn, NY, 11238, United States
Photo credit: beigeinside
Monday, March 9, 8:30-10:00pm
Location: The Brainery in Prospect Heights
With the Environmental Protection Agency’s designation of Gowanus Canal and Newtown Creek, Superfund has become a colloquial term and a buzzword in New York City.
But what is a Superfund exactly? How are sites placed on the National Priorities List? Who is a responsible party? What does clean-up entail and how does it involve communities? We will cover all these questions and more in this introduction, spotlighting Superfund in your neighborhood. This class will focus on citizen participation in the Superfund process and conclude with a discussion of current and future sites in the five boroughs.
Please register here: http://brooklynbrainery.com/courses/superfund-a-citizen-s-guide
Taught by Inna Guzenfeld
Inna Guzenfeld is a planner and urban historian trained at Pratt Institute. She emigrated from the Ukraine in the nineties and grew up on the Coney Island peninsula. Her work centers on the New York waterfront, where she documents and advocates the city’s maritime past. She can often be found traversing Brooklyn’s industrial landscapes in search of stories and artifacts. She also teaches historic preservation and urban studies at CUNY.

Planning in Silence: The Challenge of Hybrid Water Provision
2015-03-10 13:00 - 14:00 | Avery Hall, Rm 114, Columbia University (116 St. and Bway), New York, NY, United States
Examining the institutional structure of water supply in several African cities, this talk looks at urban water reform from the perspective of users. In many places, a large proportion of urban households have exited or have never been connected to a networked supply, instead relying on a large array of formal, informal, state and non-state sources. At the same time, the lack of adequate and safe water for basic needs and livelihoods negatively impacts poverty reduction and well-being. In such scenarios, how can the needs and demands of all residents be equitably factored into planned urban development if their voices are missing or excluded from the planning process?
Charisma Acey is an Assistant Professor in the Department of City and Regional Planning at the University of California, Berkeley.
Text credit GSAPP; image credit United Nations University

Edge Sustainability: The Future of Architecture in a Changing Climate
2015-03-10 18:00 - 20:00 | The Center for Architecture, 536 LaGuardia Place, New York, NY, 10012, United States
Edge Sustainability: The Future of Architecture in a Changing Climate” will focus on the ways in which the practice and teaching of architecture will undergo a paradigm shift to properly respond to the changing climate and the ambitious local 80×50 goals set by Mayor De Blasio to mitigate it. Four themes will be addressed: Education, Mandates & Policy, Branding & Visioning, and Owner Interests.
This event was preceded by a roundtable discussion with top leaders in Sustainability. This is the second in a series of events related to the presidential theme of Tomas Rossant, AIA, “Dialogues from the Edge of Practice.” The theme intends to explore how architects are boldly enlarging the purview of the practitioner to bring their particular critical problem solving skills and design acumen to endeavors previously considered outside the traditional scope of practice.
Speakers:
David Bomke, Assistant Vice President of Operations, The Fulcrum Group; Vice President, New York Energy Consumers Council, Inc.
William Braham, FAIA, Director of Masters of Environmental Building and Design, University of Pennsylvania
Lance Hosey, FAIA, LEED AP, Chief Sustainability Officer, RTKL
Nilda Mesa, Director, NYC Mayor’s Office of Sustainability
Moderator:
Tomas Rossant, AIA, 2015 AIANY President
Price: Free for AIA members, Urban Green Council members, and students; $10 for non-members.
Register here. Attendees are encouraged to submit a question in advance through the registration page.
Text and image from New York Center of Architecture

Freshkills Park Series: Planning and Designing the Park
2015-03-10 18:30 - 20:00 | Brooklyn Brainery, 190 Underhill Ave, Brooklyn, NY, 11238, United States
Photo credit: NYC Parks
Tuesday, March 10, 6:30-8:00pm
Location: The Brainery in Prospect Heights
The ongoing development of Freshkills Park is one of the most ambitious public works projects in the history of New York City, using state of the art ecological restoration techniques in an extraordinary setting for recreation, public art, and environmental investigation.
The 2,200-acres of low-lying marsh, grassland, wetlands and former landfill will be incrementally built out based on the 2006 Draft Master Plan designed by James Corner Field Operations.
Learn about the planning process and conceptual design that NYC Parks is making a reality in this talk by Freshkills Park Manager for Programs, Arts and Grants, Mariel Villere.

