Growing Green Partnerships: Cutting the Ribbon at PS 147 Isaac Remsen
March 14, 2024
This morning, we celebrated the 10 year anniversary of one of our founding partnerships at PS 147 in Brooklyn! Joined by special guests including Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, Council Member Jennifer Gutiérrez and Executive Director of NYC Mayor’s Office of Urban Agriculture Qiana Mickie, we celebrated this momentous occasion as the school unveiled its newly renovated Hydroponic Classroom. With so many years of climate education experience under their belt, the Farmer Scientists of PS147 showed off just how far they’d come, and we’re equally inspired to see what amazing things are still in store!
“PS 147 is leading our students into the future every day, and today’s grand opening of the hydroponic lab is a perfect example of their commitment to our children,” said Council Member Jennifer Gutiérrez (D-34). “Schools know that to prepare our next generation for tomorrow, curricula must include STEAM and adapting to climate change, which includes learning how to sustainably grow our own food. PS 147 is an incredible community that gives so much to our children and families, and I’m thrilled to support NY Sun Works and this amazing resource for everyone to thrive.”
As we continue our journey toward a sustainable future, our roots in New York City also have grown ever-deeper, with some of the first partnerships we established now operating for almost a decade. For each of those years, a new group of New Yorkers experiences a new way of thinking about their food, what it takes to grow it, and where it comes from. While with this week’s ribbon cutting we’re inaugurating an expanded program at PS 147, we’re doing so in the same spirit of learning and discovery that motivated the construction of our first Hydroponic Classroom all those years ago. With almost 150 school partners in Brooklyn alone and another 26 in the Borough on the way by the end of this year, the green spaces created at each of our partner schools have begun to grow together to create a collective community of like-minded sustainability scientists, activists, and experts who are eager to dive into the joy of learning and imagine solutions to everyday climate challenges.
“Hydroponic classrooms offer hands-on opportunities for students to learn climate education, sustainability, and urban farming, and they strengthen science in schools,” said Mayor’s Office of Urban Agriculture Executive Director Qiana Mickie. “Congratulations to PS 147 and NY Sun Works on a successful, ten-year collaboration that builds the climate and food stewards of tomorrow.”
“I am so happy to be in Bushwick to celebrate the partnership between PS 147 and NY Sun Works,” said Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso. “Over the past 10 years, collaboration between PS 147 and NY Sun Works has brought students a significant understanding of the natural world and keen awareness of the environmental issues impacting our globe. To mount a successful fight against climate change, we need young people involved, and I am confident that through this continued partnership and a newly renovated hydroponic farm classroom, even more students will be empowered to make meaningful change in our world.”
Among many long-term sustainability initiatives, there’s a sense that while amazing things are happening, many of us impassioned by current events are planting the seeds of shade that we may never see. To that end, celebrating this 10-year anniversary also instills us with a sense of pride, in that we’ve been able to watch students explore multiple years of successive climate education, engaging with curriculum of increasing depth and rigor as they grow alongside the plants in their classrooms. The global stage is often rife with mixed news, so we hope occasions like this inspire those within New York City and beyond to take action, dream big, and feel confident that there are others who share the same passion we do for climate education.
We’d like to say thank you again to PS 147 and Principal Sandra Noyola for a long and flourishing partnership, as well as Borough President Reynoso, Executive Director Qiana Mickie, and Council Member Gutiérrez for supporting our Farmer Scientists and helping us emphasize the importance of this occasion. The path to a sustainable future in New York is paved with long-term partnerships and meaningful investments, and after today, we’re excited to see what possibilities are in store for the next 10 years!
