New York City is no slouch when it comes to green space, but a temporary installation is now in the works to bring nature right into the heart of New York's urban jungle.
Ecologist Marielle Anzelone is behind "PopUP Forest: Times Square," a project to create an "urban oasis" that's just surpassed its initial $25,000 funding goal on Kickstarter.
The plan: In the middle of the night, Anzelone and her team will install towering trees, native wildflowers, shrubs, mosses and ferns in a public plaza in Times Square, providing an immersive natural experience in what the campaign page calls "the most unnatural place on the planet."
Guided woodland walks, interpretive signs and hands-on activities for kids would help visitors navigate the new natural setting, while nature sounds would be streamed live from Manhattan's Inwood Hill Park.
After three weeks, the pop-up would be dismantled and the greenery used in small parks and schoolyards around the city.
The first $25,000 has been earmarked for the installation's design, as well the creation of a protoype "PopUP" in Gowanus, Brooklyn in summer 2015.
A tentative target date of June 2016 is set for the Times Square pop-up.
Backers who pledge as little as $5 will see their name on the website, while higher donations come with access to a head-cam tour of Inwood Park, a wildflower seed mix, a T-shirt, an illustrated botanical print, a tailor-made native plant garden design or a private tour of Inwood Hill Park led by Anzelone.
With 18 days to go, the project is now moving toward a goal of $40,000, which would allow for the installation to take on a larger scale.
