Living Landscapes: Combining Education and Ecology for a more Resilient New York Harbor

Presenter Information

Murray Fisher, Billion Oyster Project
Brad Howe, SCAPE

Location

McConnell 103, Smith College

Start Date

5-10-2019 10:30 AM

End Date

5-10-2019 12:00 PM

Description

This session will highlight a unique partnership between a landscape architecture firm, an environmental group, and a public high school that are working together in New York Harbor to increase the area’s resiliency as the climate changes, and to engage and train the next generation of environmental and Harbor stewards.

Comments

Murray Fisher is the creator of the New York Harbor School and Billion Oyster Project. Murray has spent his entire professional career working to make the waters surrounding New York City cleaner, more abundant, more well-known, more well-loved, and accessible to every young person. This effort started directly after Vanderbilt University through an AmeriCorps job at Hudson Riverkeeper and continued through his three years at Waterkeeper Alliance. But it began in earnest in 2002 when he started the decade-long effort to create the Harbor School. After seven years as the school's Program Director, Murray became the Executive Director of the New York Harbor Foundation where he supported the Harbor School, oversaw two building renovations for the school, and created the Billion Oyster Project. The New York Harbor Foundation now does all of its business as the Billion Oyster Project, and Murray is the Chairman of the Board. Murray lives with his wife and three kids in Bedford, NY.

Brad Howe is a Landscape Designer and Associate at SCAPE, where he brings an interdisciplinary design background in landscape architecture and architecture to a wide range of projects. His work focuses on the power of the landscape to bring together people of diverse backgrounds while addressing the environment and ecology at multiple scales. He is currently working on the implementation of Living Breakwaters, Scape’s winning proposal for HUD’s Rebuild by Design, working collaboratively with engineers and ecologists on the breakwater design and construction. He is also part of the design leadership team for the Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail as well as for the Coastal Resilience Solutions for the City of Boston.
Brad holds a Master of Landscape Architecture from the Harvard Graduate School of Design and a B.S. in Design from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.