GREEN HORIZONS CAREERS IN THE ENVIRONMENT AND NATURAL RESOURCES Design of the Green Horizons Careers booklet The Green Horizons Careers booklet was was supported by a special grant from sponsored in part by the NYS Department of The F. A. Bartlett Tree Expert Company. Environmental Conservation. Green Horizons is a collaborative educational project, sustained by the following: environmental education advisory council MAGNOLIA TREE EARTH CENTER For more information: visit www.MagnoliaTreeEarthCenter.com or www.eeac-nyc.org © 2016 Magnolia Tree Earth Center of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Inc. Table of Contents Careers & Resources PAGE 3 PAGE 11 PAGE 18 PAGE 25 Green Horizons is an annual collaborative event for middle school Exploring careers in Monitoring Gardening in Botanical Gardens, Solar Energy for the the environment and natural Air Quality Parks and the Community students, held each October at a site in one of the 5 boroughs Environment and Economy resources of New York City. Students, teachers and counselors who attend Atmospheric Horticulture Solar Energy learn about a wide variety of natural resource and environmental Letter to Students Science Production careers in a “hands-on” way, working closely with professionals who volunteer their time to share their expertise and enjoyment. PAGE 4 PAGE 12 PAGE 19 PAGE 26 The Green Horizons Careers booklet provides guidance beyond Defining Terms Exploring Geology and Designing a Plan Working in the Forest of the the actual event and will assist young people interested in the What is an the Earth’s History for the Land Urban Environment careers that are presented. It will be useful in choosing high schools, Urban Environment? Earth Science Landscape Urban Forestry curriculum subjects, internships, and, eventually, post-high school Architecture education or training. Many thanks to the following institutions that have provided PAGE 6 PAGE 13 PAGE 20 PAGE 28 free or low-cost venues for the Green Horizons events over the Urban Finding and Water All Around! Helpful Resources past 20 years: Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Central Park Conservancy, Farming Researching Insects Marine Public High Schools New York Botanical Garden, Queens Botanical Garden, Agriculture Entomology Careers to Consider Snug Harbor/SI Botanical Garden and Van Cortlandt Park of the NYC Department of Parks & Recreation. Green Horizons is made possible by the support of hundreds of PAGE 7 PAGE 14 PAGE 22 PAGE 29 volunteers each year and by the generous financial and in-kind Protecting Water Quality Building “Green” Weather Forecasting and Helpful Resources sponsorship of Con Edison of New York, The F. A. Bartlett Tree Expert Aquatic Ecology Structures Climate Change Research Colleges and Company, Davey Tree Expert Company and Davey Resource Group. and Environmental Environmental Meteorology and Universities Engineering Architecture Atmospheric Science PAGE 8 PAGE 15 PAGE 23 PAGE 30 Planting and Caring for Teaching about Help for Birds and Helpful Resources Editor/Researcher: Nancy A. Wolf, JLN WOLF, Inc. Urban Trees the Environment Other Animals Designer: Leslie Kameny, Kameny Design Governmental Photos: Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Con Edison, NYS Department of Arboriculture Environmental Ornithology, Zoology Agencies Environmental Conservation Education and Wildlife Management Advisory Committee: Susan Gooberman, Environmental Education Consultant PAGE 10 PAGE 17 PAGE 24 PAGE 31 Mary Kramarchyk, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation Arbor Rx: Designing with Studying and Helpful Resources David McMaster, The F.A. Bartlett Tree Expert Company CSI for Healthy Trees Flowers Improving Soil Gregory Owens, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation Non-profit Mala Ruzi, Berta A. Dreyfus IS 49, Staten Island Arboricultural Floriculture Soil Science Organizations Research Research 1 Dear Students: Q. Do you like being outdoors? Do you enjoy science and math? How about geography and mapping and natural history? Have you partici- pated in tree-planting at school or at home or perhaps helped to create a flower or vegetable garden? Are you curious about plants or animals? A. If the answer is “yes” to any or all of these questions, you may be interested in a career in the environment and natural resources. This booklet can be your guide. We all live in an urban environment that is an exciting place to explore and discover. The careers described in the booklet focus on caring for our environment. Working in one of these jobs will allow you to help create more healthful surroundings and provide a better life for yourself and others. Though each one is described separately, many of the careers overlap; those working in the environmental field often work closely together. Some of the careers described in the booklet are learned “on-the-job” right out of high school. Others require a professional certificate that can be earned in a year or two. Many