Majora Carter facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Majora Carter
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| Born | October 27, 1966 New York, New York, U.S.
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| Education | Wesleyan University (BA) New York University (MFA) |
Majora Carter, born on October 27, 1966, is an American expert who helps make cities better places to live. She is also a host on public radio. Majora Carter is from the South Bronx in New York City. She started and led a non-profit group called Sustainable South Bronx. This group worked on solutions for environmental justice, which means making sure everyone has a healthy environment, no matter where they live. She led this group from 2001, then started her own company in 2008.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Majora Carter went to the Bronx High School of Science. After that, she studied film at Wesleyan University starting in 1984. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree there. Later, in 1997, she received a Master of Fine Arts degree from New York University (NYU). While studying at NYU, she moved back to her family's home in Hunts Point.
Making a Difference in Communities
Starting Sustainable South Bronx
In August 2001, Majora Carter decided not to run for the New York City Council. Instead, she started Sustainable South Bronx (SSBx). She was the leader of this group until July 2008.
Helping the Environment
- Cleaning Up Parks: SSBx worked to create the Hunt's Point Riverside Park. This area used to be an illegal garbage dump.
- Protecting Rivers: Majora Carter also helped start the Bronx River Alliance. SSBx continued to work on projects to clean up and restore the Bronx River waterfront.
- Green Job Training: In 2003, Sustainable South Bronx began the Bronx Environmental Stewardship Training program. This was one of the first programs in the country to train people for "green jobs" in cities. These jobs help the environment.
- Community Projects: Other projects by SSBx focused on fitness, creating a community market, and improving air quality.
In 2007, Majora Carter helped start another group called Green for All with Van Jones. In 2008, a New York Times article called her "The Green Power Broker." It also called her "one of the city's best-known advocates for environmental justice."
Olympic Torch Relay
Majora Carter was a torch-bearer for part of the 2008 Summer Olympics torch relay in San Francisco. During her part of the relay, she showed a small flag. This led to her being removed from the relay by security.
Sharing Ideas Through Media
TED Talks and TV Shows
Majora Carter's first TED talk was released in 2006. She gave a second TED talk in 2022. This made her the only Black woman, who is not an entertainer, to be invited to speak at TED twice.
She has appeared in, written, and produced many TV and radio programs. These include HBO's The Black List: Volume 2, American Public Media's Market Place, and PRX's This I Believe series. She has also hosted shows about urban sustainability on Discovery Communications' Science Channel.
She has been in advertisements for companies like Cisco Systems, Frito-Lay, Intel, Holiday Inn, HSBC, Visa, Mazda, and Honda.
In 2014, Majora Carter was the host for "Water Blues - Green Solutions." This was a documentary about Green Infrastructure in different American cities. In 2015, she acted in the movie Ricky and the Flash with Meryl Streep.
From 2007 to 2010, Carter co-hosted The Green. This was a TV show about the environment on the Sundance Channel.
Radio Show: The Promised Land
In 2008, Majora Carter and Marge Ostroushko created the first episode of a public radio show called The Promised Land. This show won a grant and started airing on over 150 public radio stations in the US on January 19, 2009. It won a Peabody Award in 2010. The show stopped production after the 2010/2011 season.
Writing and Books
Majora Carter has written about how cities can reduce heat and about air pollution levels in areas with heavy truck traffic.
In February 2022, her first book was released by Penguin Random House. It is titled Reclaiming Your Community: You Don't Have to Move Out of Your Neighborhood to Live in a Better One.
Consulting and Tech Work
Majora Carter Group
After leaving Sustainable South Bronx, Majora Carter became the president of her own consulting company, Majora Carter Group, LLC (MCG). In 2010, Fast Company magazine named her one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business." In 2014, MCG was recognized as one of the "Best for the World" companies.
In 2012, her company, MCG, worked with FreshDirect. This was to help the company connect with local groups before moving to the Harlem River Yards in the South Bronx. Some people in the community were against this move because of concerns about more truck traffic. A study later found that the new FreshDirect warehouse did increase truck and vehicle traffic.
Tech and Innovation
In 2007, while leading Sustainable South Bronx, Majora Carter brought Mobile fab lab technology from MIT to the South Bronx. This was an early example of a maker space in the area.
In 2013, Carter joined the advisory board for the Bronx Academy of Software Engineering High School. In 2012, she co-founded StartUp Box #SouthBronx. This was a social business to help more people get involved in the technology world. She then launched StartUp Box #QA, a service for testing software quality. This service helped launch Mayor Bill DeBlasio's Digital.NYC in 2014.
StartUp Box won a pitch contest in 2015 and also won awards in 2016, including the MIT Inclusion Innovation and the Village Capital & Kapoor Capital People Ops Competitions. Majora Carter is also a co-founder of the Bronx Tech Meetup.
Awards and Recognition
Majora Carter has received many awards and honors for her work:
- 2024: Commendation for Outstanding Teaching, Princeton University
- 2020: Edmund N. Bacon Urban Design Award
- 2017: Visionary Leadership Award - Arts & Ideas
- 2016: MIT Inclusion Innovation Competition – Finalist
- 2016: Digital Diversity Network – Innovation & Inclusion Awards Honoree
- 2015: Blogher 2015 – Winner: Pitch Contest for StartUp Box Quality Assurance B2B Social Enterprise
- 2014: Honorary PhD from Augsburg College
- 2013: Middlebury College CSE Vision Award
- 2013: Honorary PhD from Wesleyan University
- 2011: Commencement speaker at Knox College
- 2010: Peabody Award for The Promised Land
- 2010: Star Award: International Interior Design Association (IIDA)
- 2009: Fellow: Post Carbon Institute
- 2009: Honor Award: Visionary in Sustainability, by the National Building Museum
- 2008: Named a "visionary" by Utne Reader magazine
- 2008: Appointed to America's Climate Choices: Panel on Limiting the Magnitude of Future Climate Change: National Academy of Sciences
- 2008: The Eleanor Roosevelt Val-Kill Medal: Eleanor Roosevelt Society
- 2008: Hollister Award: United Nations Temple of Understanding
- 2008: Paul Wellstone Award: Campaign for America's Future
- 2007: Rachel Carson Award: National Audubon Society
- 2007: New York State Women of Excellence Award: Lt. Gov. David Paterson
- 2007: Honorary PhD from Mercy College
- 2007: Martin Luther King Jr. Award for Community Service: NYU
- 2007: Lawrence Enersen Award: National Arbor Day Society
- 2005: Fellow: John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
- 2002: Union Square Award: Fund for the City of New York
She is also a Fellow of the New York Institute for the Humanities.
