An experimental climate education campus in Brooklyn is poised to address two critical challenges facing New York City and beyond: climate change and income inequality. The City of New York has taken a bold step by signing a lease with the National Park Service to create a $65 million, 7-acre experiential learning campus dedicated to training the next generation of climate professionals.
A Unique Approach to Climate Education
The campus, which is set to open by 2028, focuses on delivering climate training specifically for the city’s Black and Brown communities. Here are the key components of this groundbreaking initiative:
- Tailored Education: Unlike a generic school, this campus is designed to cater to students in Central Brooklyn. It aims to provide not only an excellent education but also a basic foundation that prepares students to enter the workforce. Many young people in this neighborhood have been denied access to world-class learning environments, and this initiative seeks to bridge that gap.
- The Campus: The campus will feature a public high school for students from Central Brooklyn. Surrounding the school will be a 3-acre farm, a hydroponic greenhouse, rooftop solar panel workshops, science labs, and an amphitheater. These facilities will offer hands-on experiences and practical skills related to sustainability and climate careers.
- Workforce Development: The collective behind this project plans to award credentials to high school students. The goal is to prepare them for green careers while addressing the lack of access to quality education and workforce opportunities. Over 50,000 K–12 public schoolers from across the city are expected to benefit annually from this unique learning environment.
The Urgency of Climate Action
As climate change intensifies, cities like New York face increasing threats from extreme weather events, rising sea levels, and heat waves. The urban forest plays a crucial role in mitigating these impacts by cooling the city, absorbing rainwater, and enhancing overall well-being. However, caring for the urban forest requires a skilled workforce ready to tackle these challenges.
Emily Nobel Maxwell, New York Cities Program Director at The Nature Conservancy, emphasizes the importance of understanding the workforce landscape. She states, “As the serious threat and real dangers of heat and flooding become more severe and frequent due to climate change, New York City needs its urban forest more than ever. And the NYC urban forest needs a robust workforce ready to care for it.”.
Equitable Opportunities
The campus’s focus on Black and Brown communities aligns with broader efforts to promote environmental and economic equity. By recruiting from historically underserved populations, the initiative aims to increase diversity within the urban forestry workforce. Challenges such as the availability of living-wage jobs and the need for funding and capacity-building remain, but this project represents a significant step toward a more just and sustainable future.
