Celebrate Earth Month with the Central Park Conservancy
Connect with nature in the heart of New York City!
Join us for Earth Month as we celebrate Central Park’s rich ecosystems and their impact on New York City’s urban environment. The Park’s water bodies, plants, and wildlife provide essential benefits to New York City’s residents and visitors. Greenspaces like the Park improve our mental health, provide opportunities for recreation, clean the air, reduce flooding risks, and combat the urban heat island effect.
Of course, these greenspaces should be celebrated and protected beyond Earth Month. The Conservancy has taken strides toward environmental sustainability by implementing a robust trash/recycling program, converting our fleet to electric carts, and restoring ecosystems. To build on these efforts and underline our commitment to the environment, the Conservancy is dedicated to improving our environmental impact and stewarding a thriving Park that serves as the home to thousands of plants and animals. Our team is continuously assessing ways to improve our work and educate Park users on how they can play a role in creating a more sustainable greenspace.
Central Park’s land has a long history that includes the prehuman glaciation period, stewardship by the Lenape people, woodland clearance during British colonization, Black landownership for Seneca Village residents in the 1800s, and the subsequent construction of the Park. Through initiatives like the Central Park Climate Lab, the Conservancy is researching human relationships with the landscape and how modifications to the land impact the Park and its surrounding communities.
Earth Month is a special opportunity to explore this remarkable habitat, better understand the living world around us, and uncover complex environmental stories. Please join us by exploring the programming below.
PROGRAMMING & EVENTS
-
Tours
Central Park Climate Action Tour
Central Park is at the forefront of climate research and action. Learn more about it on this special tour!Tags: Staff Picks / Plants and Trees
-
Tours
Discovery Walks for Families: The North Woods Tour
The rocky landscape surrounding the Harlem Meer has a storied history and more than a few secret nooks for young explorers to enjoy. -
Tours
Great Central Park Hike: Earth Month Edition
Calling all tree lovers and huggers, outdoorsy folks, and environmentalists! Join the Conservancy as we celebrate Earth Month with a hike through Central Park.Tags: History / Seasonal / Staff Picks / Nature Lovers / Fitness / Architecture / Landscape Design
-
Talks
Climate Lab: The Past, Present, And Future Of The Central Park Landscape (Virtual)
Join the Central Park Conservancy and New-York Historical Society for a joint program on climate change in Central Park.Tags: Virtual
-
Talks
Conversations With Olmsted: Climate Change (Virtual)
How do Olmsted parks combat the effects of climate change? USA Today National Reporter on climate, environment, and weather Dinah Voyles Pulver moderates a conversation with American Society of Landscape Architects CEO Torey Carter-Conneen, Brookline, Massachusetts Commissioner of Public Works Erin Chute Gallentine, and Central Park Conservancy Director of Thought Leadership Steven Thomson. -
From the Magazine
A Reflection of Nature Itself: The Different Landscapes of Central Park
Central Park is made up of a variety of landscapes that are diverse, intricate, and interconnected—just like the communities of Park-lovers who enjoy them.
Tags: Trees / Nature Lovers / Lawns / Landscapes
-
From the Magazine
How Central Park Cools the (Urban Heat) Island of Manhattan
Central Park’s 18,000 trees and 843 acres of trails, lawns, and gardens offer some much-needed reprieve when the island of Manhattan turns into what’s called an “urban heat island.”Tags: Trees / Nature Lovers
-
From the Magazine
Seasons in Flux: How the New Climate Reality is Disrupting the Calendar for Parks
In extensive interviews for the Central Park Climate Lab, Conservancy staff members detail a new normal in the ways in which an urban park is planned for and operates, from planting seasons and choices to labor constraints and challenges. This warm winter was just the latest example, and it has long-lasting ramifications for greenspaces like Central Park.
Tags: Conservancy Staff / Nature Lovers / Park Experts
-
From the Magazine
5 Questions with Michelle Mueller Gamez, Manager of Climate Change Research
The Conservancy’s recent launch of the Climate Lab is the next step in our mission to care for this Park forever—especially through the unknowns of the climate crisis. We spoke with Michelle Mueller Gamez, our new Manager of Climate Change Research, to learn more.
Tags: Conservancy Staff / About the Conservancy / Nature Lovers