Walking down NYC’s tree-lined 18th Street, my street, I was thinking how grateful I am for how the street is. Grateful for being a part of this beautiful Gramercy community. Grateful for trees on the street. Grateful for trees entertaining my eyes with blooming flowers and touching my soul with their overwhelming energy and bringing back life after long cold months. Even in winter, I enjoyed the trees’ presence in front of my apartment.
Trees are the integral part of the urban environment. “Why Trees Matter,” the most emailed article of the New York Times on April 12, says, “We take them (trees) for granted, but they are a near miracle.” As a matter of fact, I wonder if we underappreciate our limited nature in the city or underestimate the power of trees.
This week, I was invited to attend to a lecture, “Richard Louv on ‘Nature-Deficit Disorder,’” hosted by Columbia University’s School of Continuing Education program for Master of Science in Landscape Design. Richard Louv is the author of eight books about the connection between family, nature and community. Last Child in the Woods is his landmark bestseller that became an international force for change. And he just released a new book called The Nature Principle: Reconnecting with Life in a Virtual Age.
Picture with Richard Louv
At the lecture, he discussed a new meaning of sustainability– “creating” better cities, rather than sustaining or maintaining the present condition.” We do not want to “sustain” friendships or marriage — we want and expect beyond that. I think this is very true for the environment. We want to change for the better, not tomorrow, but today. Planting trees in the Amazon is a great idea, but we can start from where we live, Louv passionately argued.
Throughout the evening, the message “we do not want to wait for Congress to sign” was repeatedly shown. Rather, we can start from our backyard, Louv said. He used a phrase, “De-Central Park” in NYC, as a play off of “Central Park.” Similar to the topic of parklets I wrote about in one of my earlier posts, Louv suggested utilizing every inch of open space in the city. While listening to him, I thought of a number of open spaces in the city that are not currently being optimized for green — unlimited possibilities!
Imagine if we could fill every possible space in the city with plants and trees. What would that be like?How would we and our children feel in such a greener and healthier city?
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