Earth Week 2025

Last month, the FMCP Stewardship team and volunteers came together to participate in our annual Earth Week series to honor our planet and to protect our natural spaces in the park. It was inspiring to see so many different groups come out to help contribute their efforts to protect the environment.

Throughout the week, we hosted different projects for our volunteers aimed to connect our volunteers to our park and stewardship. Volunteer projects included park cleanups, reshaping our garden beds, removal of invasive plants, weeding, planting roses and flowers, and mulching our tree beds. Their hard work helped beautify our park for people to enjoy and they also have a sense of pride and ownership at our park. 

Here are some highlights from our events we had last week:

• Volunteers helped with weeding and mulching our tree beds by the Henry Hudson entrance. They also had the opportunity to create bracelets that spelled out “Save the Bees” to kick off our Earth Week series!

• Members of the Laguardia Gateway Team came out in the afternoon and did an amazing job removing litter from the Marina!

• Volunteers mulched and beautified Cherry Tree Grove in preparation of the Japanese American Association's Annual Sakura Festival.

• Members from the USTA came out to celebrate Earth Day by helping the stewardship team remove weeds from the garden beds and planting a variety of flowers. We also had the opportunity to attend their “Take Your Kids To Work Day” where we set up some fun crafts for the kids to participate in, they had the opportunity to create candles made out of honeycomb while learning about sustainability and being environmentally conscious.

We also had the opportunity to ask our volunteers how they will continue to be environmental stewards after Earth Week. Some said they would be, making sure they are recycling and using reusable water bottles instead of plastic bottles, encouraging others not to litter, one volunteer even said they would like to host their own park clean up efforts to help the community. 

We would like to thank everyone who came out to Flushing Meadows Corona Park and gave their time and energy to make a difference in their community!

Stewardship in Flushing Meadows Corona Park is supported by generous grants from Con Edison and Citizens Bank.

What is Earth Hour?

Earth Hour is a global movement organized by the World Wildlife Foundation to inspire people to take action on environmental issues and to raise awareness of protecting our planet. 

Earth Hour is held annually on the last Saturday of March, this year on Saturday, March 23rd from 8:30 PM to 9:30 PM. Over 190 countries will participate by giving back an hour to earth and switching off any non-essential lights. 

By turning off any non-essential lights, it encourages people to reflect on their energy consumption and the impact we have on the environment. While the event is just one hour, as a collective this can make a big impact and serve as a reminder to make sustainable choices in our day to day life. 

Everyone can participate in giving back an hour for Earth and to reconnect with our planet.

Here are a few ways you can participate in this upcoming Earth Hour: 

• Turn off any non-essential lights at 8:30 PM for one hour 

• Take a walk at your local park (Bonus: Become a nature photographer! Take any  pictures of wildlife and plants you see while on your walk. You can use Inaturalist to help identify any species of wildlife and plants that you come across) 

• Reflect on ways to reduce waste and save energy. 

• Unplug any devices that you aren’t using to conserve energy.

• Walk, bike, or take public transportation instead of driving. 

There are so many ways you can choose to participate to help give back an hour to Earth! Head over to the Earth Hour page to learn more about the history of this global event and check out some additional activities you can engage with during the “lights off” period. 

Here at Flushing Meadows Corona Park, we are committed to protecting the natural areas of our park while engaging with our community members to take action in sustainability efforts. Earth Hour is the perfect opportunity to reflect on how we can contribute to a healthier planet together. 

Sign up for our Stewardship Team’s mailing list to be the first to hear about new volunteer opportunities and other ways to build a greener city!

Generous support for the Stewardship Team is provided by grants from Con Edison and Citizens Bank.

Great Backyard Bird Count 2025

This past weekend, FMCP Stewardship volunteers became community scientists for a day by participating in the annual Great Backyard Bird Count, a global online citizen science project organized by the National Audubon Society and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. This initiative encourages individuals to observe and document different bird species in their local areas.

Our group of volunteers enjoyed a walk through some of FMCP’s iconic areas, including the Tide Gate Bridge, the Garden of Meditation, the Unisphere, and Meadow Lake. Additionally, FMCP’s Project Development Coordinator, Michael Devito—an avid birder himself—shared fascinating facts about the bird species we identified. Over the course of three hours, we recorded 28 different species!

