Description

Great conversation about making the benefits of nature accessible to urban communities with Duane Martinez this week!

Duane is an urban planner, community organizer and naturalist and is the Director of the River Cities Program at Scenic Hudson, where he focuses on community based planing that connects people with nature in the cities of Kingston, Poughkeepsie and Newburgh. He works with scientist, designers, engineers and artists to provide technical assistance and added capacity to community organizations and local governments.

Scenic Hudson collaborates with community members, municipalities, and partner organizations to deepen relationships between residents and nature in cities. Our practice is rooted in healthy urban ecosystems, equity, fun, and vibrant public spaces that support community well-being in Kingston, Newburgh, and Poughkeepsie.

These three communities have flourished in the past as centers of industry, commerce, and culture all set within the natural beauty and bounty of the Hudson River Valley. We want to build on the past, redress historic wrongs, and help these three cities to thrive again, for the benefit of all of their residents.

The River Cities Program strives to:

• Combine our skills and capabilities with community knowledge and expertise to increase access to open space
• Build inclusive partnerships that engage local residents, advance community-led initiatives and neighborhood stabilization efforts, and enhance community health and well-being
• Empower and educate young people through prioritizing listening to and learning from the community
• Support healthy urban ecological systems through increasing access to open space
• Ensure access to healthy food and clean air and water
• Organize around the connections between historic and current land-use decisions, the climate crisis, and environmental justice
• Identify shared challenges faced by riverfront cities throughout the valley and explore joint opportunities to overcome them