Boston Flora

Tag: Emerald Necklace Conservancy

  • Saturday, May 13, 2:00 pm – Free Tour of Charlesgate Park

    This past November, MassDOT held a public announcement that funding had been secured for two bridge projects the Bowker Overpass. While the designs are not yet ready for public comment, the Charlesgate Alliance, the Emerald Necklace Conservancy, and the Esplanade Association have partnered to advocate for the greenest possible outcomes for these transformational projects.

    Promised outcomes include removing the offramp over the Muddy River at Charlesgate East and Commonwealth Avenue and, in collaboration with our partners at the Esplanade Association, daylighting the terminus of the Muddy River as it enters the Charles. These two MassDOT improvements will act as bookends as we work to improve the heart of the park between the Mass. Turnpike and Beacon Street. Join us on a free tour of Charlesgate Park about the vision for its future on Saturday, May 13 at 2:00 pm.

    Register  here so that we can get a head count and tell you if a rain cancellation occurs.

    Tours start in The Grove area of the park (just in from the NW corner of Beacon St. and Charlesgate East), where we planted new trees last June. Look for buds on the maple trees! Allow two hours for the complete tour. Below is an image of the area circa 1954, for reference.

  • Saturday, September 24 (raindate Sunday, September 25), 1:00 pm – 7:00 pm – Emerald Necklace Parkfest

    Frederick Law Olmsted’s Bicentennial inspires this day-long celebration of shared use, shared power and shared health along Olmsted’s Emerald Necklace linear park system. Join neighbors and friends old and new to enjoy what makes you most grateful for YOUR parks! Come together for a special program of picnicking, dancing, creating, learning, relaxing & connecting.

    Parkfest features:

    • FREE performances
    • Kid’s activities
    • Pop-up art making
    • Storytelling
    • Ribbon-cutting
    • Learning with local community groups

    Explore the parks with DJs on trikes, scavenger hunts, bike decorating and riding, walking tours, doggy meet-cutes, selfie destinations and more. Extra restrooms, signage, food trucks and volunteers will be on site. Look for treats and surprises throughout the parks.

    When:
    1-7pm, Saturday, September 24. Rain date: Sunday, September 25

    Where:
    All 5.5 miles of the Emerald Necklace, including Charlesgate Park, Back Bay Fens, Riverway, Olmsted Park, Jamaica Pond, Arnold Arboretum and Franklin Park

    For more information call 617-522-2700, or visit www.emeraldnecklace.org

  • Tuesday, June 28, 9:30 am – 11:30 am (Rain Date June 29, 1:30 pm – 3:30 pm) – Charlesgate Alliance Tree Dedication

    Representatives from the Charlesgate Alliance, Emerald Necklace Conservancy, Department of Conservation and Recreation, Landing Studio, elected officials, as well as our partner organizations the Esplanade Association and Friends of the Public Garden will be on hand to join the celebration. 

    Tuesday, June 28th, from 9:30-11:30am

    Rain date:
    Wednesday, June 29th, from 1:30-3:30pm

    This achievement, more than a year in the making, and stewarded from start to finish by Garden Club of the Back Bay Past President Margaret Pokorny in conjunction with Dan and Marie Law Adams of Landing Studio, has given the Charlesgate area its first new trees in many years.

    The dedication will take place in The Grove area of Charlesgate Park, where 14 of the 15 new trees were planted. You can reach the area at the terminus of Marlborough Street and Charlesgate East, bounded on the north by Beacon Street.

    With the addition of the new trees, recently refurbished DCR lighting, and red chair seasonal seating, the Grove is starting to look like the park it was always meant to be.

  • Tree Sponsorship Opportunity in The Grove

    The Charlesgate Alliance is planting fifteen new trees this spring. After clearing the Boston Conservation Commission hearing on April 6th, they are now working with the Department of Conservation and Recreation and Cambridge Landscape to plant 15 new trees, mainly in The Grove area of the park where they will not be disturbed by construction in the coming years. These trees were chosen by Landing Studio with an eye both toward the location near the river as well as our larger plan for the park, where we hope to plant roughly 150 more. This will be a significant improvement: the first new trees planted in Charlesgate in many years. The Alliance in conjunction with the Emerald Necklace Conservancy will maintain the trees in perpetuity. So far we have 9 trees sponsored at $3,000 a tree. You can therefore sponsor a tree for $3,000 or just make a contribution toward the tree project. Only 6 trees are left for funding, although a contribution can be allocated to the next planting cycle if response is overwhelming. If you would like to help with this exciting program, click here and note that it is for the tree planting. You can also mail a check to Charlesgate Alliance c/o Emerald Necklace Conservancy, 350 Jamaicaway, Boston, MA 02130

