Climate Week NYC celebrates the numerous ways communities are engaging to advance resiliency and sustainability – showcasing the countless ways government, industries, and advocates are working locally and worldwide to slow and potentially reverse the many devastating impacts of climate change.  New York City has taken significant steps toward its climate goals, tackling building emissions through Local Law 97, advancing a universal curbside composting program, and soon enacting the nation's first congestion pricing plan.  But we can't stop here – it's time to supercharge our city’s focus on making NYC a climate leader nationwide and globally.

Lower Manhattan Seaport Revitalized This week, I called for city, state, and federal officials to work together to tear down the FDR viaduct and replace it with a beautiful boulevard.  The FDR below Brooklyn Bridge remains an important link to the city’s regional travel system.  But it’s far bigger than we need - and we should use this chance to grow our public realm, with more space for people, for bike lanes, more light, urban tree canopy, and connection to our water.  NYC Waterfront Protection Agency New York has 500+ miles of coastline, and climate change is putting all our coastal areas at risk of destruction from climate events. The time to act for climate-ready New York City coastlines is now.  That’s why my office has been steering efforts to establish a New York City Waterfront Protection Agency - a single, unified agency that can spearhead the design, construction, management, and governance of coastal resiliency projects to protect our waterfronts and keep our communities healthy and safe. Bringing Circularity to NYC This past March, I partnered with Barnard College and the Columbia Climate School to announce our City’s first “Circularity Day” – a celebration of powerful sustainability practice and the New Yorkers who exercise it. We continue our push to change how we view products, ensuring they last longer and create less waste. Instead of just tossing items after we're done with them, let's repair, reuse, and recycle across industries like food, fashion, electronics, and more.  That's why I'm working with the City Council to explore policies devoted to circularity and sustainability like:  Food Rescue: Reduce food waste by educating businesses on safe food donation practices, piloting a food rescue program in NYC public school cafeterias, and requiring large food surplus generators to report their excess food production to the city.  Textile Recycling: Slash textile waste by launching a curbside collection program for residential textile waste, pushing for mandatory textile recycling in all eligible buildings through the Refashion NYC program, and improving DSNY's textile collection locator. Reuse and Repair: Support local small businesses by granting them a tax incentive for implementing reuse and repair practices, such as selling refurbished goods. Through circular economy policies like these, we can reduce emissions and waste while investing back into our communities – transforming our economy while making New York more sustainable, equitable, and resilient overall. A Million More Trees for NYC  Last week as part of my office's Million More Tree Initiative, I rallied with City Council members and environmental leaders to fight for and celebrate the passage of legislation to protect, maintain, and expand the city’s tree canopy.  Our parks, green spaces, and tree canopy play a huge role in our urban environment and in fostering public health and well-being. We must keep pushing to increase our park funding to 1% of the annual city budget, to plant one million more trees, and grow a greener New York City. As Climate Week NYC underscores New York City’s relentless pursuit of sustainability and resilience, I want to reaffirm my office’s commitment to prioritizing climate justice in all our work right here in Manhattan. However, the journey towards a more sustainable future requires collective effort. Together, let’s continue to propel New York City forward in this global fight against climate change, fostering a healthier, safer, and more sustainable future for all. Best, Mark