The Mannahatta Project

www.themannahattaproject.org
WCS landscape ecologist Eric Sanderson takes a new look at Manhattans ecological past, its present, and its future during this 400th anniversary of explorer Henry Hudsons arrival in New York.

[@liltoaster7308]

I wish they would do this to Philadelphia. The landscape before the English, Dutch and Swedes, when the Lenape ruled was much different. There were more islands, parts of the city today were different (although Fairmount park hasn't changed almost at all since then). Also the rivers were cleaner and bigger.

[@2010Hershey]

I absolutely love this!!! They should do this time of rendering for each of the major cities in the world.

[@xaviermichael-young5062]

Just a note for the statement at the end. Many of my Lenape relatives in Oklahoma feel that a problem with NY is how the world feels like Manhattan belongs to them. Many of my Lenape relatives have never been to NY, and our contribution to the landscape is in the very name of the city, Manahatta the place of rolling hills

[@kencroken]

I look forward to working with Dr. Sanderson and "Quintet of the Americas" to help the inhabitants of the Tri-State area and it's visitors realize a healthier relationship between nature and humans; literally and psychologically.

[@syed2194]

To think that just a short 300 years ago, New York was like this.

[@apocalyptic3837]

@@martinhyizna3299 that's rude

[@matthewpaul8755]

New York is very much still like this, just not NYC

[@DansDocs]

Great video but the sound was a little off. If anyone is interested about seeing an undeveloped part of Manhattan then you can visit Inwood Park at the very northern tip of the island. It used to belong to a very rich family, maybe the Rockefellers, when uptown was all giant estates before the subway. They donated the mostly undeveloped land to the city.

[@wildlifeconservationsociety]

@1RadicalOne The goal of the Mannahatta Project is absolutely not to compare or even imply that the value and standards of life of predeveloped Mannahatta to current day Manhattan were better. To do so would indeed be pretty defeatist. The goal s simply to discover what Mannahatta was like before it became the great Metropolis it is today and ask "Are there aspects of this area's historical ecology that we can re-incorporate or at least appreciate in modern day life?"

[@plekka]

There is a plot of land . developed by NYU I think, which is supposed to be a replica of pre-historic New York; It is bordered by Houston Street, and University

[@maple1255]

It is remarkable how truly beautiful the area around New York city was prior to the coming of the Europeans.

[@GUTTENSEITEN]

Sustainability is at the core of quality of life, freedom and happiness.

[@mariachristinamirth3708]

Wow. So interesting. I was born on that beautiful island!

[@paulrandig]

It would be great to blend a virtual fly-over with a real fly over. With the modern Manhattan at 90% transparency, so it looks like a ghostly vision.

[@3dfantasymarkkun]

That would be awesome!

[@Archiblog]

3:15 "New York is a place that's owned by all of us. In that sense the nature that underlies New York is also owned by all of us."

[@NeverBeBored08]

About 392 years after Hudson landed on Manhattan, the Twin Towers collapsed. That's pretty creepy!

[@NeverBeBored08]

About 382 years after Hudson landed on Manhattan, the Twin Towers collapsed, that's pretty creepy

[@chenzy22]

@1RadicalOne I think our standard of living has been transformed because of oil, and to presume that this resource will last forever is self destructive. At the rate we are going with our expansion over nature and our destruction of eco systems we need projects like Mannahatta to help us see who we are, and where we are going. There is nothing negative about it. It's the discovery of self; Past and future.

[@1RadicalOne]

I do not fully understand what you are trying to say - though I suspect it is something I would largely agree with, if it is what I think it is. Moving on, no matter who has the power or the money, life in the stone age would be much, much harsher, harder, and more unpleasant. Do you really doubt that? Do you really think living by scavenging with no protection is preferable to anything?

[@jazz2020]

I'm sure it was beautiful back in the day but like Yosemite? Or Yellowstone? That was surprising to hear...

[@veggieboyultimate]

Someone should do this but for the entire US before the colonization.

[@1RadicalOne]

Except that there are lines like "humans interfering" or "humans meddling with nature" here, and in some similar projects like this, it is even more overt.

[@flintfredstone228]

4:44 - you just nuked Brooklyn

[@1RadicalOne]

It is not oil directly or inherently - it is the energy and raw materials it provides. These, particularly the former, can be easily found from other sources. But those benefits would be useless without a civilization and its knowledge to "process" them; Give the ancient romans nuclear power and all they will have is a meltdown, not a new revolution of development and increase of standard of living.

[@BushyHairedStranger]

Natural spaces(undeveloped land, “wild” natural space for wild animals to nest and exist unmolested by people)are absolutely disappearing. Simple micro site locations in Cities are needed if not necessary to the health of those animals native to the landscapes and the land itself. We MUST! leave open spaces for our kids. Please support appropriate urbanization by saving wild space within urban settings.

[@joseantoniorodriguezbonill3181]

Equisde

[@budmangt2]

500 years from now it will be just the way it was 300 years ago! Because we assholes will be gone LOL!

[@1RadicalOne]

What I do not like about these sorts of videos is the implication that somehow the area was better before, that it would have been better that the city - and presumably other cities - never existed. That is not only a defeatist and at times self-destructive attitude, it is simply not true. Compare the standards of living now with those of the stone age. Which would you rather live in?

[@AveryHudson]

SgtBaker16 has closed his/her comment to replies. Enough said.

[@Thunderchild-gz4gc]

Sorry leftist get over it

[@ColinNekritz]

@1RadicalOne Yes, because the standards of living in NYC with the rich elite driving out the common man making it impossible to afford to live here and the ugly side of capitalism is working so well in Manhattan that it's better off? [eyeroll]

[@lucasbrouard7110]

The Hudson River looked much cleaner before our government decides to put our waste into the Hudson River.

[@IanHunedoara8]

"Human beings interfering" I'm sorry but that attitude is a problem.

[@joeboscarino2380]

According to the the " climate change " nuts there won't be any New York City , it will be under water and gone . But nice to see your modeling isn't any better .