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EPA Environmental Education Grant to New York University will support urban environmental science, connect students and community members with local ecosystems

08/22/2018
Contact Information: 
Jennifer May-Reddy (may.jennifer@epa.gov)
212-637-3658

(New York, N.Y.) Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that New York University has been selected to receive funding to support an urban environmental science initiative in the New York City area. EPA anticipates that it will award New York University an Environmental Education grant in the amount of $85,252 once all legal and administrative requirements are satisfied.

“We are very pleased to select New York University to receive this funding, which will provide educational opportunities for local teachers, students and community members to appreciate and understand the importance of local ecosystems, pollinator gardens and biodiversity to the health of our natural environment,” said EPA Regional Administrator Pete Lopez. “Locally-focused environmental education projects like this increase public awareness and knowledge about environmental and conservation issues and provide the skills needed to make informed decisions and be wise stewards of the environment.”

“Bees Alive! will engage hundreds of urban school children, teachers, and community members in citizen science and stewardship activities in their own backyard,” said Mary Leou, the grant’s principal investigator and director of the Wallerstein Collaborative for Urban Education at New York University. “The best way to educate people about environmental issues is to provide them with real-world problems and opportunities for hands-on learning. Together these communities will take an active role in creating and maintaining pollinator gardens to attract and sustain bees and other pollinators in urban spaces.”

New York University - $85,252

Project Title: Bees Alive!  An Interdisciplinary Environmental Science Initiative for K-12 Teachers

The Wallerstein Collaborative for Urban Environmental Education at New York University will partner with the Queens Botanical Garden, New York City Audubon, National Wildlife Federation, and The Natural Areas Conservancy for the Bees Alive! Project. The grant will be used to:

1) Establish a 7,500-square foot native plant garden in Lentol Garden in Brooklyn, including two pollinator gardens in collaboration with two Brooklyn public schools.

2) Provide several educational opportunities including two professional development workshops per year for the next two years for teachers, 48 field trips for local classes, and develop programming for the established gardens for visiting classes and the community.

The primary goal of this project is to promote environmental literacy and provide opportunities for students and community members to connect with nature in an urban setting, while increasing biodiversity and ecosystem services provided by pollinator gardens.

Background on EPA’s Environmental Education Grant Program

Since 1992, EPA has distributed between $2 million and $3.5 million in EE grant funding per year, for a total of over $75 million supporting more than 3,700 grant projects. The program traditionally provides financial support for projects that design, demonstrate or disseminate environmental education practices, methods or techniques.

More information visit: https://www.epa.gov/education.

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