Bette Midler started cleaning a neglected New York park in 1995; 30 years later, her group has planted 200,000 trees and built an artificial oyster reef

Bette Midler once spent her mornings clearing parks in Northern Manhattan that the city had all but abandoned. Thirty years later, that early effort has grown into the New York Restoration Project, a charity credited with reshaping green space across all five boroughs. The organisation has planted more than 200,000 trees since 1995, alongside removing over six million pounds of rubbish from parks and gardens citywide. Its work has extended well beyond planting, too. The installation of a 500-foot artificial oyster reef along the Harlem River, built to protect Sherman Creek Park from rising sea levels and storm damage. According to the New York Restoration Project Annual Report 2025, the charity stewards more than 80 acres of parkland and operates over 50 community gardens, with recent projects including a chestnut restoration scheme in Highbridge Park. Three decades after Midler first picked up litter alone, her charity now reaches over 1.6 million New Yorkers.

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