Block By Block Microclimates In North Brooklyn

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Join Pratt Institute’s program and for an interactive walk in North Brooklyn, as part of Climate Week NYC! The walk will discuss health, ecological and infrastructure challenges of local communities, and engage our own sensors and sensing technology to explore the relationships between the urban form, microclimate and its effects on us and other living systems in the city.

Join Pratt Institute’s MS in Sustainable Environmental Systems program, North Brooklyn Parks Alliance, and El Puente for an interactive walk in North Brooklyn, as part of Climate Week NYC! During the walk we will discuss health, ecological and infrastructure challenges of local communities with grounding from an Environmental Justice perspective offered by El Puente, and engage our own sensors and sensing technology to explore the relationships between the urban form, microclimate and its effects on us and other living systems in the city.

The walk will be led by:

Yuliya Dzyuban

Assistant Professor, Pratt Institute GCPE

Yuliya Dzyuban focuses on enhancing thermal comfort in cities through a mixed method approach to track, map, and analyze heat exposure, and develop urban design solutions for thermal comfort improvement in cities. Her research has taken her to some of the hottest cities globally, including Singapore, Phoenix, and Hermosillo, contributing to local design and planning policies. Currently, Yuliya's research is centered on developing and testing participatory methodologies for evaluating and co-creating nature-based solutions, all through the lens of environmental justice. Collaborating with international partners, she strives to empower communities to enhance heat resilience and co-create urban design solutions that promote sustainable development and improve overall well-being. Yuliya conducts courses such as urban heat management and microclimate assessment for urban design in the SES program, equipping students with the necessary skills to tackle complex urban systems challenges and address environmental injustices through service learning, field experiences, and role-based learning exercises. Dr. Dzyuban is Vice-President of the International Society of Biometeorology, and a member of the Nature-based Solutions for Urban Resilience in the Anthropocene (NATURA) Network.

Lisa Bloodgood

Visiting Assistant Professor, Pratt Institute GCPE

Director of Horticulture and Stewardship, North Brooklyn Parks Alliance

Lisa Bloodgood joined North Brooklyn Parks Alliance in 2022 as the Director of Horticulture & Stewardship. She has a deep knowledge of the area, from plants to pollutants, and a wealth of experience engaging with North Brooklyn communities on matters relating to the local environment and sustainability. Lisa currently resides in Williamsburg and can trace her ancestry all the way back to Dutch settlers in Queens and Brooklyn in the 1660’s! She first fell in love with plants in California: her family moved there from New York State as a teenager, and the drastic differences between the natural environment on the east vs. west coast helped spark her curiosity in the natural world. As an adult, Lisa pursued her passion for horticulture in academic and applied ways, obtaining a degree in Earth & Environmental Science from Brooklyn College while working as the Environmental Policy Advisor and Community Liaison for the office of Stephen Levin, former NYC Council Member for District 33. Lisa worked at Newtown Creek Alliance as Director of Advocacy & Education, aiding the organization in their community-based approach to revitalizing this fraught waterway. She has also served on several boards, councils, and committees for organizations like New York City Brownfield Partnerships and Mt. Sinai Transdisciplinary Center on Early Childhood Environmental Exposures.

Raísa Lin Garden-Lucerna

Youth Leader, El Puente

Alumna, Pratt Institute MS in Sustainable Environmental Systems

Raísa Lin Garden-Lucerna (she/they) is a lifelong resident of the South Side of Williamsburg. Born into the El Puente community, she was raised with and nurtured through principles of community, the arts, environment, leadership, and justice. As a youth leader at El Puente, Raísa has developed skills in community organizing, participatory action research, community science and youth-targeted environmental-awareness and justice curriculum. Raísa traveled to Puerto Rico twice as a Youth Climate Ambassador, working with El Puente Puerto Rico’s office to support local efforts and events. Her experience with holistic approaches to environmental justice influenced her passion for multi-disciplinary solutions. She received her BA in Urban Environmental Health for Policy and Planning through Hunter College and CUNY Baccalaureate for Unique and Interdisciplinary Studies in 2021.

This past spring, Raísa graduated with a Masters of Science from Pratt Institute’s GCPE’s Sustainable Environmental Systems program. While at Pratt, Raísa was a graduate fellow at the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance through the Pratt x NYCEJA Environmental Justice Fellowship (2023-2024). She also had the opportunity to travel internationally, where she studied in Rio de Janeiro and Paris; Focus areas included topics such as sustainable development, environmental justice, climate resilience, and front-line solutions. Overall, she gained a deeper sense of solidarity from these global perspectives, and the various ways communities around the world are tackling the climate crisis. These experiences and understandings continue to fuel Raísa’s commitment to working towards a collaborative, just, imaginative, and sustainable future for all marginalized communities.

Co-Sponsored by:

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Pratt Institute MS in Sustainable Environmental Systems

The Master of Science in Sustainable Environmental Systems (SES) is one of the nation’s most innovative, interdisciplinary, systems-based sustainability programs. This STEM certified degree program is designed to meet today’s increasing demand for environmental professionals, uniquely combining environmental science, sustainable design, and climate policy. Students learn the interdisciplinary skills and systems-thinking approach needed to assess contemporary environmental issues; catalyze innovative environmental problem-solving; uphold environmental and social justice; and engage diverse stakeholders in designing and developing sustainable communities.

El Puente is a mission-driven, Latinx-rooted, human rights organization honoring all intersectionalities within the communities in which we build. We are committed to fighting for peace, justice, and the liberation of all oppressed people, and we stand in solidarity with movements around the world that stand for similar principles. El Puente’s mission is to inspire and nurture leaders for peace and justice, and we commit to this mission through the engagement of members (youth and adults) in the arts, education, scientific research, wellness and environmental action. Founded in 1982, El Puente integrates the diverse activities and community campaigns of El Puente Arts and the El Puente Green Light District within its 6 Youth Leadership Centers, and its nationally recognized public high school, the El Puente Academy for Peace and Justice. Organizing in North Brooklyn and Puerto Rico, El Puente is at the forefront of community & youth development, and initiates/impacts social policy locally and nationally.

The North Brooklyn Parks Alliance (NBK Parks) was formed in 2003 as the Open Space Alliance for North Brooklyn (OSA) to raise private funds to expand and improve open space in North Brooklyn. NBK Parks is modeled after other successful conservancies, working with the NYC Department of Parks & Recreation, NYC Department of Transportation, New York State Department of Transportation, elected officials, and the community to maintain, activate, enhance, and expand local parks, while challenging common perceptions of what defines open space.

Pratt Institute Graduate Center for Planning and the Environment

Faced with climate change, systemic racism, and growing inequity, communities need forward-thinking approaches to urbanism now more than ever. Practice-based and rooted deeply in the network of communities we serve, our alliance of four graduate-level programs works to address these evolving threats, working in partnership to build asset-based solutions at the intersection of environment, equity, culture, and economy.