This is the second talk in a series detailing the development of Freshkills Park in Staten Island.
Please register here: http://brooklynbrainery.com/courses/freshkills-park-series-planning-and-designing-the-park

Taught by Mariel Villere
Mariel Villere is the Manager for Programs , Arts and Grants at Freshkills Park. Prior to joining NYC Parks in January 2014, she worked at the intersection of architecture, art and urban studies as a researcher and designer. She earned her Masters of Architecture Studies in the History, Theory & Criticism of Architecture and Art from MIT in June 2013, where she also acted as Director of Exhibitions and Publications for the Department of Architecture.

Museum of the City of New York: Soundscape New York – Opening Reception and Conversation
2015-03-10 18:30 - 20:30
Donald Albrecht, the City Museum’s Curator of Architecture and Design, joins acclaimed writer Tony Hiss(author of The Experience of Place) to explore Soundscape New York, a new installation by Karen Van Lengen, FAIA, William Kenan Professor of Architecture at the University of Virginia and former Dean of the University’s School of Architecture, and artist James Welty. Soundscape New York offers visitors the opportunity to hear the sounds recorded in such iconic Manhattan interiors as Grand Central Terminal and the lobby of the 42nd Street Public Library. Soundscape New York also presents drawings and animations that visually interpret these spaces’ distinctive aural qualities. In their conversation, the panelists will discuss the multisensory/multidimensional qualities of architecture, suggesting the endless delights and deep mysteries of the places that New Yorkers pass through every day.

The event is free with advanced registration here: https://mcnygroups.wufoo.com/forms/soundscape-new-york-rsvp/

Recycle-To-Art
2015-03-11 14:00 | Poe Park Visitor Center, 2640 Grand Concourse, Bronx
Have fun turning discarded materials into usable works of art in this family-friendly event hosted by NYC Parks. Children under 10 years must be accompanied by an adult. Wear clothes that can get messy.

Sustainable Development Seminar Series: Ethical Issues in Responding to a Global Disease Crisis - Ebola and Beyond
2015-03-11 16:00 - 18:00 | Columbia University Morningside Campus Alfred J. Lerner Hall, Satow Room, 1150 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY, 10027, United States
The Earth Institute presents the second of the 2014-2015 Sustainable Development Seminar Series, Ethical Issues in Responding to a Global Disease Crisis: Ebola and Beyond, with Irwin Redlener, MD, Director, National Center for Disaster Preparedness and the Program on Child Well-Being and Resilience, The Earth Institute; Professor of Health Policy and Management, Columbia University; Co-Founder and President, Childrens Health Fund; and Jeff Schlegelmilch, MPH, MBA, Managing Director for Strategic Planning and Operations, National Center for Disaster Preparedness, Earth Institute, Columbia University.
This session explores the ethical issues in dealing with infectious disease threats in a global environment. Ethical issues can be wide-ranging and include: allocation of scarce resources, responding with a limited evidence-base, accelerating the pharmaceutical development process, negotiating politics and belief when it is in conflict with science, etc. Issues from the current Ebola crisis are explored to understand the nature of these issues, and to generate lessons to guide future responses.
Speakers: Irwin Redlener, MD,, Director, National Center for Disaster Preparedness and the Program on Child Well-Being and Resilience, The Earth Institute; Professor of Health Policy and Management, Columbia University; Co-Founder and President, Childrens Health Fund; Jeff Schlegelmilch, MPH, MBA,, Managing Director for Strategic Planning and Operations, National Center for Disaster Preparedness, Earth Institute, Columbia University
Open to the public. RSVP required. Photo ID required for building access.
Please RSVP here: http://www.earth.columbia.edu/events/view/76391

Earth Institute Practicum in Innovative Sustainability Leadership: City Politics and Sustainability
2015-03-11 18:10 - 19:00 | Havemeyer Hall Room 209, Columbia University Morningside Campus, 3000 Broadway, New York , NY, 10027, United States
The Earth Institute and the School of Continuing Education MSSM Practicum present a lecture given by Katherine Gajewski, Director of Sustainability of the City of Philadelphia, focused on the strategies that successful urban sustainability managers have used to implement sustainability programs in the face of political obstacles and fiscal austerity. The discussion will center on the importance of developing partnerships, securing funding, engaging the community, and measuring progress to achieve sustainability objectives.
Katherine Gajewski is the Director of Sustainability in the City of Philadelphia, where she is responsible for the implementation of Greenworks Philadelphia, the citys sustainability framework unveiled by Mayor Nutter in April 2009. The framework sets goals in five areas energy, environment, equity, economy and engagement and encompasses more than 150 achievable, measurable initiatives.
RSVP required. To RSVP for this event, please contact Hayley Martinez via email (hmartinez@ei.columbia.edu).
Text credit to The Earth Institute at Columbia University; image credit Philly.com

