Overview
In addition to being home to a majority of the U.S. population, the importance of urban nature for sustaining wildlife and supporting human well-being is increasingly clear. Natural areas and open spaces have been shown to improve human health, reduce impacts to water and air quality, and mitigate climate change. The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation is fortunate to be headquartered in a particularly vibrant location, Manhattan, which is the traditional territory of the Lenape and was known as Manahatta, meaning "hilly island," and supports a small number of initiatives that focus on increasing the resiliency of natural areas and communities to climate change and fostering a sustainable agriculture system in the greater New York City area.
Strategy
- Supporting projects and policies that improve the natural environment of New York City. Our grantmaking focuses on protecting and restoring natural areas in the five boroughs and ensuring resilience to climate change, through grants to the Natural Areas Conservancy and other organizations.
- Supporting a sustainable agriculture system in the Tri-State area. Grants support a sustainable food system in the New York City "foodshed" (i.e., areas such as the Hudson River Valley and northern New Jersey). We focus on efforts to protect and provide access to farmland, ensure farms remain viable through technical assistance and train the next generation of farmers. Representative grants under this strategy include the Hudson Valley Farmlink Network, managed by the American Farmland Trust, GrowNYC's Farmer Assistance Program and the Hudson Valley Farmer Training Collaborative, managed by Glynwood.
