Kari: New York is a mega-city.
What a view!
There are more people here than in 40 of the 50 U.S. states.
That's one day's recycling.
Holy guacamole.
[ Foghorn blows ]
For those who call this place home,
there's a constant push for making the city more livable.
These tower gardens are brilliant.
I'm Kari Byron.
Go, go, go, go, go!
I travel around the world...
Whoa!
This is nuts!
...seeking out stories of inspiring people...
Girl: The more programs like this there are,
the more of a difference there is.
...who are working on solutions
to some of the biggest questions of our time.
I'm fascinated by this.
♪♪
Over half the world's population lives in urban areas.
And with almost 10 million people,
New York City is the United States' largest.
The city is made up of five boroughs
on just over 300 square miles of land.
That works out to be about 27,000 people every square mile.
A city this big comes with many challenges...
Transportation, housing, garbage collection.
My question is how do we make mega-cities
like New York more livable?
In 2017, New York City's population
grew to a record high of 8.6 million people.
With so many people living in such a small footprint,
finding space to build places for them to live
and work isn't easy.
So when developers propose a new way
to create 18 million square feet for offices,
shops, and 4,000 new homes, that's a big deal solution.
Hudson yards is one of the most complex construction projects
in the history of the city,
all because they found an unlikely place to build.
So, what was the space used for originally?
The last 35 years before this development,
it was storage for commuter rails.
So it's just train yards, open tracks.
Just, like, an empty spot in the city.
We look back at maps of the city in 1609
and this actually used to be a marsh.
So as the city developed,
those blocks were actually left undeveloped for a long time,
which is why they were kind of available
and became occupied by the railroad tracks.
Now, you guys are putting some really tall buildings on them.
What's the challenge of that?
Because you had train tracks
that were sunken below the level of the ground,
you have to build a ground plane
to actually put all of these buildings on.
That's right. They're building skyscrapers
where thousands of new yorkers will soon be living
and working over live train tracks.
You can't make the city bigger, so you have to build up.
- Yeah. - Definitely up.
♪♪
This is so cool.
All of this has trains running underneath it.
They're fully in operation.
We're not just standing on the ground here.
Yeah. This wasn't here
a few years ago.
More than 300 pillars
were installed between the tracks,
creating a surface floating above the trains.
In not too long, people will be coming on the train,
walking on these stones and pavers,
and they're coming home because they live here.
This is their community.
You can put the next one in.
Sure.
Throw it in there with a little swagger.
Come on, throw it in there.
- Want this all done by tonight. - [ Laughs ]
Level with me.
How is it?
Oh, my god, she's on the money.
I mean, this is an incredibly unique project.
It's not just a place to live. I mean, this is beautiful.
Hudson yards will also have 14 acres of open public space
and a structure called the vessel
with more than a mile of stairways overlooking it all.
What kind of challenges are there
for planting trees in some place this urban?
I mean, this soil doesn't look like it goes that deep.
Yeah. What about the tree roots?
So we have specific engineered soil types
that create horizons just like you'd find in nature.
But then also, do you see the openings in those walls?
Those are actually what we call soil sharing voids.
So the roots will be able to actually extend
beyond the planter boundaries themselves.
And then the other weird thing about building
on top of structure like we are now is it doesn't get cold.
You know, the earth, if you dig down deep enough,
is always 55 degrees.
But here it's not true because we're over train tracks.
Covering the tracks
traps the heat generated by the trains.
Temperatures can reach up to 150 degrees,
which would definitely kill the trees.
This smart park uses huge fans
to remove the heat at the track level.
And directly beneath the trees are cooling pipes
that will activate if the soil gets too hot.
So you have the air condition
the dirt underneath?
The system is there to do it.
Yeah, just in case. Otherwise, the trees could die
and you're going to have something where you've put
a lot of effort into something that won't last.
It's some really cool science just to plant a tree.
That's right.
At the top of the tallest building here
is an amazing observation deck, and there is no way
I can visit without checking it out.
Time to go up.
♪♪
This is like an amusement park ride, this elevator.
Wow! What a view!
We're on the 100th floor.
That puts us just over 1,000 feet in the air.
