PlaNYC describes a comprehensive list of initiatives the City gov­ernment will undertake to create a greener, greater New York over the next 20 years. But our plan is also intended to enable individuals and civic organizations to take initiative as well. 

The City plays many key roles: managing streets and water pipes, operating services such as solid waste collection and recycling, and enforcing regulations like the Building Code. While the City is making big choices about funding subway lines or improving parks, the countless choices that over 8 mil­lion New Yorkers make every day will determine whether New York truly becomes a greener and greater place. Individuals make decisions, large and small, that add up to big impacts: what type of car we drive; what we throw out or recycle; what appliances we purchase; and what types of fuels heat our homes.

When asked in a recent survey to identify who has the most potential for improving the city’s environment, the top two responses were “local government” and “people like me / ordinary residents.”

This response reinforces our commitment to educate, empower, and engage New Yorkers, support neighborhood-based sustainability efforts, link New Yorkers with volunteer opportunities, and integrate sustainability lessons into our public schools.

In April 2009, Mayor Bloomberg launched NYC Service, the office tasked with setting a new standard for how cities can tap the power of their people to tackle their most pressing challenges. NYC Service oversees more than 38 innovative initiatives that aim to achieve three overarching goals: making our City the easiest place in the world to volunteer, targeting volunteers to address the city's greatest needs and promoting service as a core part of what it means to be a citizen of the greatest City in the world.

NYC Service meets the Mayor's State of the City pledge for New York City to lead the way in answering President Obama's nationwide call to service primarily by using volunteerism to address the capacity gap at the local level.

A key focus of NYC Service is to heighten accountability within the field and to set a new standard for measuring the impact of volunteerism in addition to participation.

Through its largest initiative, the NYC Civic Corps, NYC Service will help drive volunteer activity to the City's most pressing needs: strengthening communities, helping neighbors in need, education, environment, health, and emergency preparedness. The NYC Civic Corps strategically mobilizes more than 200, full-time AmeriCorps VISTA volunteers, to help build capacity at nearly 60 public and nonprofit agencies throughout the five boroughs.