FMCP is home to a diverse number of bird species, thanks to its unique combination of wetlands and open spaces. Some of the group’s favorite sightings included the Red-Tailed Hawk, the Great Blue Heron, and the Red-Bellied Woodpecker!

Our volunteers were excited to learn about different species and the importance of migration. One volunteer commented, “I think it’s amazing how each species has its own unique colors, shape, and size!” The birds identified during our walk were logged into the GBBC database, helping scientists better understand bird populations and migration patterns. Through simple bird observation, our volunteers contributed to vital conservation efforts that analyze trends related to climate change and bird health.

The success of our community science projects, such as the Christmas Bird Count and the Great Backyard Bird Count, highlights the importance of supporting our local green spaces, which serve as essential habitats for wildlife in the park. The goal of these events is not only to contribute to a larger scientific effort but also to inspire and connect our volunteers with the natural world in FMCP.

A huge thank you to all the community scientists who joined us for the Great Backyard Bird Count! If you missed this event, we look forward to more community science projects in the future. To learn more about this ongoing project and to view live submissions of birds spotted click here. 

For updates on future events, follow us on social media or sign up for our mailing list.

World Wetlands Day 2025

February 2nd, is known as World Wetlands Day, this year has an emphasis on the theme, “Protecting Wetlands for Our Common Future”. This observance highlights the importance of taking care of our environment and our wetlands.

Wetlands are land areas that have been taken over by a body of water, some examples of wetlands include, marshes, swamp, and wet meadows. Wetlands are an important feature in the environment. They have a list of benefits that provide value to our ecosystem,  some benefits include, providing control for flood and storm water, acting as a natural filter for our ecosystem, and providing a habitat for fishes and wildlife. According to NY DEC, “Wetlands are one of the most productive habitats for feeding, nesting, spawning, resting and cover for fish and wildlife, including many rare and endangered species”. 

Flushing Meadows Corona Park’s Willow Lake (pictured above) is considered to be FMCP’s only “Forever Wild” site which means that this area is protected from development and kept from being disrupted by human activity to preserve the natural habitats and biodiversity. Originally, this site was intended to be for entertainment purposes during the 1939-40 World’s Fair, however by the second fair it was turned into what it is known today with a diverse plant and wildlife habitats. It is also one of New York City’s last freshwater wetlands. 

As important as Wetlands are for us, they are under constant threat due to climate changes and human activities which can affect the water quality and in turn harm the ecosystem in place. Did you know? There were over 200,000 acres of wetland in NYC when the Europeans came to America. Only 2,000 acres of freshwater remain in the city today. By recognizing the values of our wetlands and the role that they play in balancing our ecosystem, through conservation and clean up efforts we hope that this will protect our wetlands for future generations. 

Interested in learning more about World Wetlands Day? Click here to learn more about this day and how it came around. 

MLK Jr. Weekend of Service in FMCP

Martin Luther King Jr. Day asks people to come together to build a beloved community through service and volunteerism. This year, the volunteers chose to serve their community in honor of Martin Luther King Jr.’s National Day of Service by helping the FMCP Stewardship Team clean up the Marina Candelas and the Rodman Gate entrance.

Within two days, over 800 square feet of invasive materials were removed and 123 trash bags of leaves and litter were picked up by our wonderful and dedicated volunteers. These events exemplified Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy of acting selfless for the greater good and coming together as a community. 

Not only did our volunteers help their community by beautifying areas in the park, they also participated in creating a web diagram, sharing what giving back to their community means to them and the importance of serving their community.

Many of the reflections were heartfelt and provided inspiration for their community. Volunteers agreed that volunteering gave them a sense of building a stronger community and even fulfillment within themselves of the work they did over the weekend.

Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.” This was a prime example of how even a small group of volunteers can have a huge impact on the dignity of our community and environment. 

Please take a look at the web diagram that the FMCP Stewardship Team put together from the responses of our volunteers. We hope that as we continue throughout the year to inspire you all to serve in your community and to pay it forward by engaging in acts of service.

If you are interested in participating in future volunteer opportunities consider joining our stewardship team! We hope to see you all soon!

Generous support for the Stewardship Team is provided by grants from Con Edison and Citizens Bank.