Overview
The Green-Wood Research Fellowship Award in Urban Environmental Science provides support for emerging investigators to conduct original research that utilizes the landscape and collections of The Green-Wood Cemetery and Historic Fund to advance the study of urban ecology and/or climate resilience.
Green-Wood is a world-renowned arboretum featuring a dynamic living collection comprised of about 8,000 specimens representing 695 taxa, 61 taxonomic families, and 159 different genera. Some of Green-Wood’s oldest specimens predate the Cemetery’s founding in 1838, and the collection continues to grow—each new planting is selected for its climate adaptiveness, wildlife value, enhancement of the beauty of the landscape, and resilience. Every year, Green-Wood’s living collection is responsible for sequestering 264,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide, removing 12,000 lbs. of pollution from the air we breathe, and mitigating 2,620,000 gallons of stormwater from overwhelming Brooklyn’s sewage system.
Awards are granted to support research expenses and/or travel expenses associated with the proposed research. Project proposals will be reviewed and considered for funding up to a maximum of $10,000, but applicants are encouraged to leverage and combine funds with other sources of financial support to foster more ambitious projects. Multi-year projects may be eligible for continued funding, but a renewal proposal and progress report will be required for each year of Green-Wood support, and the entire cohort of proposals will be reviewed each year collectively, so there is no guarantee of continued funding for multi-year projects.
In addition to the monetary award, researchers will have access to Green-Wood’s collections and landscape assets; data associated with plant records and wildlife; map layers; Esri GIS software and mobile app tools; support staff who can operate digging machines and electricians to assist with monitoring and other devices; storage space for equipment; freezers and refrigerators to store samples temporarily; and office space with desktops.
Proposals are due on or before February 9, 2026.
The project term is from March 2, 2026, to February 26, 2027. Award recipients will be expected to participate in a program hosted by Green-Wood in the latter half of the award term to educate the public on the research study. A final report including project outcomes and impacts will be due by March 1, 2025. Final reports will be made available to interested stakeholders via the Internet and/or in printed form, and should include figures, tables, photographs, and other appropriate documentation for each project, written in a style and form accessible to non-scientists.
Application Information
Awards are granted through a competitive review process, including Green-Wood staff and other qualified experts. Selection of recipient(s) will be based on the expertise of the applicant and their readiness to conduct the proposed research; the quality of the proposed research; and the relevance of the proposed research to Green-Wood’s collections and the goals of the award. Applicants may propose any project that spans the natural and environmental science fields and that focuses on urban ecology and/or climate resilience.
Examples might include:
- Intra- and inter-species pathogen transmission
- Dynamic soil properties
- Surveys of insect/plant interactions and host/species relationships
- Plant trialing
- Climate modeling related to specific plant species
To be considered for an award, applications should include the following:
- Proposal Narrative (maximum of three pages, 1” margins, 12-point font in Times New Roman or Arial)
- Project Title: Brief, clear, specific description of the proposed work.
- Principal Investigator(s) and Cooperators: Names, titles, contact addresses, and email addresses for those who will lead and collaborate in the proposed work and their primary roles.
- Background: Describe the importance of the proposed research to the stated goals and priorities of the award program. Include reasons for doing the work, important problems or opportunities your proposal will address, needs your project will fulfill, and its intended beneficiaries.
- Specific Objectives: Provide clear, complete, logically arranged statements of the specific objectives and testable hypotheses for your project, and its measurable outcomes relating to urban ecology or climate resilience.
- Strategy/Methods: Briefly describe the overall strategy and methods proposed to achieve your objectives at Green-Wood/via Green-Wood’s collections, and innovative features of your approach relative to previous efforts and demonstrable needs.
- Intended Outcomes and Impacts: Describe expected outcomes and ways in which your project could enhance knowledge of urban ecology or improve climate resilience.
- Project timeline. Applicants should submit a timeline of the project and anticipated dates for on-site research.
- Budget: Applicants should submit a simple, one-page budget that itemizes the research and travel costs associated with the proposed project. Awards are not intended to serve as a salary stipend. Total funding requests are limited to a maximum of $10,000 per year (as noted above).
- Curriculum vitae (maximum of two pages).
- Letter of recommendation for applicants who are not faculty. As part of the application, a referee must submit a letter of recommendation on your behalf directly to researchaward@green-wood.com with “Urban Environmental Science Research Fellowship” and the applicantʼs name as the subject line by February 9, 2026.
