The Buffalo Niagara River Land Trust Speaker Series brings together the community and experts to explore how we can reclaim and restore Western New York’s waterfronts.

Through these conversations, we highlight our mission to clean, protect, and keep these places in trust—ensuring public access, environmental health, and community pride for generations to come.

We’ll ask, What is a brownfield? What is the difference between a Land Bank, a Land Conservancy, and a Land Trust? We will learn about phytoremediation–the use of plants and trees that are especially good for removing contaminants from the soil, groundwater, and sediment–think cattails and cottonwood trees.

This talk delves into the ongoing transformations of Silo City — a site where industrial heritage meets ecological renewal and creative experimentation. Once a symbol of Buffalo’s industrial strength, Silo City now stands as a dynamic landscape shaped by both natural succession and intentional design. We’ll examine how its evolving ecosystems and innovative interventions have turned the grounds into a contemporary hub for urban regeneration, fostering dialogue between ecology, art, and community at a critical moment for rethinking our post-industrial environments.

CC - A decade of Urban Arts and Ecology at Silo City

Featuring Josh Smith, BNRLT Board Member and Director of Ecology, Rigidized Metals Corporation and Maris Grundy, Executive Director, Friends of Silo City