Parks Without Borders Summit

Ideas for the Next Generation of Urban Parks and Public Space

On Tuesday, May 24, with the Center for New York City Affairs and the Tishman Environment and Design Center at The New School, we brought together thought leaders from a range of disciplines to envision the future of parks and public space. 

The summit included the announcement of eight parks selected to showcase the Parks Without Borders design approach, as well as the introduction of the Soofa bench, a solar-powered, web-enabled piece of park furniture of the future. 

Watch Videos from the Parks Without Borders Summit

Watch archived video from the Parks Without Borders Summit.

• Morning Keynotes and Public Realm Highlight Talks
• Connect Parks to Community Health and Equity
• Smart Space: Data and Technology in Urban Experience Designs
• Afternoon Keynote and Public Realm Highlight Talk
• A New Parks Paradigm: Design Innovation for Civic Spaces
• Reflection: NYC Commissioners
• The Role of Parks in a Resilient City
• Parks and Public Space in the Equitable City
• Nature's Benefits: Climate Protection, Ecosystem Health, Landscape Connectivity, and Inspiration

Download Presentations

Download the Parks Without Borders Agenda for the schedule and a full list of speakers. Or, download one of the day's presentations below:

Keynote Speeches

• Signe Nielsen, Mathews Nielsen Landscape Architecture, P.C.
• Paul Goldberger, The New School

Public Realm Highlights

• Access is the Nub of the Solution
  Charles A. Birnbaum, The Cultural Landscape Foundation
• Placemaking: Making it Happen
  Fred Kent, Project for Public Spaces
• Tactical Urbanism
  Mike Lydon, Street Plans Collaborative

Connecting Parks to Community Health and Equity

• About the Center for Health Equity
  Aletha Maybank, NYC Department of Health & Mental Hygiene

The Role of Parks in a Resilient City

• Expanding the Waterfront Park
  Pippa Brashear, Scape Design
• Coney Island Creek Resiliency Study
  Roni Deitz, Arcadis
• The Role of Parks in a Resilient City
  Alyssa Cobb Konon, NYC Parks
• Fit for Purpose
  David Waggonner, Waggonner & Ball

Enhancing Park Experience through Creative Play

• Enhancing Park Experience through Creative Play
  George Vellonakis & Eric Mattes, NYC Parks

Smart Space: Data and Technology in Urban Experience Design

• Community Data Needs and Challenges
  Jessie Braden, Pratt SAVI
• 596 Acres
  Eric Brelsford, 596 Acres
• Community Uses of Open Data for a Greener NYC
  Jacqueline Lu, NYC Parks

Parks and Public Space in the Equitable City

• Newark's Riverfront Park
  Ana Isabel Baptista, Ph.D., Tishman Environment and Design Center
• Community Parks Initiative
  Jennifer Gardner, NYC Parks
• Hester Street Collaborative
  Dylan House, Hester Street Collaborative

Art Without Borders: A Sense of Place through Art

• Art Without Borders: A Sense of Place through Art
  Jonathan Kuhn, NYC Parks

Greenprints: Mapping Open Space Potential

• NYC Green Infrastructure Program
  Angela Licata, New York City Department of Environmental Protection
• The Nature of New York City
  Emily Maxwell, The Nature Conservancy

Innovation in Our Backyards: Crowd-resourcing as a Tool for Deep Community Engagement

• Innovation in Our Backyards
  David Weinberger, ioby

A New Parks Paradigm: Design Innovation for Civic Spaces

• Made in Houston
  Kinder Baumgardner, SWA
• Design Innovation for Civic Spaces
  Phil Ginsburg, San Francisco Recreation & Parks
• West 8
  Jamie Maslyn Larson, West 8
• Designing NYC Parks
  Nancy Prince, NYC Parks

Nature’s Benefits: Climate Protection, Ecosystem Health, Landscape Connectivity, and Inspiration

• Connect the Dots
  Timon McPhearson, The New School
• Spontaneous Urban Plants: Weeds in NYC
  David Sieter, Future Green Studio

Public Programs at NYC Parks: Engagement, Activation, Education

• Programming
  Adena Long, NYC Parks

Join the Conversation

Share your thoughts and ideas on social media channels using the hashtag #PWBNYC!

The summit was planned by NYC Parks and The New School, and is presented by The J.M. Kaplan Fund and by The JPB Foundation, with additional support from The Tiffany & Co. Foundation, Citi, the Mayor’s Fund for New York City, and AT&T.