Cornell Tech’s Tree Canopy Project Builds a Cooler New York City
Published by www.jns.org on August 6, 2026.
Despite New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s past calls to boycott Cornell Tech because of its partnership with Israel’s Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, city officials and Jewish community leaders on Wednesday announced a $250,000 investment in a Cornell Tech research initiative aimed at expanding New York City’s tree canopy to combat rising temperatures.
New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin, the first Jewish woman to hold the post, and other officials unveiled the funding for Cornell Tech’s Urban Tech Hub at the Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute on Roosevelt Island.
The grant will launch the Generative Tree Canopy Project, which will use artificial intelligence, aerial imagery, the city’s tree census and climate forecasting to develop neighborhood-specific tree-planting strategies intended to reduce extreme heat and related health risks, according to the project announcement.
Keep reading at jns.org.
