In the final episode in our season on rewilding, we’re visiting New York Harbor. Commonly considered a high-traffic waterway beneath skyscrapers – New York Harbor actually was once one of the most diverse ecosystems on Earth. It was full of living reefs of molluscs that filtered the harbor and created a thriving habitat for other creatures. But as the city grew, the harbor fell silent. Today, New Yorkers are trying to reinvigorate a harbor rendered lifeless by replenishing the very population they destroyed a century ago: oysters.  

Marcella Durand reads an excerpt of her poem, The Ways of East River Park, about embracing a new form of urban ecosystem that brings humans into the habitat of the harbor.

Thank you to Earthjustice for supporting this season of As She Rises. Learn more at earthjustice.org.

For more: 

• Learn more about the Billion Oyster Project and find ways to get involved at BillionOysterProject.org
• Marcella Durand’s latest book, A Winter Triangle, is the recipient of the 2024 Poetic Justice Institute Prize, and you can find more of her work on local urban ecological issues including an essay, "At Spiral's Center" at the Black Earth Institute. 

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