This is the highest outdoor viewing space
in all of New York.
I mean, look how tiny the statue of Liberty looks from here.
Looks like a doll. Yeah, she really does.
You can see Connecticut, long island sound,
every bridge in New York City.
You can also see how densely packed the city already is.
With millions of people living
and working in all those buildings,
there really is nowhere else to build
that doesn't involve knocking down whole blocks
or displacing communities of people.
I mean, this is some perspective.
The planning and engineering
to build a building this tall on top of train tracks.
Yeah. Previously, this was kind of a no man's land
between hell's kitchen to the north and Chelsea to the south.
Now we've got a whole other
neighborhood here, and a big one.
Taking something that was completely unused
and turning it into a livable space.
Nelson: It's a pretty spectacular place to be.
Sam: New York is such a grab-and-go kind of culture.
There's so much just coming out of every building every day.
Everyone can just choose to help make this happen every day.
As you'd expect, a mega-city can produce a lot of waste.
New York City alone produces 14 million tons of trash
every year.
That's why reducing and recycling are so important
to making a city more livable.
The average American throws away
81 pounds of clothing a year.
Now, that sounds like a crazy number,
but what's crazier is that calculates to 15 million tons
per year, just waste going into the landfill.
One of the best ways to reduce those numbers...
Shop at vintage stores.
♪♪
Donating your old clothes is a great alternative
to having them end up in a landfill.
[ Laughs ]
Yes.
And instead of buying new,
you can give a second life to fabulous finds.
It's a treasure hunt in vintage stores.
It's all a numbers game.
What do you think?
Not only am I reducing waste,
but I get to do with a fun '80s shopping montage.
♪♪
This has got me thinking,
how does New York City as a whole deal with recycling?
Let's find out.
New yorkers produce 12,000 tons of garbage every day
and only recycle about 17% of it.
Most of the recycling ends up at the Sims facility in Brooklyn.
Wow.
This is intense.
So, most of the city's recycling
actually gets placed out on these barges.
I have never seen that much recycling.
How long a period of time is this?
A day. That's one day's recycling?
It's tons of recycling, literally tons.
And that's just the part that was actually put out properly.
There's so much else that just goes right into the trash.
I can't believe how much plastic I'm looking at right here.
And right there, see that?
That's my recycling.
Oh, I see that, yeah. Right there.
We're going to follow my recycling
all the way through to see where it goes.
Kari: Okay, so from the barge,
where does the recycling go from there?
Monica: It goes onto our tipping floor.
That's where we gather up all of our material that we receive.
How much recycling comes through here in a day?
About 800 tons.
800 tons?! Yeah.
66 tons an hour.
Over 20,000 tons a month.
Holy guacamole.
It's like the Himalayas.
Monica: It's beautiful, isn't it?
It's like a sort of jagged rainbow of colors.
This is metal, glass, plastic cartons
from all across New York City.
So what are the things that can't go in the recycling bin
that you see all the time?
Bowling balls.
Bowling balls? Every day
several bowling balls, at least.
We have a little collection in our office.
Coffee cups. Coffee cups?
Coffee cups.
They all have the little recycling symbol on them.
Some do, but they have these plastic liners.
And that plastic lining means that it doesn't really go
through that paper recycling process too smoothly.
So you've got paper on the outside, plastic on the inside.
They're both recyclable products.
But when you put them together...
That's it. ...They're not...
Usually they'll get filtered out.
With my recycling off the barge,
it's ready to head into the sorting facility.
There it goes.
That is going to get scooped into this first
conveyor belt, down into the shredder,
which opens up those plastic bags,
and started getting sorted out from everything else
that it's traveling with.
As my bottle heads through the facility,
it first passes under this gigantic magnet.
♪♪
Whoa!
This is nuts!
Sam: This is all the metals that the magnet has picked up,
and those are going up that way to get sorted out by size.
These are all the plastics going to the optical sorting cameras
separating clear from color.
Recycling rainbow!
Exactly.
Kari: Once the plastics are sorted by color,
they're compressed and baled into gigantic cubes.
Sam: Over 1,000 pounds, every bale.