of them, such as scientific research, require at least two or four years of college or even graduate school. As you learn more about careers that interest you, one important question will be: how much education do I need to prepare for this job? In the booklet, there are also lists of high schools and colleges or universities you may want to consider attending. All of them offer courses that can be important and interesting to you. There are also lists of organizations and governmental agencies that provide up-to-date information. As you grow older, you may be able to find internships or summer jobs through the contacts we have provided. Best of all, the jobs described in the booklet are here in this country. They will not be “out-sourced” or go away. They exist for the present and the future. 3 What is an Urban Environment? You may want to think about making one of the careers described in the booklet a part of your future. But, first, you need to know what makes up the special urban environment we are all part of: Closed landfills Parks New York City used to dump its garbage Backyards and trash into large dumps at the city’s Parks are a big part of the urban environment The closest bit of nature may be the one edges. Often, these landfills destroyed and they provide us with many trees and right next to the front or back of your own house or wetlands that should have been protected. flowers, lakes and ponds, and places to play. apartment building. Investigate these spaces All our landfills are now closed and New York City has famous large parks, such for trees, shrubbery, flowers and urban wildlife, they are being turned into huge parks as Central and Prospect, but also many smaller such as birds and squirrels. and grasslands that help re-create some parks in neighborhoods across all boroughs. of the plants and habitats that once were there. The Atlantic Ocean, Natural Woodlands Creeks and rivers The city also has many areas where trees and with hundreds of bays, The city has underground creeks that other plants have grown on their own. Some of them become visible as they empty into tidal lands and inlets. are remains of the landscape that was here before so surrounding waters. Our one real river is We have miles of shoreline, including many many buildings, streets and sidewalks were built. Bronx River, an important food resource beaches that form our marine environment New trees and shrubs are now being planted in our and habitat for wildlife all along its path. which supports thousands of special plants and woodlands to create a healthier forest. animals that thrive in salty water. Street trees Swamps, marshes and Thousands of trees are planted along our streets. stream banks They beautify our neighborhoods and provide Botanical gardens, These crucial wetlands provide very cooling shade in summertime. Birds and small community gardens, important habitats for birds and other creatures. Ambient Air mammals such as squirrels obtain food from them. and even cemeteries They are critical for control of water running off Last but not least is the ambient air the land and for protection from floods. As the trees take in carbon dioxide and put out These valuable areas provide a combination around us, which we take for granted but In addition, special low areas called curbside oxygen from their leaves, they help purify the air we of lawns, trees, shrubs, flowers and vegetables which is essential for life. rain gardens are now being built along streets breathe. Street trees are planted by city agencies, by that create special environmental spaces. neighborhood groups or by individuals who just love and in parking lots to capture rainwater before trees and want to see more of them. it runs off into the sewers. Rain gardens can help provide water for street and park trees. 4 5 Urban Farming Protecting Water Quality and Supply Agriculture Aquatic Ecology and Environmental Engineering Many parts of New York City used to Water Quality Scientists and Environ- be covered in farms and the produce urban farmer mental Engineers have crucial jobs in water quality scientist was sold in local markets. But, providing and protecting water for our gradually, the city’s land was sold to Many urban farmers got their start by urban environment. Abundant supplies of Supplies of clean water for large become part of business, industrial actively growing crops in community clean, potable water are a “must”; humans cities like New York City are overseen and housing developments and most gardens and decided to find enough and animals cannot live without water. by water quality scientists who find farms disappeared. Today, there are open land to grow many more. Plants cannot grow and survive without and monitor water sources. farm museums in Queens and Staten water. As cities and their surrounding areas Island that allow us to learn about the grew over the past 200 years, the demand ways successful farms were run in the have demonstration gardens staffed by for water increased.