While the Bronx is 24% parkland, more than any other borough, much is consolidated in some large parks on the periphery of the borough, which are difficult to access for many Bronx residents. With a focus on smaller neighborhood parks, The Bronx is Blooming’s PLACE projects create more opportunities for communities to spend time in nature, including coming out to help revitalize their neighborhood parks.

The Bronx has the city’s highest rate of obesity, with residents facing an estimated 85 percent higher risk of being obese than people in Manhattan. One in four children in the South Bronx is overweight or obese. Our projects not only help community residents to take direct action in their parks – as the stewards of young trees, the combatants of water pollution (through helping our open space absorb more rain water) and the planters of new native gardens - but by beautifying and increasing exposure to neighborhood green space, we encourage regular park usage and physical activity.

Air pollution is an exacerbating factor for asthma, a critical and urgent issue in the Bronx, a borough with the highest asthma rates in the state, 43.5 asthma-related deaths per million residents in the Bronx, compared with the state average of 13.1 deaths per million (New York Environmental Report). Our work in community-driven horticulture is particularly suited to reducing air pollution, as many small steps (new plantings, park and street tree stewardship) can significantly enhance a community’s air quality. A mature tree absorbs more than 48 pounds of carbon monoxide each year and gives off oxygen (ArborDay).  Through the stewardship of 1000 trees each year, 1600 PLACE volunteers contribute to a denser, healthier canopy in our parks and on our streets for generations to come. As our members protect, mulch and prune our trees, they learn that these trees give back, by filtering pollutants, lowering summer temperatures and breathing life into their communities. 

PLACE offers multiple opportunities for each community to join our students as environmental stewards revitalizing parks. We offer weekend community events, school service day partnerships, company team-building days, and University programming to connect students from different local colleges to one another and our work. Our work promotes an ethic of shared responsibility, spreading the message of how each community member can create change in their own environments, backyards, and tree-pits, and have fun while they are achieving these results.