BARD CENTER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND ALUMNI/AE JOIN TOGETHER FOR CLEAN UP THE WORLD DAY

ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y.—For the second year Bard College students and alumni/ae will join with the New York Restoration Project at Fort Washington Park in New York City for "Clean Up the World Day," on Saturday, September 23. Over forty million people in some 120 countries are expected to participate in the annual worldwide event, now in its eighth year, which is held in conjunction with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

"The Clean Up the World campaign is a truly global success story," according to Joanne Fox-Przeworski, director of the Bard Center for Environmental Policy. "Bard is proud to be associated with this unique event which connects each of us more closely to the real impact of our consumption habits and all of us to our interdependence on the planet."

Bard's participation in the event is sponsored by the Bard Center for Environmental Policy and its Alumni/ae Affairs Office. Bard alumni/ae from New York City will meet students, faculty, staff, and fellow alumni/ae from the Mid Hudson Valley at Riverside Park, within Fort Washington Park off West 158th Street for the cleanup. The volunteers will be focusing their efforts on the waterfront area between 148th and 170th Streets; their work will include weeding, cleaning, and planting. The day will conclude with a tree-planting ceremony. "We at Bard share a beautiful site along the Hudson River and feel especially responsible for maintaining its integrity," says Jessica Kemm, director of Alumni/ae affairs. "The alumni/ae, faculty, staff, and students will play a part in improving one of our most wonderful resources, the Hudson River and its shore."

The Bard contingent will join volunteers, staff, and AmeriCorps members from the New York Restoration Project (NYRP), which was founded in 1995 by actress and singer Bette Midler. "When I moved to New York, I was very disappointed by how parts of the city looked. I was so upset, I didn't sleep for weeks," said Midler in a Good Housekeeping article. "I love New Yorkers, and I'm like them—I'm noisy, I have my opinions—but I'm not used to the kind of carelessness and waste that I was seeing. People were throwing their garbage out the window, leaving their lunches on the ground. Finally, I realized I needed to actually do something—even if I had to pick up the stuff with my own two hands."

The NYRP is currently involved in cleaning and restoring three of northern Manhattan's largest parks—Fort Tryon, Fort Washington, and Highbridge. Bordering more than four miles of the Hudson and Harlem River waterfront, the precious resources of these three parks encompass more than 500 acres of forest, playgrounds, ball fields, winding trails, and historic park infrastructure. The NYRP project has reclaimed over 375 of these acres. The Clean Up the World Day volunteers from Bard College will help NYRP in its continuing effort.

The Bard Center for Environmental Policy is sponsoring Clean Up the World Day as part of its commitment to making important environmental issues a part of daily life. Through education, research, and public service, the center addresses local and global policy issues pertaining to the natural and built environments. At the center of its activities is a two-year program leading to a master of science degree in environmental policy, to begin in the fall of 2001.

Donations in support of Clean Up the World Day have made by the following businesses and individuals: Williams Lumber and Home Centers, Chartwells Dining, and Nancy and George Akers of California.

A bus will leave Bard College at 7:30 a.m. to arrive at Fort Washington Park at 10 a.m. The clean up at the park will take place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. For further information about Clean Up the World Day and how you can participate, call the Bard College Alumni/ae Affairs Office at 800-BARDCOL or e-mail [email protected].

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(8.25.00)

This event was last updated on 03-02-2001

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