This $700 million campus is coming to Governors Island

Public art to polo tournaments, hammock groves to lavender fields—Governors Island already packs in plenty to do in its 170-plus acres nestled in the middle of the New York Harbor. And come 2028, there will be even more happening on the isle, what with Stony Brook University helping to launch the eco-focused New York Climate Exchange.

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On Monday, April 26, Mayor Eric Adams announced a $700 million 400,000-square-foot campus dedicated to climate change research and education, due to open in 2028. The State University of New York at Stony Brook, a public research university located in Long Island's Suffolk County, will oversee the project and work in partnership with other academic institutions as well as non-profits and community organizations to create and develop eco solutions that will be scaled in New York City and beyond.

“Today, here in the heart of New York Har­bor, we are tak­ing a giant leap toward a clean­er, green­er, more pros­per­ous future for every New York­er with the ​‘New York Cli­mate Exchange,’” said May­or Adams. ​“This first-of-its-kind project will make New York City a glob­al leader in devel­op­ing solu­tions for cli­mate change while cre­at­ing thou­sands of good-pay­ing green jobs for New York­ers and infus­ing $1 bil­lion into our city’s econ­o­my. Where some peo­ple see chal­lenges, New York­ers see oppor­tu­ni­ties, and this team and this project are lead­ing the charge.”

“We are hon­ored, excit­ed, and proud to part­ner with the City of New York to build this his­toric cen­ter that will cement New York City as the world leader on cli­mate change, the most press­ing issue of our time,” said Mau­rie McIn­nis, pres­i­dent of Stony Brook Uni­ver­si­ty. ​“Up until now, the devel­op­ment of cli­mate solu­tions has been siloed, with world lead­ers sep­a­rate from expert sci­en­tists sep­a­rate from the on-the-ground green work­force. As an inter­na­tion­al leader on cli­mate and as the lead­ing pub­lic research insti­tu­tion in New York, Stony Brook Uni­ver­si­ty will bring stake­hold­ers togeth­er from the aca­d­e­m­ic, gov­ern­ment, and busi­ness com­mu­ni­ties to make the Cli­mate Exchange the cen­ter of research, inno­va­tion, edu­ca­tion, and col­lab­o­ra­tion to address this glob­al crisis.”

The project will overhaul the southern portion of Governors Island and will consist of class­rooms, lab­o­ra­to­ries, research labs, pub­lic exhi­bi­tion space, stu­dent and fac­ul­ty hous­ing, uni­ver­si­ty hotel rooms, and an audi­to­ri­um space. Energy for the all-electric campus will be made onsite and 95 per­cent of waste gen­er­at­ed on cam­pus will be divert­ed from landfill. Once fully operational, the hub will serve 600 post­-sec­ondary stu­dents, 4,500 K‑12 stu­dents, 6,000 work­force trainees, and 250 fac­ul­ty and researchers every year, as well as up to 30 businesses through its incubator program. More frequent ferry service is reportedly in the works for those who wish to visit.