  • Tuesday, September 14, 8:30 am – 10:00 am – Inspiration, Empathy and Education: How Cultural Entities are Helping People Think About Climate in New Ways, Online

    Tuesday, September 14, 8:30 am – 10:00 am – Inspiration, Empathy and Education: How Cultural Entities are Helping People Think About Climate in New Ways, Online

    As the world has sought to understand the causes and impacts of climate change, the topic has long been situated within the domain of science. In the 21st century, data, studies, reports, and academic/technical discourses have been the central mechanisms by which we learn about and process climate change: its consequences, our roles, and possible solutions. In recent years, however, artists and cultural institutions have developed a powerful interest in the topic and begun to employ myriad strategies by which to explore, draw attention to, and process it. There is an evolving understanding among educators and community and political stakeholders that in order to be impactful, messages about climate change need to be delivered from a wide variety of interdisciplinary sources and perspectives. When presented from multidisciplinary vantage points, discussions related to climate change can deepen the appeal to diverse audiences; promote innovative approaches to understanding the issues; inspire empathy; and sound a clarion call to action.

    Many of the Green Ribbon Commission (GRC) members represented on the Cultural Institutions Working Group are working to help their audiences access climate change content via non-traditional entry points in order to have a wider and more impactful reach. This GRCx program will highlight three such approaches: the Emerald Necklace Conservancy’s Olmsted Now initiative, the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture’s In Search of Thoreau’s Flowers exhibition, and the Leventhal Map Center’s More or Less in Common: Environment and Justice in the Human Landscape exhibition. The program will consider how cultural institutions are particularly well-equipped to document and interrogate the long time horizons of climate change and resilience, shedding light on how environmental challenges stretch deep into the past and, similarly, how their solutions must speculate about distant futures. The program will also explore the critical role cultural institutions can fill in showcasing the intersections between climate, history, racial equity, public health, and empathy.

    To join the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture program, you will need to download the free Zoom app in advance. If you already have Zoom, you do not need to download it again. For details on how to improve your Zoom experience, visit the How to Attend an HMSC Program webpage.

    The September 14 discussion, beginning at 8:30 am, will feature Karen Mauney-Brodek, President, Emerald Necklace Conservancy, Brenda Tindal (pictured), Executive Director, Harvard Museums of Science & Culture, Garrett Nelson, President & Head Curator, Norman B. Leventhal Map Center. Advance registration required.

  • Thursday, May 6, 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm – Emerald Necklace Conservancy Annual Meeting: Keeping the Necklace Green, Online

    Thursday, May 6, 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm – Emerald Necklace Conservancy Annual Meeting: Keeping the Necklace Green, Online

    Join The Emerald Necklace Conservancy on May 6, 5:30-7pm at the 2021 Annual Meeting to celebrate major accomplishments ofr the Olmsted Tree Society and learn why a healthy urban tree canopy is essential to our city. Conservancy President Karen Mauney-Brodek will deliver a recap of the past year, then dive deeper into tree and landscape maintenance work on the Emerald Necklace with Erica Holm, the Conservancy’s Field Operations Coordinator and Dr. Jim Clark, the Managing Consulting Arborist for Hort Science | Bartlett Consulting and an internationally renowned arborist. Learn why tree care is essential to the long-term health of the tree canopy, the humans interacting with it and the environment. Register for this free virtual event.

  • Monday, April 19 – Saturday, April 24, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Muddy River Cleanup

    The Muddy River Cleanup is a part of the Annual Earth Day Charles River Cleanup; this event takes place throughout the Charles River Watershed and builds on a national effort as part of American Rivers’ National River Cleanup® which, to date, has removed over 25 million pounds of trash from America’s waterways. From 2016 to 2019, the Annual Earth Day Charles River Cleanup was recognized by American Rivers for the Most Pounds of Trash Collected and Most Volunteers Mobilized.​

    The Charles River Cleanup brings together over 3,000 volunteers each year to pick up litter, remove invasive species and assist with park maintenance along all 80 miles of the Charles River. Residents are drawn to the popular Charles River Cleanup from a desire to give back to their community while enjoying the beauty and wildlife along the river. Volunteers hold onto the connections they establish during this day of stewardship by returning to the Charles to exercise, play and enjoy nature throughout the year. Register for the cleanup here!

    Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, The Emerald Necklace Conservancy has adjusted the traditionally one-day event to span a week (April 19, 2021-April 24, 2021) in order to promote social distancing among volunteers.

    All cleanup events will take place from 10:00AM-12:00PM throughout the week.

    Monday, April 19, 2021: Back Bay Fens, Olmsted Park

    Tuesday, April 20, 2021: Charlesgate, Jamaica Pond

    Wednesday, April 21, 2021: Justine Mee Liff Park, Olmsted Park

    Thursday April 22, 2021: Riverway, Franklin Park (Shattuck Picnic Grove)

    Friday, April 23, 2021: Charlesgate, Justine Mee Liff Park

    Saturday, April 24, 2021: Back Bay Fens, Franklin Park (Valley Gates)

    The Conservancy has been closely monitoring health and safety guidelines set by the City of Boston, the Town of Brookline, and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts since the beginning of the pandemic. All programs and events that we have follow our Conservancy COVID-19 policies.

    All volunteers will be required to wear a face covering and practice social distancing during the event. We advise that volunteers who feel ill within 72 hours of the event do not participate.

    All volunteers will be required to sign a COVID-19 volunteer waiver, along with our standard volunteer waiver, in order to participate. In order to follow event size requirements, we will cap each cleanup site at 25 volunteers. For groups interested in participating that are over 25 people, we will require that they split their group between multiple cleanup sites. For more information visit https://www.emeraldnecklace.org/volunteer/muddy-river-cleanup-2021/?bblinkid=249471968&bbemailid=29894011&bbejrid=1903405101

  • Thursday, April 1, 3:30 pm – Hidden Gems: Revival of the Muddy River within the Emerald Necklace, Online

    The story of the Emerald Necklace, (aka Muddy River riparian corridor) reveals how landscapes along urban waterways provide essential ecosystem connectivity. The Emerald Necklace Conservancy fulfills the aspirations of Hartford native, Frederick Law Olmsted, by hosting a spectrum of activities along the irregular path of the Muddy River. Revitalization of Boston’s Emerald Necklace is rooted in ambitious conservation goals of the late 19th and early 20th century. The impressive, historic scale of conservation can inspire communities to respond to the climate crisis with a new, 21st century parks movement.

    This free April 1 online event beginning at 3:30 pm will review the history of the Muddy River within the Emerald Necklace with guest Karen Mauney-Brodek of the Emerald Necklace Conservancy, and will summarize the efforts of the Olmsted 200 movement with guest Barbara A. Yaeger of the National Association of Olmsted Parks. Hosted by Park Watershed. Register at https://www.emeraldnecklace.org/event/hidden-gems/

  • Tuesday, March 23, 5:30 pm – 6:30 pm – First Virtual Peek into The Curley House

    Fun fact: the Emerald Necklace Conservancy’s recently expanded offices at 350 Jamaicaway are the former home of Mayor James Michael Curley, one of Boston’s most notable (and notorious) mayors! Although the staff has been working remotely for the past year, they can’t keep this historically rich landmark overlooking Jamaica Pond to themselves any longer. Join them on March 23 for a virtual “first peek” at the Curley House to learn about its remarkable past and its most storied resident. Free. Register at https://www.emeraldnecklace.org/event/curley-house-tour/

  • Through March 13, Dusk to 9:00 pm – Lights in the Necklace

    The Emerald Necklace’s 1,100 acres are home to more than 30 bridges. Connecting neighbors and bridging communities is what the Necklace was designed to do nearly 150 years ago by famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted. This winter, the Emerald Necklace and our shared green spaces continue to be some of the primary places of community connection.

    Lights in the Necklace celebrates the power of our urban parks to bring us together, inspire us and light the way in challenging times. Enjoy the emerald glow on several iconic Emerald Necklace bridges in the evenings from dusk to 9pm, daily through March 13. Share your #NecklaceLights moment on social media.