NY Climate Tech: June 14 - June 20

Catacomb concerts, energy happy hours, microbiomes, and a hot take on cool playgrounds

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Jun 14, 2022

Hi all,

This week kicks off tonight with a Women and Climate networking event in Brooklyn, and a climate art workshop online by NYC's own Nicole Kelner. Tonight is also the first of three nights of the "Mass for the Endangered," a concert and elegy in the catacombs of Greenwood cemetery, a full experience with art, poetry, and whiskey.

Wednesday and Thursday are the blockbuster days of the week, with three events each. If you're in Manhattan on Wednesday, head to Amity Hall in the Financial District for the Young Energy Professionals June Happy Hour. If you're in Brooklyn, swing by the Estuary at Brooklyn Bridge Park for their monthly Green Drinks series, co-hosted this month with Women of Renewable Industries and Sustainable Energy, or go to New Lab for a happy hour and panel on climate, technology, and cities.

On Thursday, spend the whole day at the Equity in Energy Summit in downtown Brooklyn, or just take a lunch break to learn about designing green buildings with at Building Energy Exchange. If you're looking for something different, head to the Genspace rooftop for a discussion of environmental microbiology.

We had also planned an event on policy and deployment for Thursday, but will have to postpone it for COVID-related reasons. We're looking for a new date, hopefully in early July! Our June meetup is still on for next week at Madison Square, looking forward to seeing you there!

Finally, on Friday, sign up for an all-day workshop at SAP on the Future of Climate Action and spend the evening at the Hidden City Loft of a UN club fundraiser focused on climate action.

Hot Take - A Green Oasis at School

How it Started: How it’s Going:

P.S. 213’s transformation is a model for greening playgrounds nationwide. Image courtesy of The Trust for Public Land.

Third-graders at P.S. 213 in East New York, Brooklyn have fewer skinned knees these days! It’s because the elementary school’s hard asphalt playground has been transformed into a green oasis with gardens, trees, an outdoor classroom, a gazebo, open play areas, and a multitude of child-friendly features.

In addition to promising fun times, the playground can soak up an inch of water each time it rains, preventing up to 500,000 gallons of stormwater from entering New York’s combined sewer system each year. It also reduces the amount of runoff emptying into the nearby Fresh Creek Nature Preserve, which historically has had frequent overflows that flood local streets and basement apartments home to new immigrants.

Thanks to a unique partnership between The Trust for Public Land (TPL), the NYC Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), and the NYC Department of Education (DOE), P.S. 213 is the 200th playground to be redesigned into a haven for kids and neighbors alike. The NYC public school system is the largest in the country, serving over 1.1 million students who are disproportionately low-income with little access to close-to-home parks. The new playgrounds become vibrant community hubs, and TPL has put a green schoolyard within a 10-minute walk of more than four million New Yorkers over the past 20 years.

In the mid-20th century, asphalt-paved roads, parks, and playgrounds became a quintessential part of the American landscape. Asphalt, made up of aggregate petroleum products, absorbs and emits heat throughout the day – a growing concern in NYC, where the average temperatures are increasing. Yet, 36% of the nation’s public school students go to school in a heat island, where temperatures are at least 1.25F warmer on average than the surrounding town or city. Black and Hispanic students lose the most learning because of hot school days, and heat-absorbing asphalt that compounds throughout the day is part of the problem. Nationwide, over 100 million people don’t have access to a quality park within a 10-minute walk of home. In green schoolyards, “it’s amazing when kids really notice how much cooler it is on a hot day,” says Mary Alice Lee, Director of the New York City branch of TPL.

In 2010, DEP announced the $2.4 billion Green Infrastructure Program to reduce the use of asphalt, use greenery to absorb rainfall, and improve the city’s water quality. Each new playground costs $1 million per acre and is designed with the school’s students and local community, and green features range from green roofs on storage sheds, to rain gardens and rain barrels, to artificial turf fields with a gravel base that allows stormwater to pass through and be absorbed into the ground. Similar programs across the country are spearheaded by UndauntedK12 in Boston, Space to Grow in Chicago, and the Garden School Foundation in Los Angeles.

Garden School Foundation outdoor learning curriculum in action.

Research shows that outdoor recreation and access to green spaces greatly benefits children’s development and health. Students also learn about plant life in the process, and are being called on to water and weed the gardens. “These students typically live in apartments that have no backyard,” said Lee. “With these gardens, they are learning to dig and plant. It’s good for them to see where strawberries really come from!”

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We know all of you are cooking up great events across New York that highlight the latest and greatest in our collective effort to save our city - and our planet! 🌍 We would love to spread the word. Please share any event details and we'll add them to the list.

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We're excited to grow the Climate Tech community in cities across the globe - starting right here in our hometown of New York! 🗽 What started as an 8-person mid-pandemic outdoor dinner has since morphed into a 650+ strong and ever-growing group of rockstars trying to change the world. We're looking for volunteers to help us expand our programming into a full roster of community-wide meetups, subject-specific events, mentorship programs, site visits, and more. We aim to be a community resource - built for and by our community. Share your thoughts and we look forward to working with you!

