Discovery Day goes Virtual!

06.18.20

This year Freshkills Park has taken Discovery Day virtual and is excited to host activities and experiences created by the Freshkills Park team and community partners. Near or far, join us for our first “Discovery Week @ Home.”  Throughout the week, learn more about the history, wildlife, recreation, education, and art at the park through virtual experiences.  Share your experiences throughout Discovery Week or memories of Discovery Day on Social media using #DiscoverFreshkills

Monday 6/22: Landfill-to-Park

At 2,200 acres, Freshkills Park is almost three times the size of Central Park and the largest park to be developed in New York City in over 100 years.   Join us on a walk up North Mound and learn about the Freshkills Landfill-to-Park transformation.  Get a snapshot of the park and what it will be with videos, shot by photographer/videographer Michael McWeeney, which include a general introduction, including scenes from past Discovery Days, a look at the Science and Research program, and a look at the engineering that goes into the landfill capping.  Take a special tour of the construction at North Park Phase 1.  See the progress on building the arc path, the connection to Schmul Park, and the foundations of the bird tower and the wetland observation deck and learn more about what the construction entails.  We are also hosting a tour of the landfill leachate treatment plant. Learn what leachate is and how it is collected and treated at the former Fresh Kills Landfill.  Transport yourself to Freshkills Park anytime, from anywhere, with our downloadable zoom backgrounds.

Tuesday 6/23: Arts & Culture

Enjoy virtual projects inspired by the natural and engineered landscape.  Join artist and teacher James Powers for landscape drawing exercises on North Mound.  Download Ash Ferlito’s cyanotype Moth Poster, which features images from works inspired by the activity of ‘mothing.’ This ‘mothing’ was conducted in Freshkills Park on July 15, 2019.  Make your own Kinetic sculpture with MakerSpace NYC.  Attend a screening of Nancy Nowacek’s ‘Fieldwork;’ a piece created for and performed in Freshkills Park. Filmed in 360 video, the work offers viewers the ability to explore the park, as dancers perform choreographies of work related to the production of objects and goods that ultimately became part of the waste buried at the former Fresh Kills Landfill.

Wednesday 6/24: Wildlife & Research

Freshkills Park brings the wildlife home this #WildLifeWednesday.  Get a glimpse of the thriving range of birds and animals found at the park.  Check out a recording taken at one of Freshkills Park’s Osprey nests, with chicks!   In the Summer of 2019, Freshkills Park researchers set up wildlife cameras to record animal activity on site, watch the Red Fox camera footage for a snapshot of some of the larger mammals that call Freshkills Park home.  Join a Facebook live birdwatching walk around East Mound with environmentalist and educator, Cliff Hagen. For more birds and nature, download and listen to the sounds of North Mound and East Mound every morning at sunrise and evening at sunset.

Thursday 6/25: STEAM Education

The landfill-to-park transformation is an exciting platform for education. Each day, we witness how ecology, engineering, design, history and social sciences interact to solve 21st century challenges.  Take a STEAM Challenge with Freshkills Park! These challenges use only recycled and basic materials you have at home and will teach you more about the environment at Freshkills Park.  Download environmental puzzles, activity, and coloring sheet printables for off screen enjoyment.  We all love parks, but where do parks come from? Learn all about how parks are created by registering your 8-12 year olds for our ‘Be a Park Planner’ virtual Field Trip.  Younger kids, from 6 -8, can learn all about wetlands by participating in our ‘All about Wetlands’ virtual Field Trip to Freshkills Park.

Friday 6/26: Recreation & Fitness

Freshkills Park is comprised of many landscapes, which provide for numerous recreational opportunities.  Experience the natural and engineered landscapes and recreational offerings of Freshkills Park with immersive videos.  Join us for a kayak tour on Freshkills Creek. See the shoreline grasses and mounds of Freshkills Park and experience the water while someone else paddles.Take a serene 3-mile bike ride around East Mound which is now a vital nesting habitat for the endangered Grasshopper Sparrow.  End the week with a run through the hills of South Mound.  South Mound was the first mound capped and offers views of all the major habitats at the Park.  These videos are a great chance to explore normally closed areas of Freshkills Park.  Enjoy them for leisure or when exercising indoors on a treadmill, spin bike or stair master.

Tags: discovery day, discovery week, Freshkills, landscape architecture, New York City, New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, Staten Island, Trash To Grass