So, from the barge, through the plant,
compressed into bricks, and then what?
Where does it go? What happens to it?
It gets sent out to processors. They chop them up into these.
They all are sorted by color, melts them down,
and makes these pellets
to make whatever you want out of that plastic.
So this could become another bottle in its next life.
It could be a kid's toy. Exactly right.
I had no idea the amount of recycling
that comes in in one day. This is incredible.
New York is such a grab-and-go kind of culture.
There's so much just coming out of every building every day.
How does it feel to give this plastic in second life?
It feels great. I mean, knowing that it could be
something different that could be useful,
it's a great thing.
And everyone has a part in this.
Everyone can just choose to sort something into
that recycling bin
and help make this happen every day.
Very small choice can make your city more livable.
Yeah. Yeah.
♪♪
[ Horn honking ]
I kind of want to drive a big truck right now.
What does New York City have none of?
Space.
Growing in an urban environment
is a totally different experience.
These tower gardens are brilliant.
Kari: There aren't many places in the U.S.
Where people outnumber trees.
While there are 5.2 million trees in New York City,
that's actually 3 million less than the number
of people living here.
One of the ways to make a mega-city more livable
is to add green space
wherever possible.
On the West Side of Manhattan,
there's an old elevated train line
that's been repurposed into a one-of-a-kind public park.
Stretching for nearly a mile and a half,
it's a beautiful park that winds through the towering buildings.
The high line functions as a green space in the city,
but also as a green roof with pathways
designed to drain storm water into plant beds
rather than a sewer system.
New York City is home to roughly 1,700 parks.
There are more trees planted every year, and rooftop gardens
and even urban farms are popping up all over.
These urban green spaces
have proven to have many positive effects,
improving the air quality, promoting activity,
and providing an opportunity to eat healthier.
What a great example
is happening at green Bronx machine.
Here, a group of young urban farmers have found a unique way
to make the south Bronx greener.
Michaela: Today, we're learning about plants and seedlings
and how they grow in unexpected places.
Can you show me? Sure.
Michaela Ritz is a graduate of this program,
which is run by her father, Steven.
[ Laughs ] Thank you.
I didn't know there'd be wardrobe.
Is this what the urban farmers wear?
At least here in the Bronx they do.
The goal is to teach students the importance of eating healthy
and growing their own food
to help green the concrete jungle.
We don't use soil here. Kari: What is this, foam?
No, this is rockwool.
Michaela: It's wool made from rock.
Cool. You take the rock,
you crush it up,
and then once it's very, very fine,
you could spin it into thread so that it sticks together,
and that's what we put our seeds in.
It's very light. Very light, right.
Now, imagine if that was a tray full of soil.
Do you think it would be the same?
Oh, much heavier.
That's another reason rockwool helps us.
It's light, space saving, and it holds a lot of water.
Well, that's a cool innovation.
Inside the rockwool goes a teaspoon of microgreens,
which are tiny seeds that grow a big bundle of plants...
Kale, cabbage, and lettuce.
Who wants to do arugula?
The word "arugula" is just a cool word to say.
Rolls off your tongue.
I know. Arugula.
After a couple of days, the seeds will sprout
and then each bit of microgreens
is moved to a tower structure, creating a vertical farm.
And so the water circulates from the bottom
down in here up to the top
and then just drips onto all the plants?
Yeah, like a shower.
This is so simple but so elegant.
You know what else is pretty cool about these towers?
It takes less space.
And what is New York City have none of?
- Space. - Space.
We had to do this outside, we would probably need an area
the full size of this room just to get enough food.
And you can see it's only a three-foot diameter
for a tower. We can roll it around.
We could spin it.
Kari: Growing in an urban environment
is a totally different experience.
These tower gardens are brilliant.
They take so little space, but they grow so much.
They're really practical and efficient.
They are about maybe 25 of us in total.
All of you could get a full bag of food
from this amount of space and what we grow.
Does it taste better when you grow it yourself?
Yeah.
Girl: Always so fresh.
Beautiful.
You guys have really become experts.
Yeah.
So your energy is going to provide the blenders
with their power.