United Nations Habitat: the City We Need
2015-03-12 16:45 - 20:00 | Dag Hammarskjöld Library Auditorium United Nations Plaza, First Avenue at 46th Street, New York, NY, 10017, United States
Habitat III, Beijing+20 and the City We Need
How do we create the City We Need for the future where women and girls will reach their potential and realize their human rights? The Third United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III), to take place in 2016, will be the first global conference after the Post 2015 Development Agenda and constitutes a critical opportunity to discuss and chart new pathways in response to the challenges of urbanization and the opportunities it offers for the implementation of the sustainable development goals. The conference promises to be unique in bringing together diverse urban actors such as governments, local authorities, civil society, grassroots organizations, the private sector, academic institutions and all relevant interest groups to review urban and housing policies affecting the future of cities. This side event will seek to increase awareness on how cities are planned, implemented and used in order to identify the potential inherent in this space for more inclusive and prosperous cities, especially considering urban women and girls, with a view to generate a ‘New Urban Agenda’ for the 21st century which recognizes the ever-changing dynamics of human civilization.
Follow at http://webtv.un.org/

Have questions about “Habitat III, Beijing+20 and the City We Need”? Contact UN-Habitat New York Office

Event is free, but please RSVP here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/habitat-iii-beijing20-and-the-city-we-need-tickets-15813097400?ref=enivtefor001&invite=NzU4MDEwNS9jaGlhcmF6YWNAZ21haWwuY29tLzA%3D&utm_source=eb_email&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=inviteformalv2&ref=enivtefor001&utm_term=attend

Emerging Voices: Brian Phillips; Roberto Rovira
2015-03-12 19:00 - 20:00 | Scholastic Auditorium, 557 Broadway, New York, NY
The second evening of the annual Emerging Voices lecture series features Brian Phillips of ISA and Roberto Rovira of Studio Roberto Rovira. Emerging Voices spotlights individuals and firms based in the United States, Canada, or Mexico with distinct design voices and the potential to influence the disciplines of architecture, landscape architecture, and urbanism.
Brian Phillips founded Philadelphia-based ISA in 2004. ISA is committed to “bringing innovative design with a strong environmental agenda to urban environments.” Although a particular focus is housing, the firm works in a wide range of scales and typologies in Philadelphia, Boston, and Chicago, as well as speculative projects for cities nation-wide. For more on ISA, click here.
Roberto Rovira, a landscape architect with a design, engineering, and fine arts background, founded Studio Roberto Rovira in 2011. Committed to a “process of design development, analysis, and investigation that seeks larger connections to ecology, patterns, history, and time,” the firm produces work in a variety of scales and typologies, including public art, gardens, courtyards, parks, and event pavilions. For more on Studio Roberto Rovira, click here.
Susannah Drake is the principal and founder of dlandstudio pllc. She served on this year’s Emerging Voices committee.
Tickets are free for members, $10 for non-members. League members may reserve a ticket by emailing rsvp@archleague.org. Non-League members may purchase tickets here starting March 5th, until March 12th. Tickets may also be purchased in cash at the door, space permitting.
Text and image from Architectural League of New York

