Public Employee Press

GreenApple eco-students graduate

Twenty-two members of Local 1505 graduated May 24 from the GreenApple Corps, a public service environmental training program run by the city Parks and Recreation Dept.

"We are recognizing these members for their initiative in completing this nine-month program in conservation, clean-up and revitalization of New York City parks," said Local 1505 President Dilcy Benn at the graduation ceremony in Central Park's Arsenal building.

The GreenApple Corps selects participants from across the nation and immerses them in hands-on education about preserving and protecting the ecology of New York City's 12,000 acres of parklands and coastlines.

GreenApple Corps trainees, under program head Brian Aucion of the Parks Dept., saved a Prospect Park Lake shoreline with an "organic burrito" of rolled up jute, logs, gravel and soil. They also installed green roofs, planted trees along city sidewalks to erase urban blight and replaced invasive plants with native flora to curb erosion on pedestrian walks and bike trails around the Big Apple.

Benn sees the GreenApple Corps as a rung on the Parks Dept.'s career ladder. "Some of these City Park Workers will advance and become Gardeners, tree Pruners or move into urban forestry," she said.

Local 1505 members in the corps also visited public schools to teach children about ecosystems and greening their neighborhoods through the "Stewards of the Earth" program.

"I was like Dilbert, the cartoon character, working in a cubicle," said GreenApple grad Nancy Healey. Passion for the environment led her to apply for the GreenApple Corps, where she planted bulbs and evergreens with Bronx teenagers. She said, "At GreenApple I learned how to motivate people to connect with their community, and help them appreciate why it's so important to take care of the earth."