Forest Project Campaign

“Forest restoration is not just helping us but it is raising the bar and setting a precedent for the generations to come. We may not see the effects of our work but those who come after us will be forever grateful that we have done it.”

These wise and heartfelt words come from a young Wave Hill Forest Project Intern when asked to reflect on what is most important for teens to learn about ecological restoration, and they resonate with all of us as we contemplate our environmental future. 

Wave Hill’s Forest Project Summer Collaborative, the oldest urban woodland conservation program for youth in the United States, has been working to improve the ecology of the Bronx since 1980.  It is also a vital teen empowerment program and career ladder, teaching and mentoring high school students from throughout the Bronx and upper Manhattan.  The Forest Project provides meaningful paid internships for a six-week, five-day summer program that encompasses ecological restoration of Wave Hill’s Herbert and Hyonja Abrons Woodland, pre-college coursework at Lehman College, as well as the opportunity for reflection and special projects.  Forest Project alumni have gone on to earn advanced degrees from Cornell University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Temple University and the Yale School of Forestry, among many others.  They have secured work in university laboratories, in environmental engineering companies and as project managers for such important organizations as the New York Restoration Project.

Please share our extraordinary pride and enthusiasm for this stellar program by making a special gift this summer.  It will go to strengthen not just the Forest Project but the environmental leaders of the future as well.

Thank you in advance for your generosity, and we hope to see you at Wave Hill often this summer.