Public Space: Opportunities and challenges for Empowering Women
2015-03-13 13:15 - 14:30 | Conference Room 1, United Nations Plaza, First Avenue at 46th Street, New York, NY, 10017 , United States
photo credit: The European Business Review
The side event will be considered part of the review of the Beijing Platform for Action and the process build-up to the Habitat III Conference in 2016. It will provide an opportunity to learn from the opportunities and challenges that public space offer to women’s empowerment and to advance the gender equality goal. It will also aim to discuss how gender mainstreaming of urban planning and policy can help create public spaces for women that empower them to live fulfilling and wholesome lives. While access to public spaces in cities is highly contested for due to pressures from rapid urbanization and large-scale migration, creating public spaces that cater to women’s needs and skills can give them an oft-missing space of their own to set up a business, network and interact with other members of the community to exchange ideas and information. It is important to include the voices of women and girls, especially living in poor urban areas and coming from marginalized communities, in all the processes of decision-making such as research, consultation, policy-making etc. By doing this, public spaces can bring about greater social cohesion, develop stronger community networks and give women a voice and enhance and make more visible women’s agency. The development of safer public spaces also contributes to safer cities for women, so they can live without fear of gender-based harassment or victimization, and can instead contribute more fully and freely to developing gender-balanced policy decisions for the future of cities.
Follow at http://webtv.un.org/
Event is free, please register here: http://www.eventbrite.com/e/public-space-opportunities-and-challenges-for-empowering-women-tickets-15813269916?aff=erellivorg

From the Right to Light to the Right Lights
2015-03-13 15:00 - 18:00 | The New School, Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Auditorium, Sheila C. Johnson Design Center, 66 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY, 10003, United States
In this public program, speakers will present lighting design work for public interest that range from ongoing projects in informal settlements in Haiti to participatory workshops in low-income housing environments.
In a panel following the presentations, speakers will debate the role that socially-engaged lighting design practices play and how lighting education can support a stronger social culture in practice and discourse in the field of lighting design.
This is the first of two Parsons School of Constructed Environments events held at Parsons for the International Year of Light (IYL2015).
Cost: Free; No tickets or reservations required.

High Bridge: A New Beginning
2015-03-13 19:00 - 20:30 | Hunter College, Room 714 Hunter West, 68th Street and Lexington Avenue , New York, NY, 10065, United States
The High Bridge is slated to reopen as a walkway in summer 2015. Come hear Bryan Diffley, the Project Manager of the renovation, speak about NYC’s oldest standing bridge. A NYC engineering treasure, it was built in 1848 to bring water from the Bronx into Manhattan via the Croton Aqueduct.
The High Bridge remained in use for the Croton system until 1955. Its deck was used as a pedestrian bridge until the 1970’s when it was closed due to vandalism. The city began restoring the bridge in 2012.
The High Bridge was designed by John B. Jervis, Chief Engineer of the Croton Aqueduct. He modeled it after the great aqueducts of the Roman Empire; the Croton was the longest aqueduct built since the Roman era!
Event is free, please RSVP here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/high-bridge-talk-tickets-15682404494

New Ways to Welcome Spring: Climate Change and You
2015-03-13 19:00 - 21:00
Celebrate the changing seasons with an evening of enlightening and entertaining works from the journalist Elizabeth Royte and John KixMiller, the author of The Protectors of The Wood, a series of illustrated adventure novels about a group of misfit teenagers saving the world from climate change. KixMiller will be joined by the four-piece Protectors of the Wood Band.

Elizabeth Royte will read from her recent work, including a piece about collecting
condoms in Prospect Park, and then will talk about her career in environmental journalism.
Elizabeth Royte is the author of Bottlemania: How Water Went On Sale and Why We Bought It;
Garbage Land: On the Secret Trail of Trash; and TheTapir’s Morning Bath: Solving the Mysteries of the Tropical Rain Forest. Her writing on science and the environment has appeared in
Harper’s, National Geographic, Outside, The New York Times Magazine, and other national publications.

John KixMiller will present passages from The Protectors of the Wood, which is written and illustrated (by Carlos Uribe) for people of all ages, but will be best understood by readers of middle school age and older. He will be accompanied by the Protectors of the Wood Band. He worked for 30 years for the Center for Family Life in Sunset Park. Over the past five years he developed a gardening program for children as a part of the after-school program. He is the
author of A Schoolyard in Brooklyn (The New School, Institute for Urban Affairs),
and coauthor of A Community Center Model for Current Urban Needs(included in
Group Work Practice in a Troubled Society). He is working on volume three of the Protectors of the Wood Book Series, The Ghost Girl.

Refreshments will be served.
All Wordsprout participants are Coop members.
Bookings: John Donohue, wordsproutspsfc@gmail.com
Views expressed by the presenters do not necessarily represent the Park Slope Food Coop.

This event is free and open to the public.

