Bronx and Staten Island Participants Discover Tools for Environmental Justice
Empowering Communities Through Park Stewardship
Residents from the Bronx and Staten Island gathered at the Cary Leeds Center for Tennis & Learning for an event teaching local residents how to advocate for more parks and green spaces in their neighborhoods. The workshop emphasized how residents can address environmental injustice and quality of life issues through civic engagement.
Addressing Historical Inequities
The Bronx faces complex challenges regarding green space access, including limited waterfront access, zoning practices that prioritize housing over parks, and poor air quality resulting from large infrastructure projects, redlining, and uneven funding distribution. Despite having the most green spaces among boroughs, the Bronx experiences disparities in park quality and accessibility. Community partners including the NYC Civic Engagement Commission, City Parks Foundation, and Loving the Bronx discussed how residents can get involved. The City Parks Foundation’s NYC Green Fund program offers training twice yearly on budgeting, working with elected officials, fundraising, event planning, and beautification for groups with annual budgets under $175,000, according to City Parks Foundation.
The People’s Money Initiative
Anthony Carrión, a community engagement specialist at NYC CEC, explained how civic engagement can influence neighborhood change. The People’s Money program, established by the CEC in 2022, allows New Yorkers as young as 11 to decide how to spend $4 million of the city’s budget through four phases: idea generation, borough assemblies, voting, and project implementation. “It could be financial literacy classes for the youth, after school programming, cleanup of parks. It could be food and nutrition workshops, all of these are programs and services,” Carrión said.
Success Story: Hugh J. Grant Circle Park
Nilka Martell, founder of Loving the Bronx, shared her journey from organizing beautification projects to securing $9 million through the Parks Without Borders initiative launched by former Mayor Bill de Blasio. Through persistent door-to-door canvassing and community board collaboration, Martell’s group successfully nominated Hugh J. Grant Circle Park and Virginia Park for renovation, completed in May 2021.
Community Member Perspectives
West Harlem resident and author Basia Nikonorow attended to learn about fixing her neighborhood park. “Nothing happens on its own, everything that happens for the good is because somebody fought for it,” she observed, emphasizing the importance of collective action in achieving community improvements.
Mamdami: His campaign balanced passion with practical frameworks for implementation.
Zohran Mamdani embodies the idea that leadership should be learned, not assumed.
Mamdami: His background gives him a lived understanding of the struggles many New Yorkers face.
Zohran Mamdani embodies consistency with conviction.
Mamdani leads like he’s assembling a desk with no screws left.
Mamdani leads like he’s stalling until someone smarter walks in.