Are you guys ready? Yeah!
Kari: Go, go, go, go, go, go!
Look at that.
You not only get the exercise, but you get to drink.
There's a reward.
♪♪
Boo! Aah!
What about growing plants makes the city more livable for you?
Isn't much places to plant in New York City.
Girl: Programs like this just help our earth
and make us all eat better, sleep better, and feel better.
It's giving the kids what they need to live.
That's why we have the green Bronx machine.
Kari: These young farmers are all doing their part
to make the city greener, healthier, and more livable.
You can have fun in knowing that you're making a difference.
All of the greenery around here
creates such a happy environment.
It's bright, and when you walk in,
you just immediately feel different.
I think through the power of a plant,
it unlocks so much more.
Cheers!
Mmm, I can taste the bicycle.
[ Laughs ]
That's good.
Oh, I'm going to race.
Erica: You can get from the Bronx to wall street
in under an hour.
So this is one of the solutions
to making the city more livable through transportation.
Mm-hmm.
Kari: In mega-cities where millions of people are trying to get
where they need to be, getting from one place
to another can be expensive and time consuming.
One key element to making a city more livable... transportation.
The five boroughs of New York City
are connected by Bridges, tunnels, and ferries.
[ Foghorn blows ]
Despite all this traffic,
less than half of the people here own a car,
so being able to get around easily
and affordably without one is incredibly important.
I cycle and I really enjoy that because it's free for me,
apart from maintaining my bike.
And it gets me out and about in the city in new spaces
and places all the time.
This bike path goes all the way down the West Side.
They built it just so you can get across the city.
Oh, I'm going to race.
I'm beating you, cab driver.
[ Bell rings ]
To get around New York,
I typically just take the subway.
It's most convenient, it's the most affordable.
I can just kind of get on the train
and get to wherever I need to be.
New York even boasts
the country's first commuter tramway,
taking people to and from Roosevelt island.
It makes 115 trips a day.
Is this your favorite way to commute?
Of course.
How long you've been operating the tram?
Not that long. 42 years.
42 years? Yeah.
How long has the tram been here?
42 years.
Roosevelt island is in the middle of the east river.
It divides Manhattan from queens and the Bronx.
Once used mainly for hospitals and prisons,
the island now has 14,000 residents.
Originally, when this tram was built in 1976,
it was because the subways were being built,
so this was another way to get across.
When I got this job, they told me
I'll have it for two years
because then their subway will come
and they were going to demolish this.
Took them 17 years to build that subway after that,
and it became an icon, so we're still here.
It's definitely beautiful. Isn't it nice?
Scenic views of the east river give a glimpse
into another mode of transportation.
As far back as 1642, travelers used waterways
surrounding the city to move about by ferry.
Over 350 years later,
more than 23 ferries are in operation,
transporting 9 million people every year.
Look at this. You get a great view
when you're up on top deck, huh? You do.
You can still see the city, you can see the Bridges.
I think one of the best things that you can see
on the top deck is all the Bridges.
I love going under the Bridges. That is the coolest part.
And you can see so much of the city that you can't see
in your car or underground.
You can see the landscapes,
you can see the trees changing colors.
You see a different New York.
Look at all those crazy people up there
in the cars and traffic,
all that concentrating on things.
I can just, like, zone out here.
You can. Look at the view.
The waters haven't really been used that much,
and everyone sticks to being underground or being in traffic.
There's no traffic on the water.
You can get from the Bronx to wall street in under an hour.
All right, so if I were going to race a taxi,
would I win if I took the boat? Yeah.
So this is one of the solutions
to making the city more livable through transportation.
Mm-hmm. It's a new way of exploring
the city, getting to work,
cruising your city, as we like to say, so yeah.
With plans for new ferry routes, subway lines,
and dedicated bus- and bike-only lanes,
New York City is committed to easy
and affordable public transportation
throughout the five boroughs.
Totally outpacing the traffic.
So what does it take to make a mega-city more livable?
People greening the city, recycling,
building places for each other to live.
People who are actually taking care of their community.
Each one doing their own small part
to make life better for their fellow new yorkers.
That's what's going to make New York City more livable.