NYC QUALITY OF LIFE:
THE LACK OF
URBAN
GREENING
It’s summer
time in
So what do you want to do? Anything as long as it is out of the city,
right? Some place cool, some place nice,
some place with trees everywhere!
This is a common idea and it makes a lot of sense.
Trying to take a short day trip to the beach or to the
mountains can take hours to get there and hours to get back home (and the ride
back may be so hot it may not seem worth the trip). If you’re not sweltering in the heat, the
increased air pollution during this time inflames your little sister’s asthma
and makes your grandmother circulatory problems more dangerous.
Many of your friends, family and neighbors are moving. Moving
away appears to solve all the problems; somewhere else must be cooler,
somewhere else smells better or at least must be less populated. Somewhere else, there is a better quality of
life for you and your family. The city politicians
and bureaucrats have not improved your community, they believe that is the job
for private development, but when private development improves a lot or block
they charge high rents just to recoup their investment. Besides, everyone is
moving.
You, however, know that the lack of urban greenery is a
problem not just in
So what do you do?
Organize and participate in a community activist group. The group’s task is to research the
connection between urban greenery and quality of life, then educate the people
in the community about what they can do
to improve both, and finally convince someone in the government that it is the
elected government’s responsibility to
help the community improve their own neighborhood, as well as the landowner’s
responsibility. It is your job to help solve
the lack of greenery in
As a community activist
you and your group will:
present a
persuasive power point presentation to your community
o presentation must include
§
supporting
evidence that identifies the problem
§
provide a
feasible immediate solution with maintenance requirements (monetary or
otherwise)
§
Outline
of long-term plans for the future
Presentation
should contain 15-20 slides
A 10
minute oral presentation to the community and later to the governmental body
you identified as relevant to your cause
Create
educational bulletins
(at least 2) for the residential and business communites
that outlines the benefits of urban greening and the cost of implementation.
Each
member of the group will be required to write a three page minimum essay
explaining the findings using the six-steps of the Public Policy Analyst
format. This typed report is a separate
assignment.
Remember, you want
the whole community on board so you have to convenience them that there is not
only a problem, but also a good solution.
You also need to convenience your chosen governmental body that Urban
Greening is not just the responsibility of landowners.
As a member of the
New York City Urban Greening Group (NYC-UGG) you will work with your team to
thoroughly research the problem of the lack of green space in urban
settings. Each person on the team will
have a task as follows:
Group Leader
Creative/Graphic Artist
Present
Research
Activist
You will follow the
six steps of the Public Policy Analyst (PPA) to help you make your policy
recommendation.
1. Identifying the
Problem, and Worksheet #1
Define the problem that is
being addressed. What are the adverse
effects of the problem.
2. Gathering Evidence,
and Worksheet # 2
How do we know this is
really a problem or that this “problem” really affects the community negatively.
3. Identify Causes of
the problem, and Worksheet # 3
What is the cause or why
does this problem persists.
4. Evaluate the
Policy, and Worksheet #4
What policies already exist
that address the problem. What are the pros and cons of any existing policies.
5. Develop a solution
to the Problem, and Worksheet #5
What new public policy do you
wish to create.
1. Selecting the Best
Solution, and Worksheet #6
Decide with your group the
best policy to use for the problem. Make
sure to discuss how your policy addresses deficits in existing policies and/or
take advantage of what other policies offer.
GENERAL SEARCH ENGINES:
v YAHOO http://www.yahoo.com
v GOOGLE https://www.google.com
v ASK http://www.ask.com/#subject:ask|pg:1
EXISTING GROUPS IN
Below are just a few existing urban greening programs of NYC. Information found at these and other sites can be used to guide your own activist’s goals.
v Living Memorials Project http://www.livingmemorialsproject.net/ABOUT/livingmem_greeningres2.htm
v Greening A Block `http://www.greeningablock.org/
v
NYC.GOV – Greening East
EXPERT HELP:
The following websites are useful for: Literature search of professional articles and texts (background information), finding speakers, printed media, and video media that can be used to educate your group and the community and locating “factoid” sheets to help educate the community, governing body, and business community in your area.
