The New York City Biodiversity Task Force on How We Can Help Better Support Our Ecosystem

This is part of a series with Perfect Earth Project, a nonprofit dedicated to toxic-free, nature-based gardening, on how you can be more sustainable in your landscapes at home.

“New York City has a secret,” says urban ecologist and founder of NYC Wildflower Week Marielle Anzelone. “The Big Apple boasts more open space than any major city in the United States; more than Los Angeles, Chicago, and Philadelphia combined. Even Manhattan, known for its taxi cabs and towering skyscrapers, has rare beetles and 150-year-old tulip trees. The five boroughs collectively host over 40 percent of the state’s rare and endangered plant species.”

And yet New York City, along with most of the developed world, is in the midst of a biodiversity emergency. In response, a number of major international metropolises—San Francisco, Paris, Singapore, Freetown, Sydney, São Paulo, to name just a few—have adopted biodiversity plans to devote resources to address the problem, but New York City has not. “It’s the only major global city without a comprehensive biodiversity plan,” says urban forester and founder of Local Nature Lab Georgia Silvera Seamans, PhD., who along with Anzelone, is on a mission to get the city’s government to change that. With the goal of “increasing access to nature and protecting and restoring biodiversity and natural habitats,” they launched the New York City Biodiversity Task Force earlier this year. This coalition includes field biologists, environmental justice organizations, civic institutions, and nonprofits, including Perfect Earth Project, representing all five boroughs. “To be truly resilient, New York City needs a clear ecological mandate,” says Anzelone. 

Silvera Seamans and Anzelone believe that ecology is an underutilized urban resource. They want to see “biodiversity elevated to match the scale and urgency of climate concerns in the city,” arguing that investments in biodiversity can “beautify and cool neighborhoods, support pollinators, boost mental health, advance environmental justice, and deliver nature-based solutions for climate action.” Healthy, functioning ecosystems are essential to the air we breathe and the food we eat. I spoke with them to learn five simple things we can all do in our communities to help protect biodiversity. 

1. Take a walk in nature.