NCA 2023 Urban Heat Island Effect Fellowship

Broadway Stages is proud to support the Newtown Creek Alliance (NCA) in their mission to restore, reveal, and revitalize Newtown Creek. We are excited that for the second year, NCA hosted a team of fellows to research the Urban Heat Island Effect (UHI) around Newtown Creek. Made possible by a three-year New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Community Impact Grant, the program is open to individuals 18-25 years old, ideally who have an experience with increased urban heat, an interest in or relationship to Newtown Creek and the surrounding community, and have not completed a bachelor’s degree. 

UHI Effect Fellows [From left to right]: Edsel Peralta, Alexis Czajkowski, Darius Korin, Sophia Zhao, and Mohamed Nassar

The 2023 fellows’ study focused on the effects of UHI on the Industrial Business Zone in Maspeth, Queens, which is one of the largest in NYC. Hear their presentations on YouTube. And you can find links to their individual presentations on the NCA website: Sophia Zhao (Understanding Capacity for Green Infrastructure); Alexis Czajkowski and Mohamed Nassar (What Opportunities for Green Infrastructure Exist in Maspeth IBZ?); Darius Korin (The Urban Heat Island and Soil Degradation); Edsel Peralta (Examining Green Infrastructure Connectivity in the Maspeth IBZ). On the website, you can also learn more about the Urban Heat Island Effect and its implications.

Congratulations to this year’s fellows for their important work that contributes to strengthening environmental sustainability and improving life in and around Newtown Creek. Read our post about the 2022 NCA UHI fellows who studied Long Island City and Sunnyside.