Brooklyn Botanic Garden: Roots of Resilience
2015-03-14 10:00 - 16:00 | Brooklyn Botanic Garden, 990 Washington Avenue, Brooklyn, NY, 11225, United States
Making Brooklyn Bloom 2011. Photo by Rebecca Bullene.
Please join us for Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s 34th Annual Making Brooklyn Bloom!
In keeping with the notion of sankofa—remembering the past in order to move forward—this year’s theme, “Roots of Resilience,” will examine the ways in which sustainability is tradition, not trend. Our grandparents may have grown up on farms, but today, more people than ever are city dwellers and must actively seek reconnection with the land and nature. Resilient gardening practices can serve to bridge our collective past with a greener, more equitable future.
Wilbur A. Levin Keynote Address
Organic: Our Origins, Our Stories

Onika Abraham, Director of Farm School NYC

Workshop Topics:
Morning and Afternoon
Workshops begin at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.; the final schedule will be announced at registration. You may choose only two workshops, one from each time block, space permitting. Arrive early to get your first choices.
A Farmer’s Yoga
A Weed by Any Other Name
Can We Get the Lead Out? Soil Contamination in Urban Gardens
Caring for Trees with Compost
Cooking Traditions
Farm to City Partnerships
Gardening Post-Sandy
Grow an Urban Food Forest
Growing up Greening: Young Neighbors Green Their Blocks
How to Grow a More Resilient Garden
Kitchen Botany: Eat Your Flowers!
Starting Seed, Saving Stories
The Edible Container Garden
What’s Growing On? Connected Neighbors, Resilient Neighborhoods

Schedule of Events:

10–11 a.m.
Registration, Coffee, and Exhibits in the Palm House
Register the day of the event to secure space in workshops and at keynote address.

11 a.m.–Noon
Morning Workshops

Noon–1:30 p.m.
Exhibits in the Palm HouseLunch at the Terrace Café
Sandwiches, soups, and salads are available.Bring Your Lunch Break-Out Sessions
Bring a bag lunch to take part in these conversations:
Community Composting
Therapeutic Horticulture
Street Tree Stewardship
School and Youth Gardening
Activities
View exhibits from New York greening organizations.
Check out the Library (Rotunda).
Take a seasonal guided walking tour of BBG (1–2 p.m.).
Find out how to construct an indoor terrarium at the Garden Shop.

Movies in the Auditorium and Visitor Center
Join us for films throughout the day.

1:30–2:45 p.m.
Wilbur A. Levin Keynote Address in the Auditorium
Organic: Our Origins, Our Stories
“The principles of organic agriculture hearken back to before our great-grandparents’ day—they predate this nation and the societies that ‘settled’ it. Organic honors our ancestors, uplifts our personal and cultural legacies, and sustains our planet. Organic is a matter of course and a matter of necessity.”
—Onika Abraham, director of Farm School NYC

3–4 p.m.
Afternoon Workshops

4 p.m.
Pick up a spring gift bag as you leave

FamilyDay@theCenter: Skyscrapers!
2015-03-14 11:00 - 16:00 | The Center for Architecture, 536 LaGuardia Place, New York, NY, 10012, United States
Bring your building crew and get ready for skyscrapers – the ultimate challenge! Around the world, skyscrapers are being built taller than ever before, in shapes that have never been seen. Learn about some of the new innovative projects and then work with your building team to design and build your own model skyscraper.
Family Day Programs are designed for children ages 5 and up, accompanied by an adult.
Two Sessions: 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM or 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Price: $20/family of 4; $10 for Center for Architecture Dual/Family Members; additional guests accompanying a Family Admission are $5 each.
Register for this event.
Text from New York Center for Architecture

Fueling Our Future: Going North: Leadership in the Arctic
2015-03-17 18:30 - 20:00 | New York University Center for Global Affairs, 15 Barclay St , New York, NY, 10007, United States
Photo credit: ASP
Co-sponsored by the Canadian Consulate General and the Québec Government Office in New York.
The Arctic has grown in importance as a focal point on international security, environmental protection, and climate change, as well as a new frontier for trade, shipping, and resource exploration. Since the early ’90s, the Arctic Council has served as a major intergovernmental cooperative and has expanded to include indigenous group representatives, government observers from non-Arctic countries, and NGOs. In May 2015, Canada will pass Chairmanship of this diverse group to the United States.
Join CGA Clinical Associate Professor and Academic Director Carolyn Kissane for a conversation on Canadian and U.S. leadership in the Arctic, emerging priorities in the region, and how these developments might affect international energy and environmental policy.
Panelists:
Betsy Baker, Senior Fellow for Oceans and Energy at Institute for Energy and the Environment and Associate Professor of Law, Vermont Law School
Malte Humpert, Executive Director, Center for Circumpolar Security Studies, The Arctic Institute
Joël Plouffe, Fellow, Canadian Defence and Foreign Affairs Institute
David Scott, Executive Director, Canadian Polar Commission
Seating is available on a first come first serve basis until we reach capacity. Preregistration does not guarantee entry.
Please register here: http://www.eventbrite.com/e/fueling-our-future-going-north-leadership-in-the-arctic-tickets-15477471534

