Earth Month Programs Get People Down in the Dirt
Numerous Earth Month programs, most of them free, offer ways for urbanites—especially young people—to interact with nature.
The Waterfront Alliance is recruiting Youth Ambassadors for Adaptation and Resilience, a year-long program that will bring together students from high schools across New York City, and train them to be leaders in preparing their communities for climate hazards.
Interested students may apply by April 15 at waterfrontalliance.org. In-person orientation will take place Saturday, June 15, and will provide students with the first training on general emergency preparedness and extreme heat. After this, five workshops will take place during the 2024-2025 school year.
The Battery Park City Authority is looking for volunteer gardeners to work alongside professional horticulturalists in the neighborhood’s many acres of parks and gardens. Volunteers will be taught basic horticulture skills and are required to commit to the full season (May 1 through October 31) of work on Wednesday mornings from 7:30am to 12pm. Find more information at https://bpca.ny.gov/residential-life/get-involved/.
Earth Matter NY, a non-profit that seeks to reduce organic waste misdirected into the garbage stream, is offering multiple programs on Governors Island. The group’s Compost Critters Club offers hands-on environmental learning for very young children, and aims to nurture lifelong habits in zero-waste practices, gardening, and seasonal eating. Another program, consisting of three-hour group sessions, is available for school and youth groups up to age 14. The curriculum will include soil science; composting and decomposers; planting, harvesting and preparing foods; and caring for farm animals, such as chickens and goats.
Earth Matter is also recruiting youth interns, ages 16 to 18, to learn hands-on, practical skills related to composting, animal husbandry, farming, resource recovery, and conservation. The internship consists of 80 hours between early June and late August. Applications are due by May 19.
Two other Earth Matter initiatives offer internships to applicants over the age of 18. The Zero Waste Island program seeks to implement sustainable closed-loop waste management practices, and drive down the waste generated on and exported from Governors Island. Participants (who will be awarded a $500 stipend after completing 200 hours of work) will conduct site visits and waste audits, engage in compostability experiments, lead tours, and complete a personal or group project, followed by a presentation of findings. The program runs from 9am through 2:30pm on Sundays, Mondays, and Fridays, for 15 weeks starting in late April and concluding in early August. For more information on any of these Earth Matter programs, please go to earthmatter.org.
The annual Early Spring Children’s Gardening program offered by the Battery Park City Authority begins April 9 and continues each Tuesday afternoon through the spring. Held at the Children’s Garden in northern Rockefeller Park, this series is geared toward kids ages six to ten years, and invites digging, planting, and learning about green practices and composting. Participation is free, but registration is required. To enroll, email registration@bpca.ny.gov.