Events This Week

👩‍🔬 Women and Climate NYC Networking Event

When: Tue, June 14, 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM EDT

Where: Coconana, 53 6th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11217

If you are looking for an opportunity to talk climate with some ladies, you are in the right place! All women are welcome, no need to have prior climate experience. For alerts on future events and access to our free Slack Community, head over to our main site here!

🎨 Climate Art Workshop: Electrify Everything

When: Tue, June 14, 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM EDT

Where: Zoom

Join Nicole Kelner, MCJ's Artist-in-Residence, to learn how to paint or draw your own version of an “Electrify Everything” image. Nicole will share techniques on how to take a complicated climate concept into a simple visual. These tips can be helpful for anyone in the climate ecosystem to start thinking about how to communicate more effectively on their website, social media, and general marketing. At the end, we’ll have time for a Q&A with Nicole on climate art.

🪦 Mass for the Endangered

When: Evenings, Tue, June 14 through Thu, June 16

Where: Catacombs of the Greenwood Cemetery, 500 25th St, Brooklyn, NY 11232

For her extraordinary Mass for the Endangered, composer Sarah Kirkland Snider has set the traditional Latin text of the Mass, written and re-interpreted by poet and writer Nathaniel Bellows, and interspersed it with contemporary poetry about animal endangerment and climate change. The result is a celebration of—and an elegy for—the natural world; a prayer for endangered species and the imperiled environments in which they live. This once-in-a-lifetime experience in the Catacombs is performed by English vocal ensemble Gallicantus, led by Gabriel Crouch, and instrumentalists from Decoda Ensemble. Adding to the immersive experience, a series of animated videos created by the brilliant mind of CandyStations will be projection-mapped to the walls and ceiling of the Catacombs, accompanying each movement of the Mass.

🏙 Happy Hour: Combining Capital, Technology and Design to Build Better Cities

When: Wed, June 15, 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM EDT

Where: Newlab, 19 Morris Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11205

Cities account for 75% of global CO2 emissions. How we build, operate, and modernize buildings will have a major impact on our climate future and the livability of cities. Capital investment, new technology, and clever design will be instrumental in creating new approaches that can decarbonize the built environment at scale, while also ensuring the viability and affordability of real estate.

🍃 Green Drinks Brooklyn & Offshore Wind Drinks & WRISE

When: Wed, June 15, 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM EDT

Where: Estuary Brasserie & Bar, 159 Bridge Park Drive, Brooklyn, NY 11201

Is your work related to the environment or sustainability? Are you interested in sustainability or environmental issues. Do you want to meet some like minded folks and share your thoughts and passion. Come down to Estuary at ONE15 Brooklyn Marina for Happy Hour drinks. We'll have a few folks introduce themselves and their work. Tell anyone from NGOs, academia, government, business or anyone interested in the environment/sustainability issues and ask them to bring a friend!
This month's event co-hosted with Offshore Wind Drinks & Women of Renewable Industries and Sustainable Energy (WRISE)

🍷 YPE NYC June Happy Hour

When: Wed, June 15, 6:30 PM – 9:00 PM EDT

Where: Amity Hall Downtown, 80 W 3rd St, New York, NY 10012

YPE NYC is hosting an in-person happy hour to kick off the summer! Please join YPE NYC and the energy community for an evening of casual drinks.
We will be gathering at Amity Hall Downtown in their downstairs room. Come grab a drink with us and discuss the latest in the NYC energy world with professionals from the utility, power, energy finance, law, and policy community.
We can’t wait to see you all again and hope you can join us!

🏢 Beyond Zero Series: Designing Healthy Buildings

When: Thu, June 16, 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM EDT

Where: Building Energy Exchange, 31 Chambers Street, Suite 608, New York, NY 10007

In this Beyond Zero Series event with Building Energy Exchange and NYSERDA, speakers will demonstrate how carbon neutral, high-performance buildings not only remove emissions from the design, construction, and operation of our buildings, but also provide healthier, more comfortable, cleaner spaces for us to live. New York recognizes the tie between lower emissions and improved health; in addition to Governor Hochul’s Clean Green Schools Initiative, New York State has launched a plan to achieve 2 Million Climate-Friendly Homes by 2030. During this panel discussion, learn about carbon neutral and Passive House design & construction strategies that achieve energy performance outcomes while also improving occupant health and wellbeing.

🗽 [POSTPONED] NY Climate Tech: Working with Governments to Deploy Climate Solutions

When: ~~Thu, June 16th, 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM EDT~~

Where: To Be Announced

NY Climate Tech is proud to announce our first subject-specific meetup.
This month, we're focusing on one of the most important, and most challenging aspects of climate tech: working with (and within) government to deploy climate solutions.
Featuring representatives from:
Katie MacDonald, Director Technology to Market at NYSERDA
City of New York — OneNYC, NYC’s comprehensive strategy to get to net zero by 2050
Ben Furnas, Executive Director of the Cornell 2030 Project, leading the university’s multi-disciplinary program to develop technological solutions in partnership with private sector players and advance policies that mitigate the impacts of climate change.
The format will be a panel followed by audience questions and networking.