Countdown to Paris: Update on Global Climate Treaty Negotiations
2015-03-19 19:00 - 21:00 | New York Society for Ethical Culture, 2 West 64th Street, New York, NY, United States
Join 350.org on Thursday March 19th @ 7 – 9pm
COUNTDOWN TO PARIS: UPDATE ON GLOBAL CLIMATE TREATY NEGOTIATIONS
New York Society for Ethical Culture
2 West 64th St 1st floor Auditorium
In the six months since the People’s Climate March in NYC, UN negotiators have been working on proposals for the global climate treaty conference that will take place in Paris in December 2015. Please join 350NYC and the NY Society for Ethical Culture for an evening of discussion among climate leaders, including attendees at the preliminary talks in Lima and Geneva. Learn about the progress that has been made towards an effective global climate treaty, and the challenges that remain. Find out about plans for grassroots action in New York and across the country in the Countdown to Paris.Panelists:

Sean Sweeney – Director, International Program on Labor, Climate & Environment at the Murphy Institute; Trade Unions for Energy Democracy,
Tamar Lawrence-Samuel, Associate Research Director at Corporate Accountability International.
Jeffrey Salim Waheed – Deputy Permanent Representative of Maldives to the United Nations
Reinhard Krapp – Minister, Head of the Economic Department, Permanent Mission of Germany to the United Nations
Helen Rosenthal – (Democrat) represents District 6 in the NYC City Council

Tickets $5 available on Eventbrite http://www.eventbrite.com/e/countdown-to-paris-update-on-global-climate-treaty-negotiations-tickets-15853105064
(This is a follow up to the Sept 20, 2014 forum “A Global Climate Treaty: Why the US Must Lead”.)
Join the Facebook event for updates

Living with Urban Coyotes
2015-03-21 13:00 - 15:00 | Van Cortlandt Nature Center in Van Cortlandt Park, West 246th Street and Broadway, Bronx, NY, 10471, United States
picture credit: Institute for Urban Design
Saturday, March 21, 2015
1:00 p.m.

New York City is home to an amazing abundance of wildlife.
NYC Parks Urban Park Rangers will guide you to the best wildlife viewing spots in the urban jungle. Learn about the basic biology of these super smart and energetic animals.

Location

Van Cortlandt Nature Center in Van Cortlandt Park

West 246th Street and Broadway
Bronx

Directions to this location
Cost
Free
Event Organizer
Urban Park Rangers
Contact Number
(718) 548-0912

A Lasting Legacy: Historic Preservation and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority
2015-03-24 18:30 - 20:30 | New York Transit Museum, Boerum Pl, Brooklyn, New York, 11201, United States
New York City’s mass transit system includes a host of structures, stations, bridges, and tunnels that are protected under the city’s landmarks law, and more than 70 properties in the system are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. MTA Project Administrator Hollie Wells and Historic Preservationist Sara McIvor sit down together to discuss their experiences maintaining these properties, working on large-scale preservation efforts, and handling the unanticipated and exciting discoveries along the way.

The preserved 1936 IND subway station that houses the New York Transit Museum is their largest and most important historic artifact. The Court Street station was in operation from 1936 to 1946, and it was originally planned as a stop on the route of the new Second Avenue Subway. Join the Museum Educators for a behind-the-scenes look at the station’s significance and historic features, and explore the rest of the Museum on your own.

Presented in conjunction with New York’s Transportation Landmarks, part of the citywide celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Landmarks Law.

