Latest news with #FriendsOfTheHighLine
The Guardian
08-07-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
The Guardian appoints Nicole Kotzen as senior vice-president for development and executive director of theguardian.org
The Guardian has announced the appointment of Nicole Kotzen as senior vice-president for development and executive director of She joins the Guardian from Friends of the High Line, where she served as the senior director of individual giving and board relations. Kotzen comes to the Guardian with over a dozen years of experience in fundraising and non-profit leadership, with a track record of building impactful partnerships that advance key institutional priorities and growth opportunities. Her background includes work for StoryCorps and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Kotzen starts today. In her SVP role, Kotzen will lead a New York and London-based team that grows foundation and philanthropic support for independent Guardian journalism and global editorial projects. These include award-winning projects such as the Guardian's dedicated and long-running coverage of global development focused on poverty, global health, gender equality, the future of global aid, democracy, human rights, environment, the climate crisis and biodiversity, among other pressing issues. A full list of the Guardian's philanthropically supported projects is here. Additionally, Kotzen will lead the work of as executive director, and develop and maintain the board of directors. is a non-profit organization with the mission to advance public discourse and citizen participation around the most pressing issues of our time through the support of journalistic projects at the Guardian and independent journalism. Kotzen holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Vassar College and is a US Department of State Fulbright fellow. Nicole Kotzen, senior vice-president for development and executive director of said: 'What we need right now is the truth – told with courage and empathy – that knits together a global perspective on the most pressing issues of our time. As a longtime reader of the Guardian, their fearless, independent journalism has helped me make sense of the world in these complicated times. I look forward to working with the talented team at the Guardian, and the philanthropic community, to ensure that anyone, anywhere in the world can benefit from the Guardian's award-winning reporting, all free of charge.' Asha Curran, chair, said: 'In a time of rising polarization and declining trust, independent media like the Guardian play a vital role in providing space for truth, nuance, and investigation. Innovation in how we support that role isn't optional – it's essential. I'm so looking forward to working with Nicole as she helps shape what that future can look like.' Steve Sachs, managing director, the Guardian US, said: 'The global editorial projects funded by the Guardian's philanthropy – touching on poverty, the future of democracy in America, the climate crisis, the safety of drinking water, and more – have never felt more important. And with increasing threats to the news industry, philanthropic funding is an even more critical resource for us and our peers. Nicole has the experience and vision to sustain our existing relationships and find new partners that align with our values and mission: providing world-class journalism without a paywall, free from corporate or political influence. I look forward to working with her.' About The is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that was set up by the Scott Trust in 2017 to support quality independent journalism about some of the most pressing issues of our time. The organization raises funds from individuals and foundations, and directs them towards projects that advance public discourse and citizen participation on issues such as climate change, human rights, global development and inequality. The Guardian is able to apply for grants from for editorial projects that correspond with the priorities set out by board of directors, and that are aligned with its charitable mission. A number of the Guardian's philanthropic partnerships are via grants to this organization. For more information, visit About Guardian Media Group Guardian Media Group is amongst the world's leading media organizations. Its core business is Guardian News & Media (GNM), publisher of one of the largest English-speaking quality news websites in the world. In the UK, Guardian Media Group publishes the Guardian newspaper six days a week, first published in 1821. Since launching its US and Australian digital editions in 2011 and 2013, respectively, traffic from outside of the UK now represents around two-thirds of the Guardian's total digital audience. The Guardian also has an international digital edition and a new European edition that launched in 2023, with an expanded network of more than 20 European correspondents, editors and reporters. Media contact Matt Mittenthal Head of Communications The Guardian US 917-597-4485
Fast Company
23-06-2025
- Science
- Fast Company
Innovative parks aren't just bold urban design—they lower the temperature in cities
