Green City Force Welcomes Its Newest Cohort of Graduates

On October 7, Green City Force (GCF) celebrated the months of hard work and impactful environmental initiatives by its 29th cohort at a graduation ceremony held at Medgar Evers College in Brooklyn.    

GCF is a non-profit that operates an AmeriCorps program which provides NYCHA and low-income housing NYC residents ages 18 to 24 with full-time service projects, training, and education on sustainability and green technologies, as well as a stipend and assistance with job and college placement.   

Over the course of their service term, Cohort 29 completed 250 hours of energy training, collected 10,200 pounds of organic produce grown at the six NYCHA farms and distributed to NYCHA residents, processed over 90,500 pounds of organic waste into compost, and hosted over 1,500 visitors to all of the Eco-Hubs.  

In addition to friends, family, GCF staff and alumni, and partners, other guests at the celebration included keynote speaker Brad Lander, NYC Comptroller; Cohort 29 graduate speaker and Castle Hill Houses resident Phillip Velasquez ; and guest speaker Vanessa Rivera, Associate Director of Grants and Operations at Solon E. Summerfield Foundation, among others. NYCHA Board Members Victor A. Gonzalez and James McKoy also joined in the festivities to honor the graduates.   

In 2026, NYCHA will build upon its partnership with Green City Force and its network of young adult sustainability leaders by establishing two new urban farms.