Welcome to the Green Campus Tour! In honor of Earth Month, learn about what makes NYU one of the greenest urban campuses and how you can get involved in sustainability on campus. Interested in taking this tour by bike? Fill out this form to receive a free Citi Bike day pass (while supplies last). 

1. GCASL Green Roof | Visit from the Kimmel Center for University Life (60 Washington Square South) 

GCASL is one of the greenest buildings at the Washington Square campus. NYU has over 2 million square feet of space that is LEED certified or undergoing certification. GCASL achieved the highest LEED score at the time of certification (LEED Platinum) and it features a green roof! Green roofs have many environmental benefits — in particular, they absorb stormwater runoff, which is an important feature in NYC where our sewage systems easily overflow and pollute nearby waterways when it storms.

Additional resources: What is LEED Certification?

2. Native Woodland Garden | Schwartz Plaza (between Washington Square South and West 3rd Street)

The Native Woodland Garden is designed to recreate the landscape of Manhattan Island in the time of its indigenous inhabitants, the Lenape. It’s believed that the plants in this garden may actually be the same type of plant life that was in this area when Manhattan Island was still lush and green.

Additional resources: Welikia Project

3. Tisch Hall Bike Parking | Tisch Hall (entrance at West 3rd Street and Greene Street)

Biking is a healthy, convenient, and sustainable way to get around! NYU has several protected areas on campus for bike parking. If you’re not a bike owner, Citi Bike is a great option. In fact, if you join the NYU Federal Credit Union, you may be eligible for a discount. 

Additional resources: Biking at NYU-NYC 

4. Mercer Plaza | Mercer Street (between Washington Square South and West 3rd Street)

Look down! You’re standing above our CoGeneration Plant, which provides heating and/or cooling to 44 NYU buildings and electricity to 26 buildings. Having our own microgrid on campus helps make us more resilient to natural disasters, which are becoming more common with climate change. 

Additional resources:  How the CoGen Plant Works

5. Sasaki Garden | Enter from the courtyard of Washington Square Village at Bleecker and Wooster or West 3rd and Greene Street

The Sasaki Garden is an excellent example of a successful integration of landscape and hardscape in an urban setting. Japanese crabapple, higan cherry, willow trees and other plantings attract songbirds as well as the people who enjoy the colorful, seasonal displays. 

Additional resources: NYU Grounds (Instagram)

6. Community Agriculture Project | Enter from the courtyard of Washington Square Village at West 3rd and Wooster

This garden is a partnership between students and the residents of Washington Square Village. Those who maintain the garden get an opportunity to harvest and eat the produce at the end of the season! Students can join the “CommAg” club to get involved. 

Additional resources: Sustainability Student Groups at NYU | Community Gardens in NYC

7. Urban Farm Lab | West Houston Street and Wooster Street

The Urban Farm Lab is operated by Steinhardt’s Food Studies Department. You can take classes like Intro to Urban Agriculture and get a chance to tend to this garden, which is also the home to several species of native pollinators! 

Additional resources: Sustainability Courses at NYU | NYU Urban Farm Lab (Instagram)

8. 370 Jay Street (Brooklyn)

In 2018, NYU completed its renovation of the historic Transit Building at 370 Jay Street, transforming the former headquarters of the MTA into an engineering, media, tech, and arts hub. This ambitious renovation incorporated cutting-edge technologies to drastically reduce the building’s energy, water, and construction waste footprints. 370 Jay is the home of the Integrated Digital Media, Interactive Media Arts, and Interactive Telecommunications programs, which have all received recent Green Grants funding. 

Additional resources: 370 Jay Street Brochure 

9. NYU MakerSpace (Brooklyn) | 6 MetroTech Center 

The NYU Tandon MakerSpace is a cutting edge workspace lab created to foster collaborative design projects. Both the plastic shredder, which recycles 3D prints; and the Urban Food Lab, a vertical garden in the basement of the MakerSpace, were funded by Green Grants. Green Grants offer up to $20,000 for sustainability projects.

Additional resources: Green Grants Program | Sustainability at the MakerSpace