v EcoIQ.com http://www.ecoiq.com/urbangreening/
v
Human Dimensions of Urban Forestry and Urban
Greening - University of
v Openlands Project http://www.openlands.org/urbangreening.asp
|
|
Excellent 4 |
Very Good 3 |
Satisfactory 2 |
Unsatisfactory 1 |
|
Research Public Policy Analysis |
Problem clearly
identified and thoroughly researched All six steps of the PPA
are clearly addressed and all worksheets correctly completed |
Problem identified and
reasonably well researched All six steps of the PPA
are addressed and most worksheets correctly completed |
Problem identified with
limited research. All steps of the PPA are addressed, but worksheets could be
improved on. |
Problem identified but
research is lacking Incomplete worksheets. |
|
Oral Presentation |
Well organized,
demonstrates logical sequencing and sentence structure. The group is
knowledgeable and can answer questions with high degree of accuracy. |
Well organized, but
demonstrates illogical sequencing or sentence structure. The group is
knowledgeable and can answer questions with a moderate degree of accuracy. |
Well organized, but
illogical sequencing and sentence structure. The group is
knowledgeable and can answer questions with a minimum degree of accuracy. |
Poorly organized. The group is not
knowledgeable and cannot answer questions with accuracy. |
|
PowerPoint |
5 or more creative slides
that include animated graphics and sound |
5 or more slides using
color graphics, clear and annotated |
5 slides with some graphics, slides are too busy |
Fewer than 5 slides, not
clear and no graphics |
|
PowerPoint Graphics |
Image strong enough to
communicate ideas with or without text |
Image requires text to
communicate. |
Image not clear about the
message you are trying to communicate |
Incomplete art
assignment. |
|
Educational Bulletins (min 2) |
Well organized, presents relevant information of the benefit of urban greening and implementation costs. Strong graphics that attract the “client” and highlight important points. No spelling or grammatical errors. |
Well organized, presents
relevant information of the benefit of urban greening and implementation
costs. Strong graphics that attract
the “client” and highlight important points.
1-2 spelling
or grammatical errors. |
Not well organized, presents
most of the relevant information of the benefit of urban greening and
implementation costs. Graphics are not
that attractive or do not highlight important points. 3-4 spelling and/or grammatical errors. |
Poorly organized. No
graphics or unattractive, colorless graphics that do not highlight important
points. Missing relevant information
of the benefits of urban greening and/or the costs of implementation. Contains more than 4 spelling and/or
grammatical errors. |
|
Written Report (Separate from PPA) |
All of the required topics are addressed thoroughly in the report. Content is accurate and ideas are supported well by research. Includes a proper reference page. No spelling or grammatical errors. |
All of the required topics are addressed in the report; however, some topics could have been researched more thoroughly. Content is accurate. Includes a proper reference page. |
All of the required topics are addressed in the
report; however, some topics could have been researched more thoroughly. Content is accurate. Includes a reference page; however some information
is incorrect or missing. |
All of the required topics are incomplete, the report and the
research is incomplete. Reference page is missing or inaccurate. |
Total
Possible Points: 12 Total Points Earned: ____
1. 10 – 12
= A 3.
7-9 =C 5. 3 -0=F
2. 11 --
7 = B 4.
4-6=D
As
a result of your research you will be able to identity the benefits of urban
greening for the residential community, business community and the local
government. Your group will present a
well research powerpoint
presentation that educates and inspires all to reach out and lend a hand to
bettering the community. The project
will also include a immediate and long-term time frame
as well as the cost to “green” the neighborhood. Finally, you and your group will develop
educational materials for the community and a public policy that outline
short-term and long-term goals useful for your immediate neighborhood and
surrounding ones as well.
Standards:
English Language Arts:
E1C: Read and comprehend informational materials
E3B: Participate in-group meetings
Science:
S2a:
Structure and function in living systems.
S5c: Uses
evidence from reliable sources to develop description
S5f: Works
individually and in teams to collect and share information