🦠 Planet Microbes: Environmental Microbiology Discussion Group

When: Thu, June 16, 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM EDT

Where: Genspace Rooftop, 132 32nd Street, Suite 108 Brooklyn, NY 11232

Microbes are the invisible engines that keep the planet running. They were the first lifeforms to arise on early Earth 3.5 billion years ago, and they’ll likely exist long after we’re gone...but it's here and now we’re interested in. How do microbes influence our climate, and how are they responding to climate change? Join ocean microbiologist Kyle Frischkorn, Ph.D. for an informal discussion of environmental microbiology research that’s hot off the press.

🤝 Equity in Energy Summit

When: Thu, June 16, 9:00 AM - 5:00PM EDT

Where: Marriott Brooklyn, 333 Adams St, Brooklyn, NY 11201

City and State and National Grid are putting together the Equity in Energy Summit. We are bringing together 80+ industry leaders across New York who are dedicated to making the energy transition fair and equitable for everyone in our communities. The purpose is for leaders in energy to come together to see what can be done to ensure that we are building equity and inclusion in Environmental, Social and Economic concerns. This event is intended to bring together leaders in the energy space to determine how we can collectively ensure equity and inclusion in environmental, social, and economic concerns for our Black and Brown communities on our journey to a Net Zero and a clean energy future. At the end of the day, we will have created a shared action plan that ensures we move forward collaboratively, equitably, and leaving no one behind in our local communities.

🇺🇳 Rotaract Club at the United Nations's End-of-Year Reception & Fundraiser

When: Fri, June 17 , 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM EDT

Where: Hidden City Loft, 136 East 24th Street, New York, NY 10010

The Rotaract Club at the United Nations works around the Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations to be a "blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all". Each year we select a goal and create events around it. This year, our club picked Goal #13, Climate Action. On June 17, 2022, we will celebrate our accomplishments this year and formally end the year with members and friends. In addition, and in honor of Goal #13, we will be donating money to the Waterfront Alliance.

🌳 The Future of Climate Action - An Interactive Scenario Workshop

Where: SAP AppHaus / Hasso Plattner Institute, 10 Hudson Yards, 48th floor

When: Fri, June 17, 12:00 PM – 7:00 PM EDT

In this workshop, you will have the chance to learn more about scenario development tools and interact with other participants to create specific potential future pathways on global climate action. We will focus on the target year 2045, 15 years after the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are due and identify potential developments along the way. The workshop will last 5-6 hours and thus be a condensed version of a typical scenario workshop.

Events This Month

🇬🇧 Climatetech Showcase - Innovate UK at the Urban Future Lab

When: Wed, June 22, 4:30 PM – 6:30 PM EDT

Where: Company at 355 Madison Avenue, 7th floor Commons, NYC

The Urban Future Lab at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering is the U.S. landing pad for Innovate UK’s Global Incubator Programme, which is designed to cultivate and support the launch of innovative cleantech companies with a strong potential to scale internationally to new markets. The Global Incubator Programme is a multi-year partnership between Innovate UK and the Urban Future Lab.
Attendees will hear brief presentations from the companies about their technologies, what they have learned and accomplished over the program’s six-month intensive market discovery process, and where they’re headed next.

🗽NY Climate Tech Meetup: June

When: Thu, June 23, 6:30 - 9:00 PM EDT

Where: Madison Square Park

Join us for our June meetup!
Each month we bring together entrepreneurs, climate scientists, investors, students, engineers, and people of all backgrounds looking to transition into climate or meet other people with similar interests. We tend to have 50+ attendees, sometimes as many as 100 depending on the month and event.
This month we'll cross our fingers for good weather and try a picnic (+ Shake Shack) meetup in Madison Square Park.

🪙 ReFi NYC

When: Fri, June 24, 3:00 PM – 7:00 PM EDT

Where: Penthouse @ Hotel on Rivington at 107 Rivington Street, New York, NY

dClimate is hosting ReFi NYC, the flagship regenerative finance event of Ethereum New York on June 24th, 2022. Come for the panels, keynotes, merch, and networking opportunities. Stay for the happy hour, breathtaking views of New York City, and food!

🇧🇩 Kashef Chowdhury/URBANA: Critical Response

When: Tue, June 28, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM EDT

Where: Scholastic Big Red Auditorium, 130 Mercer Street, New York, NY 10012

The spring 2022 Current Work series focuses on architectural practices designing museums, schools, and cultural centers that contend with the complex legacies of place.
Kashef Chowdhury cofounded the Dhaka-based firm URBANA in 1995 and has led the practice as solo principal since 2004. The firm’s projects span various typologies and methodologies, from climate-action initiatives to cultural, educational, sports, health, industrial, religious, and residential facilities. In its own words, the practice aims to cultivate “a contextually and socially responsible…architectural and planning response” to the twin crises of climate change and migration in Bangladesh.

🏢 Inclusive Design and Building Performance: Exploring Synergies with Equity, Sustainability, and Health in the Built Environment

When: Wed, June 29, 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM EDT