Reading is one of the first skills we develop to make sense of the world. It helps us to develop imagination, cultivate creativity, and unlock breadths of knowledge. At a moment when young people are reading less for pleasure and literacy rates...
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Chris Ruggeri has spent nearly two decades helping steward CitizensNYC through change, growth, and some of the most challenging moments New York City has faced in a generation. She joined the board in 2008, around the time of the financial crisis, when she was thinking seriously about what it meant to contribute to the city […]
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Madeline Bender is a leader whose work spans stages and gardens with a singular mission: to create spaces where people know they matter. Madeline’s path to community leadership is rooted in her upbringing. Raised in rural Virginia and Pennsylvania, she grew up in a culture “steeped in peace and justice issues and service to other […]
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Emilie Rodriguez has spent more than a decade creating community-based care for families. A Bronx-rooted founder, doula, and maternal health advocate, Emilie knows what it means to build solutions from lived experience. Through Ashé Birthing Services, she and her team of Black and Brown doulas support hundreds of families each year across New York City, […]
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When academics first introduced STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) education as an adaptation of the pre-existing STEM curriculum, the shift immediately sparked debate. Critics challenged the presence of creativity amongst the sciences, pointing to the perceived rigidity within the other disciplines. We don’t see the same distinctions. At...
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What difference can a community garden really make in the face of climate change? It’s a fair question. Climate change is global, complex, and systemic. A single project can feel small against that scale. But across New York City, our grantee partners are proving that local action matters. They are advancing hyperlocal climate resilience through […]
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As temperatures rise in New York City, residents, wildlife, urban infrastructure, food systems, and natural habitats all face the heat. But heat risk varies by neighborhood. Socioeconomic disparities and many years of disinvestment leave communities in Upper Manhattan and the South Bronx among those at higher risk of heat-exacerbated deaths. Uptown & Boogie Healthy...
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With the impact of climate change accelerating, climate resilience strategies absorb the impact of long-standing greenhouse gas emissions and ensure that future generations can thrive on this planet. CitizensNYC is proud to stand behind Cambria Heights Community Garden as they build that future at the neighborhood level. Intended to transform underdeveloped farmland into...
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New Yorkers feel the impact of the urban heat island effect, where cities experience higher air temperatures than surrounding regions. The combination of heat-retaining surfaces like asphalt and concrete with limited tree coverage can drive temperatures up to 7℉ during the day and 22℉ at night. In a vicious cycle, communities straining to keep cool consume more energy...
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On Staten Island, the Port Richmond North Shore Alliance (PR-NSA) emphasizes the power of consistent and collective stewardship in building a healthier, more sustainable community. Recognizing that climate change is driven in part by the cumulative impact of harmful everyday behaviors, they apply the same principle to respond: mobilizing consistent, collective efforts to...
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Like New Yorkers themselves, native plantings have grown and changed with the lands that they inhabit. With more than 1,300 plant species native to the five boroughs of New York City, these plantings support pollinators, improve soil health, and require significantly less water and maintenance than ornamental or imported species. Native species have always carried...
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