Graduate Architecture, Landscape Architecture, & Urban Design (GA/LA/UD) faculty member Xenia Adjoubei was recently featured in a Brooklyn Paper article exploring the ecological and cultural potential of rewilding in New York City cemeteries, particularly Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn.
The article, titled “Life and death in Green-Wood Cemetery: Rewilding project revives native flora and fauna” highlights a growing movement toward ecological restoration in urban landscapes. Adjoubei contributed expert insight on how cemeteries, traditionally seen as static memorial spaces, can also function as vital urban grasslands that support biodiversity, mitigate climate risk, and reimagine land use in dense cities.
“Native species can soak up more stormwater, alleviating the pressure on our utility systems. They support much greater biodiversity, but they create this very different aesthetic, which can be seen as not subscribing to the rules.”
Her contribution is part of her ongoing research into climate-resilient urban grasslands and the ethics of ecological design, which she integrates into her teaching at Pratt and broader collaborations with urban planning and landscape teams across the city.