AGENCY DESCRIPTION
The New York City Department of Parks & Recreation manages 14 percent of the land in New York City with facilities ranging from playgrounds and large parks to tranquil wooded areas and more than 14 miles of beaches. Parks serve as New Yorkers’ backyards, as vital meeting areas for outdoor play and recreation – but also as an important tool in mitigating the effects of climate change, critical engines for economic growth and development.
NYC Parks’ mission is to grow, maintain, and program a world-class park system prioritizing equity, access, safety, and nature. Highlights of Parks’ work over the last year include:
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Opening the 21-acre North Park section of Freshkills Park on Staten Island — the first section inside the former Fresh Kills Landfill site to open to the public.
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Launching Let’s Green NYC, a new initiative to reach a record number of volunteers in City parks through the end of 2024. The campaign encourages New Yorkers to get outside and build social connection by giving back to their city.
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Breaking ground on two new recreation centers –the Shirley Chisholm Recreation Center in Brooklyn and the Mary Cali Dalton Recreation Center in Staten Island – the first new recreation centers built in nearly a decade.
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Helping to keep New Yorkers healthy in the face of extreme heat by planting 14,900 trees in Fiscal Year 2023 — the highest street and park tree planting total in the past six fiscal years.
The work of our staff goes far beyond the maintenance of New York City’s nearly 30,000 acres and more than 2.5 million trees. Parks is the City’s leading programmer of cultural, athletic, and social activities, including nature walks, volunteer programs, sports clinics, historic house tours, and much more. In addition, Parks produces special events, concerts and movie premieres, and manages agreements with more than 300 businesses that operate on public parkland.UNIT DESCRIPTION
Borough Forestry manages the urban tree canopy of Staten Island. The mission of NYC Parks is to plan resilient and sustainable parks, public spaces, and recreational amenities, build a park system for present and future generations, and care for parks and public spaces. Environment and Planning works to protect, restore, expand, and manage New York Citys green spaces and natural areas to maximize their benefits for environmental and community health and resilience.
Interns would work alongside office staff to interact with the public, manage data, and conduct field surveys. They will learn about the various roles a forester plays including skills applicable throughout environmental fields like contract management, invasive species removal, plant ID, public communications, and ecological surveys.
POSITION TITLE
Staten Island Forestry Intern
INTERNSHIP RESPONSIBILITIES
•Identify tree species and perform basic inspections.
•Communicate Park’s goals and mission to the public
•Survey parks and trails for hazards
•Paperwork and data entry
•Develop a project or study throughout the internship that would benefit Forestry goals
QUALIFICATIONS/SPECIAL SKILLS/AREAS OF INTEREST
•Interest or studying forestry, biology, ecology, environmental studies/science, conservation or tree care (preferred not required)
•Basic tree/plant ID (preferred not required)
•Ability to walk medium distances and work outside in various types of weather
•Competency with the Microsoft Office Suite programs
•Ability to work with a wide range of people and personalities
nyc.gov/internships
APPLICATION PROCESS
Please email cover letter and resume to Leslie.Nusblatt@parks.nyc.gov