Completed proposals must be received on or before February 9, 2026, to be eligible for funding (PDF format is preferable). Please upload proposals via the form below. Project leaders of all successful proposals will be notified in late February 2026. For questions about the award, Green-Wood resources, the research proposal, or the submission process, contact researchaward@green-wood.com.
Additional Information and Special Considerations
The Green-Wood Research Award in Urban Environmental Science is available to a range of emerging investigators, including, but not limited to, graduate students, early-career faculty, NGO-affiliated researchers, and others trained in the natural or environmental sciences. Special consideration may be given to advanced undergraduate students. Applicants should be well-positioned to conduct original, independent research and to publish their findings in peer-reviewed publications or in other credible formats. We encourage applications from groups underrepresented in the sciences. Applicants are expected to be fluent in English. The award is not limited to universities in the United States or to United States citizens.
Green-Woodʼs collections are multifaceted and include the following:
The Landscape and Living Collection: Green-Wood has the best of both worlds—a dynamic natural landscape right in the heart of urban New York. As an accredited Level III arboretum, it boasts an impressive collection of trees that, along with other resources, provide habitat for a wide variety of wildlife. Green-Woodʼs unique topography was carved by the Laurentide Ice Sheet over 18,000 years ago and features two glacial ponds, steep slopes, and narrow valleys. It also contains the highest natural point in Brooklyn at 216 feet above sea level.
The Living Collection contains about 8,500 living specimens that are comprised of 695 species and hybrids (including cultivars), representing 61 taxonomic families and 159 different genera. One of Green-Woodʼs trees is the oldest and largest of its species (a state champion Celtis occidentalis) in New York State. Other exemplary trees in the collection are the cucumber magnolia (Magnolia acuminata), red oak (Quercus rubra), tuliptree (Liriodendron tulipifera), black oak (Quercus velutina), European beech (Fagus sylvatica), black gum (Nyssa sylvatica), and Himalayan pine (Pinus wallichiana). With its wide variety of endemic and non-native species and high percentage of mature and old-growth trees, Green-Woodʼs Living Collection has few rivals in the region.
Green-Wood is also home to a wide variety of avifauna, reptiles and amphibians, mammals, and insects that catch the attention of the naturalist communities. Located along the Atlantic flyway, Green-Wood is a favorite way station for billions of migratory birds every spring and fall, attracting birdwatchers throughout the city. To document this diversity, Green-Wood commissioned Applied Ecological Services in 2016 to conduct a two-year survey of its wildlife and ecological conditions. The baseline data on Green-Woodʼs wildlife now informs how Green-Wood manages its landscape, designs new development, and supports the siteʼs wildlife. To learn more, click here.
The Historical, Art and Library Collections: Over the past two decades, The Green-Wood Historic Fund has developed a unique collection of artworks and artifacts pertaining to the rich history of The Green-Wood Cemetery and of those who have chosen it as their final resting place. This highly specialized collection is available for research.
The Historical Collection: Over 9,000 artifacts of cultural and historical interest relating to Green-Wood residents, including photographic materials, personal correspondence, advertisements, manufactured items, and personal belongings. Such notable figures as Henry Ward Beecher, William “Boss” Tweed, and the Steinway family are represented in the collection. Also included is documentation of the early history of Green-Wood, including publications, commercial photography, and visitor maps.
The Art Collection: Over 400 paintings, drawings, prints, and sculptures created by or relating to individuals interred at The Green-Wood Cemetery. Green-Wood is home to such notable artists as George Catlin, William Merritt Chase, and Samuel F.B. Morse. The Fine Arts Collection currently features artworks by over 150 artists interred at Green-Wood, with over 450 artists in total identified as permanent residents.
The Library Collection: Over 1,000 published volumes relevant to the significance of The Green-Wood Cemetery and its permanent residents. The Library contains first editions of works written by Green-Wood residents, including a series of volumes by Green-Woodʼs first Historian, Nehemiah Cleaveland. To learn more, click here.
The Institutional Archives: Reflective of Green-Woodʼs long and venerable history of serving the public are voluminous archival records and original source holdings documenting its residents and operations. These records contain the day-to-day business of the Cemetery and serve to memorialize the people interred there, revealing a vast store of genealogical and historical information.
The varied Cemetery records abound with genealogical charts, family trees, last wills and testaments, death certificates, burial orders, lot records, family correspondence, and affidavit records. These records are unique to The Green-Wood Cemetery and are not to be found in any other repository in the country. To learn more, click here.