Buy $10 tickets here

The New York City You've Never Seen: All New Queens Edition
2015-03-24 20:30 - 22:00 | Brooklyn Brainery, 190 Underhill Ave, Brooklyn, NY, 11238, United States
Photo credit: Richard Exelbert
Location: The Brainery in Prospect Heights
This class features ALL NEW excursions not featured in any of the other NYC YOU’VE NEVER SEEN classes.
Did you know Queens, NY is a land of discovery…? A place where you can visit: an abandoned missile base by the ocean, a walk-through replica of a mountain cave within a giant temple, a block with a thriving “Jurassic Park” of lizards, a ranch with cowboys, horses and a saddle shop, a subway that shoots you across the water to a remote island wildlife paradise, NYC’s own canal-filled Venice, the oldest living thing in all the boroughs, the (possibly) oldest tavern in all 5 boroughs, and more!
This virtual tour of some of Queens’ hidden spots will entice you with the adventures that await you and arm you with what you need to organize your own fantastic day trips – no passport or plane ticket needed, just your metro card, a few dollars, and maybe your cell phone in case you get lost…
(This is a classroom session, not a walking tour!)
Please register here: http://brooklynbrainery.com/courses/the-nyc-you-ve-never-seen-all-new-queens-edition

Taught by Richard Exelbert
Richard Exelbert has made New York City his home for 17 years and has been a licensed NYC sightseeing guide for ten. His focus is not on the typical historical and architectual information that makes up most tours, but instead full sensory immersion – the aesthetic experience of opening up to anything and everything in new environments.

Earth Institute Practicum in Innovative Sustainability Leadership: Standards and Metrics for Sustainability Performance
2015-03-25 18:10 - 19:00 | Columbia University Morningside Campus, Havemeyer Hall, Room 209, 1150 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY, 10027, United States
The Earth Institute and the School of Continuing Education MSSM Practicum present an introduction to how sustainability standards and metrics can advance the integration of sustainability in communities. The talk will center on the STAR Community Rating System, a national certification program that promotes health, inclusion, and prosperity.
Katherine Gajewski is the Director of Sustainability in the City of Philadelphia, where she is responsible for the implementation of Greenworks Philadelphia, the citys sustainability framework unveiled by Mayor Nutter in April 2009. The framework sets goals in five areas: energy, environment, equity, economy and engagement ,and encompasses more than 150 achievable, measurable initiatives. The talk will be given by Hilary Varnadore, Executive Director of STAR Communities, who is focused on advancing a national framework and rating system for sustainable communities. Previously, she served as Frederick County, Marylands first Sustainability Director in the Office of the County Manager and was a member of the Urban Sustainability Directors Network. She has experience as a land use, environmental and municipal planner and was appointed to serve on STARs Planning & Design Technical Advisory Committee in 2008.
Location: Columbia University Morningside Campus, Havemeyer Hall, Room 209
RSVP required
To RSVP for this event, please contact Hayley Martinez via email (hmartinez@ei.columbia.edu).
Photo courtesy of: http://www.starcommunities.org/

Oysters: A History of Limits and Possibilities
2015-03-25 18:30 - 20:00 | Threes Brewing, 333 Douglass St, Brooklyn, NY, 11217, United States
March 24, 2015
6:30-8:00PM
Threes Brewing
Oysters: A History of Limits and Possibilities
Panelists to be determined
“Living Things in an Urban Ecosystem”
This spring season the Gowanus Canal Conservancy is hosting a 4-part series examining the theme “Living Things in an Urban Ecosystem”, where invited panelists bring their perspectives on the living infrastructure of New York City, provoking questions about our human and environmental relationships within an urban environment. Dynamic presentations and lively discussions in an informal yet challenging educational setting unpacks these relationships and questions their impact on the ongoing restoration efforts.
Come join the Conservancy and welcome Gowanus’ newest brewery, Threes Brewing, for beer, ecology and fun!
Please visit the Gowanus Canal Conservancy to RSVP and check for updates: http://www.gowanuscanalconservancy.org/ee/index.php/gcc_news/gcc_news?id=180

