“[Public parks and gardens] are places where New Yorkers gather, pause, play, chill, learn, and discover; offering not only Olmsted’s ‘enlarged sense of freedom’ but also an amplified sense of wonder and a deeper understanding of our place in the environment,” shares photographer and author Ngoc Minh Ngo in the introduction of her latest book, New York Green: Discovering the City’s Most Treasured Parks and Gardens.

From corner lots bursting with native plantings along the West Side Highway to a tiny community garden that serves as an essential stormwater management park in Gowanus, to nature preserves along Rockaway’s waterfront and a sprawling old-growth forest here at NYBG, Ngo’s beautifully photographed and heavily researched profiles of parks and gardens across the city’s five boroughs each tell an important story and offer refuge for people and wildlife alike.

Joined in conversation by landscape ecologist, author of Mannahatta, and NYBG’s Vice President for Urban Conservation Strategy Dr. Eric W. Sanderson, Ngo will uncover these treasured green spaces and share insights into the rich history and evolution of this land—once a vast, unspoiled natural paradise and ecosystem over four centuries ago.

Note: Copies of New York Green and Mannahatta will be available for purchase during this event.