Cities, and those who live in them, are clamoring for more green space, and the benefits parks, trees, and recreation areas provide. The Trust for Public Land's annual ParkScore report found nearly a quarter of Americans in the 100 largest cities don't live within a 10-minute walk of a park or greenspace. While few cities have acres and acres of space to transform into parkland, they do have opportunities to create new types of urban parks, such as elevated parks, pocket parks fashioned from vacant lots, rails-to-trails projects or capping highways to create new greenspaces. New research, including exclusive project analysis for Fast Company, finds that these projects have a significant cooling impact, showcasing how these kinds of infrastructure interventions can provide some of the densest parts of urban America with much-needed cooling. A study conducted by Climate Central on behalf of the High Line found that New York City's iconic linear park offers unique cooling and shading benefits, in addition to the social and environmental benefits of adding parkspace. 'We always had a suspicion that we can also make our community more healthier and livable, and we wanted data around it,' says Alan van Capelle, Executive Director of Friends of the High Line, Researchers started by tracking the urban heat island intensity (UHII) of the areas surrounding the High Line in Manhattan. This measurement captures the additional heat created in urban environments by buildings and pavement, as well as density. Some neighborhoods near the High Line exhibited a 12.9°F UHII, among the highest temperatures Climate Central has found after analyzing 65 U.S. cities. But the park–via the obvious shading impact from the structure itself, but even more importantly, from the additional shading, transpiration and overall cooling benefits of so many additional trees and plants–cut the UHII to just 4.7°F along many stretches of the park, creating an eight degree cooling impact. There was variance along the High Line, with areas that are primarily rocks and shrub exhibiting a less pronounced cooling impact, underscoring how it's not just shading that makes the difference. And it's not exactly news that parks provide cooling benefits to cities. But evidence that adaptive reuse parks in the midst of cities can achieve such pronounced temperature differences suggest that they can be an important tool for urban cooling. Climate Central found that other such parks exhibit similar impacts. In exclusive research for Fast Company, Jennifer Brady, senior data analyst for Climate Central, applied existing data and research to a number of newer urban parks across the country and found similar cooling impacts. Chicago's 606, an elevated rails-to-trails project on the city's near northwest side, may cool the adjacent neighborhoods 6°F to 8°F, depending on the precise build type and density. Klyde Warren Park in Dallas, which caps a highway adjacent to downtown and runs through one of the city's hottest neighborhoods, yields approximately 4°F to 6°F cooler temperatures. The Lafitte Greenway in New Orleans and Railroad Park in Birmingham, Alabama, both located in relatively cooler parts of their respective cities, still cool adjoining areas by 4°F. The design of these parks–including shade structures, shading impact with bridges and overhangs, and of course plants and tree cover–can make a big difference, said Brady. It also helps that much of this kind of abandoned industrial infrastructure–composed of cement and old buildings–adds to the heat, so simply removing them reduces urban heat gain. But it also shows that targeting particular dense areas with the most pronounced heat island effect can be done, and make a dramatic change. There's always been a strong case to transform vacant lots and leftover lots in areas without park access, both from a recreation and health angle as well as public safety. Adding cooling and climate resilience to the list should make an even stronger case for more investment in these kinds of industrial reuse park projects. Last year, the nation's 100 largest cities invested a record $12.2 billion in parks; steering more of that funding towards these types of projects can have serious resilience impacts in an era of heightened climate change. Van Capelle said there's currently 49 other such reuse park projects taking place across North America that are part of the High Line Network, an advocacy group for these kinds of greenspace projects. He sees the heat island mitigation impact as just another reason to advocate for and invest in these projects. 'Being able to step out of your apartment and go into a cool location, being able to know that in the summertime, when the city can become uncomfortable, there's a place like the High Line that runs along a number of neighborhoods is vitally important,' said van Capelle. The final deadline for Fast Company's Next Big Things in Tech Awards is Friday, June 20, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply today.
Travel Weekly
20-05-2025
- Business
- Travel Weekly
Wynn withdraws proposal for New York casino development
In the face of community opposition to a casino, Wynn Resorts and Related Companies have pulled a proposal to construct a $12 billion complex in the Hudson Yards section of New York City. The proposal was opposed by New York City councilman Eric Bottcher, who represents the Hudson Yards section of Manhattan, and two neighborhood organizations: Friends of the High Line and Manhattan Community Board 4. "After careful consideration, we have decided not to lodge an application for a gaming license in New York City," said Wynn Resorts in a statement. "The recent rezoning process has made it clear to us that there are uses for our capital more accretive to our shareholders, such as investment in our existing and upcoming developments and stock buybacks, than investing in an area in which we, or any casino operator, will face years of persistent opposition despite our willingness to employ 5,000 New Yorkers." The three-skyscraper proposal had called for a hotel and casino, an office tower and a residential tower. According to reports, Related Companies will move forward with a plan to build affordable housing units in the neighborhood. In April, Las Vegas Sands pulled out of a bid to build a casino resort in Nassau County on New York's Long Island.