The Last Unknown Place in New York City: A Conversation with Christopher Payne and Michael Miscione
2015-03-26 18:30 - 20:30 | Museum of the City of New York, 1220 Fifth Avenue 10029, New York, NY, 10029, United States
North Brother Island is a 20-acre collection of ruins in the middle of New York City. It was once home to a quarantine hospital and the residence of Typhoid Mary. Today it is a wildlife sanctuary, abandoned and off-limits to visitors. Between 2008 and 2013, photographer Christopher Payne was granted exclusive access to the island. He found buildings consumed by vegetation, and hints of a city’s future without people. Payne will share his discoveries using images from his book, North Brother Island: The Last Unknown Place in New York City (Fordham University Press, 2014), and discuss North Brother’s remarkable history with Manhattan Borough Historian Michael Miscione. Book signing and reception to follow.
Co-sponsored by Open House New York (OHNY) and the Office of the Manhattan Borough Historian.
Tickets are free for MCNY members, 12$ for students/seniors, 16$ general admission PURCHASE/REGISTER HERE

Emerging Voices: Gabriela Etchegaray and Jorge Ambrosi; Neri Oxman
2015-03-26 19:00 - 21:00
Emerging Voices
Gabriela Etchegaray and Jorge Ambrosi, AMBROSI | ETCHEGARAY, Mexico City
Neri Oxman, Mediated Matter Group, MIT Media Lab, Cambridge
Introduced by Billie Tsien
The final evening of the annual Emerging Voices lecture series features Gabriela Etchegaray and Jorge Ambrosi of AMBROSI | ETCHEGARAY and Neri Oxman of Mediated Matter Group, MIT Media Lab. Emerging Voices spotlights individuals and firms based in the United States, Canada, or Mexico with distinct design voices and the potential to influence the disciplines of architecture, landscape architecture, and urbanism.
Jorge Ambrosi and Gabriela Etchegaray founded Mexico City-based AMBROSI | ETCHEGARAY in 2011. The firm considers “architecture in harmony with nature, where earth, gravity and light must be present.” Current projects include Papalote Museo del Niño, an outdoor “museography-landscape,” as well as a collaboration with GMexico Mine Company to build cultural plazas and sports infrastructure in local communities. For more on AMBROSI | ETCHEGARAY, click here.
Neri Oxman founded Mediated Matter Group at the MIT Media Lab in 2010. Concerned with how “digital design and fabrication technologies mediate between matter and environment to radically transform the design and construction of objects, buildings, and systems,” Mediated Matter Group’s research merges “computational form-finding strategies with biologically inspired fabrication.” For more on Mediated Matter Group, click here.
Billie Tsien is the partner and founder of Tod Williams Billie Tsein Architects. She is the president of The Architectural League and served on this year’s Emerging Voices committee.
BUY $10 TICKETS BY CLICKING HERE!

Great New York City Buildings Few Guide Books Will Ever Mention
2015-03-26 20:30 - 22:00 | Brooklyn Brainery, 190 Underhill Ave, Brooklyn , NY, 11238, United States
So you live in New York. Or maybe you’re just passing through. Guide books direct your attention to The Empire State Building, The Chrysler Building, Grand Central Station. Great buildings, all of them. No doubt. World class historically important architectural masterpieces that people from all over the world come to see and experience for themselves.
But wouldn’t it be cool if, for example, while you’re waiting on line for pizza at Grimaldi’s in Dumbo with your out-of -town friend, you glance across the street and point out the incredible building facing you. You point out its monumental arch, unique brass lettering and incredibly thick masonry walls. You’re able to explain how it was originally used as a storage facility for the rich. That it was designed by probably the greatest Brooklyn architect of his time, but who few people actually have ever heard of. Wouldn’t that be cool?
This class will look at a bunch of these types of buildings. Buildings that you might pass without noticing, but which have their own rich history and significance in the New York City architectural vernacular. Buildings that make New York, well….New York. We’ll discuss the when and the why. The who and the “so what”. We’ll discuss their place in New York architectural history as well as their place in American Architectural history in general.
So the next time your parents come to visit for the um-teenth time, instead of waiting in line for a tour of the New York Public Library, you’ll be able to drag them deep into Brooklyn, or Chelsea, or the Bronx to show them some real New York architecture that few guides or guide books would ever mention.

Taught by Stephen Dargo
Stephen Dargo is a practicing architect with a Masters of Architecture degree from Columbia University. Though he works full time at an established architecture firm in Manhattan, he also finds time to enjoy happy hour, root for the Red Sox/Patriots and pretend that he is Ted Mosby from “How I Met Your Mother.”
Please register here: http://brooklynbrainery.com/courses/great-new-york-city-buildings-few-guide-books-will-ever-mention
