SECRET SCIENCE CLUB @ THE DISCOVERY TANK ON PIER 57, Thursday, October 3 @ 6:30 PM, $10

A SHELL OF A NIGHT! Secret Science Club teams up with Hudson River Park's "Ask a Scientist" to present a sea-salty evening in Lower Manhattan

Thursday, October 3 @ 6:30PM, $10. (Reserve your tickets.)

Secret Science Club flows into Hudson River Park's “Discovery Tank” on gorgeous Pier 57 to explore the hidden lives of NYC’s wild oysters.

In 19th-century New York, oysters were so plentiful in our waters that they were eaten every day, in every way (raw, fricasseed, fried, and stewed). It was estimated that half the world’s oyster population lived along our shores. But over time, the expanding city and resultant pollution made life in the harbor inhospitable for shellfish, causing the oysters—a keystone species in our estuary ecosystem—to go functionally extinct. All may not be lost though: In recent years, the environment in the harbor has been on the upswing. Now, biologists and conservationists are working to bring back the beloved bivalves.

Join us with CUNY’s Phillip Staniczenko and Shinara Sunderlal from the Billion Oyster Project for a night of environmental science on the half shell!

Before & After the Talks
--Check out the cool interactive exhibits and microscopes at the Discovery Tank

--Stop by the pier’s exceptional food court “Market 57” with vendors curated by the James Beard Foundation

--Groove to sweet and salty tunes in our “Ebb Tide Lounge”

--Imbibe tasty beers & soft drinks

Get $10 tickets here (drinks included!)

Phillip P.A. Staniczenko is a Research Professor in the Biology Department at Brooklyn College, City University of New York (CUNY), studying the resilience of complex social-ecological systems to environmental change. He serves on the advisory committee of the Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, and Behavior subprogram at CUNY Graduate Center and is affiliated faculty at the Science and Resilience Institute at Jamaica Bay. He has held research positions at the University of Oxford, University College London, University of Chicago, University of Maryland College Park, and the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center. He has published over 20 peer-reviewed articles in academic journals including Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Nature Communications, Nature Ecology & Evolution, and Ecology Letters. He is currently Chair of the Theoretical Ecology Section of the Ecological Society of America and Subject-Matter Editor at Ecological Monographs, one of the oldest and most respected academic journals on ecology.

Shinara Sunderlal is the Education Outreach Manager at Billion Oyster Project. Shinara is an environmental educator and considers herself a global citizen. She grew up in New Delhi, India, and has spent the last 10 years living and learning in England, Costa Rica, California, and New York. Her passion for exploring the environment started in her suburban backyard and led her to experiences with Greenpeace, the World Wildlife Fund, and the Wildlife Conservation Society. She quickly realized that her impact on creating a more sustainable tomorrow would be minimal if she didn't combine her curiosity for the natural world with her passion for working with children, to educate the next generation of stewards. This led her to pursue a MA at the New York University and continue working to protect the local landscape through building communities around ecological solutions that oysters bring. Shinara is also an avid birder, Indian classical singer, and a budding photographer.

This program meets Thursday, October 3, 6:30PM at the Discovery Tank on Hudson River Park’s Pier 57. (The entrance to the pier is at the intersection of W. 15th St and 11th Ave in Manhattan.) Subway: A, C, E, L to 14th St/8th Ave; 1, 2, 3 to 14th St

Tickets are $10. Click here to reserve your spot!

This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.