Grant to Support Environmental Education (NYC)
New York, NY, June 14, 2005: Today in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn, representatives from the Trust for Public Land and students and teachers from P.S. 225 celebrated the generosity of HSBC In the Community. The foundation, established by HSBC Bank USA, N.A. awarded the Trust for Public Land $25,000 to support environmental education and work in youth-based community gardens, a portion of which will benefit P.S. 225.
“Children and communities throughout New York City will benefit from this generous contribution by HSBC,” said Andy Stone, director of the New York City Program for the Trust for Public Land. “By reclaiming outdoor areas for the creation of school gardens, developing environmental curricula, training school educators, and establishing children’s programs at community gardens, we hope to ensure that New York City’s children, regardless of income, have varied opportunities to engage with and learn from their immediate environment.”
Funds will go to support TPL’s community gardening work with children. Through Parks for People–New York City, TPL creates gardening spaces for children in public schools and neighborhood community gardens, develops on-site educational programs, and trains teachers and parents to conduct self-sustaining outdoor programs for children throughout the city. TPL has established youth gardens and hands-on outdoor environmental education programs at 53 locations around New York City, serving children ages five through 14.
“HSBC is committed to the environment and the communities in which we do business,” said David Kotheimer, senior executive vice president of HSBC Bank USA, N.A. and a member of the foundation’s board of directors. “HSBC in the Community is thrilled to support the Trust for Public Land and its effort to support outdoor programs and education for children.”
HSBC has 25 branches in Brooklyn, including one in Brighton Beach that opened for business yesterday.
Brighton Beach’s P.S. 225 services the educational needs of students in Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 8 and has the largest student immigrant population in the borough. More than 70% of the students are immigrants, representing approximately 50 different ethnic and cultural backgrounds.
The largest percentage are ?migr?s from Kazakhstan, the Ukraine, Azerbajin, Belaruse, Latvia, Moldova, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Georgia and other parts of the Russian Federation. Other countries from which the students come include: Pakistan, Mexico, India, China, Korea, Germany, Poland, Romania, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, Albania, Italy, Israel, Yemen, Syria, Egypt, Turkey, Greece, Cuba, El Salvador, Honduras, Peru, the Philippines, and Africa.
Over the course of this school year, TPL has worked with teachers and their students at P.S. 225 to create a new school garden and gardening program at the school. TPL will continue to work with the teachers as they now use the new garden to provide weekly hands-on outdoor environmental education to their students.
About HSBC Bank USA, National Association: HSBC Bank USA, N.A. has nearly 400 branches in New York State, a network of branches in Florida, and California and one branch each in Delaware, Pennsylvania, Washington State, Oregon, and Washington, D.C. It is the principal subsidiary of HSBC USA Inc, an indirectly-held, wholly-owned subsidiary of HSBC North America Holdings Inc., one of the nation’s 10 largest bank holding companies by assets. For more information about HSBC Bank USA and its products and services visit http://us.hsbc.com.
About Trust for Public Land: The Trust for Public Land conserves land for people to enjoy as parks, gardens, and other natural areas, ensuring livable communities for generations to come. Founded in 1972, TPL is the only national nonprofit working exclusively to protect land for human enjoyment and well-being. TPL’s Parks for People initiative works in cities across America to ensure that everyone–in particular every child–enjoys access to a park, playground, or open space.
