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Welcome to Once Upon A Future

This immersive virtual reality experience invites you to peer into the future and visit New York in 2075

What if we get it right?

What if we fundamentally reconfigure our economies, energy and food systems so that they work for both people and the planet? Can we avoid the worst of climate change impacts and increase our societies’ resilience to shocks? Will we succeed in ending extreme poverty, guaranteeing everyone a healthy diet and access to quality education and healthcare? In short, what if we get it right? 

You’re invited to zoom into the future and explore New York 50 years from now. Take a look at a world that serves us and our planet simultaneously. A society that does more than move money around but delivers good lives to us all. In this Giant Leap scenario, New York City embraces its freewheeling energy, innovation and optimism to become a model of urban climate resilience.

We’ve created two scenarios of New York in 2075 using Earth4All’s data and research analysis. Let’s see what this future holds for us…

 

Share your experience

Drop by Gantry State Park to peer into the future with our immersive installation from 13-17 September and share your impressions on social media with the hashtag #2FuturesNYC

Too Little, Too Late

A dark image of the New York skyline obscured by smog
Image: Superflux

In the Too Little, Too Late scenario, we carry on our current trajectory. By 2075, New York City could face severe climate impacts if greenhouse gas emissions are not dramatically reined in. Extreme heat becomes a defining feature, with the city experiencing up to 85 days per year temperatures above 90°F (32.2°C). This means a rise in death rates among those with underlying health issues, as well as amongst children and senior New Yorkers. 

On top of these physical and mental health risks, agriculture will also be impacted, meaning less food, at higher prices. Heatwaves grow more frequent and air pollution worsens, disproportionately affecting more vulnerable populations. Flooding intensifies, economic inequality widens, and gender inequality is also exacerbated, as women often bear a greater burden in climate-related crises.

A Giant Leap

A futuristic, positive image of the New York skyline with green buildings, people enjoying nature, a citizens assembly taking place and local food being enjoyed
Image: Superflux

In this scenario, rapid action is taken to reduce emissions (most of New York’s emissions come from buildings and transport) and build resilience, incorporating Earth4All’s holistic approach. A Giant Leap explores the powerful and immediate implementation of five extraordinary turnarounds. In this future, we also see a fundamental reconfiguring of our economy, energy system, and food systems. 

Explore the hotspots to discover New York City in 2075

WATER

Cooling our cities

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FLOATING LIBRARY

Transforming education

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CITY OASIS

A green oasis

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WILDLIFE

Reintroducing flora and fauna

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SWIMMERS

A healthy river

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WELLBEING ECONOMY

The inequality turnaround

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HOUSING FOR THE FUTURE

Catering for all

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FLOATING CITIZEN ASSEMBLY

Power to the people

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BREATHE

A city built on social and environmental justice

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GREENING THE CITY

Green, resilient infrastructure

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THE ENERGY TURNAROUND

Electrify everything

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TASTE THE FUTURE

Changing our diets

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Dashboards: Our Common Future

If the world takes a Giant Leap today, we will succeed in reducing air pollution, increasing biodiversity and stabilising temperature at a manageable level. People will eat healthier diets and there will be less obesity. Longevity will increase. Economic equality will improve. Even if we take the Giant Leap, the world will still heat up. Sea levels will keep rising. But by tackling not just climate and food, but also inequality, poverty and gender, we will have more resilient societies able to cope with change.

A dashboard showing various quality of life and environment indicators, which look positive
A dashboard showing various quality of life and environment indicators, which look positive

Act now

New York has always been a city of reinvention —the Big Apple never stops evolving.

If we act now, we can ensure that in 2075, cities all across the globe are resilient, forward-thinking, and thriving.

Let’s build that future together.

Discover the Once Upon A Future campaign

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Water: cooling our cities

A futuristic image of people swimming and kayaking in the Hudson river

This 2075 New York City was made possible by global efforts to mitigate the rise in temperature, reducing the severity of heat waves and extreme weather events. Still, the city is much hotter than it was in 2024 so governments and inhabitants adapted using a variety of infrastructures that  utilise water efficiently. 

Public water fountains and waterways are built into the city’s infrastructure to improve livability for everyone, and have the added benefit of cooling the city. 

In this future our waterways are circular, meaning rainwater is harvested for drinking, bathing, for swimming, the list is fluid… In this future we embrace water’s shape-shifting qualities and explore a world where everyone has access to clean drinking water, water is nationalised, decommodified, and not exploited – water belongs to everyone and is key to our wellbeing. 

Floating Library

We are the authors of the next chapter of humanity…
 – Christiana Figueres

Investing in education is a powerful strategy to address population growth and create opportunities that leave no one behind. Education isn’t just about learning facts; it’s the best way to reach your full potential and a gateway to social mobility, economic security, and personal empowerment. In this future, higher education will be an affordable public right.

For girls and women, education means higher earnings, reduced child and maternal mortality, and the chance to escape early marriage. Come on board to our ‘floating library’ and take a dive into a story about four girls, with two futures 50 years from now… 

A city oasis

A futuristic, positive view of the New York skyline with green buildings and solar panels

By 2075, New York City is a greener, urban oasis. Urban forests will be essential parts of urban infrastructure, creating cool islands of shade that combat rising temperatures.

These lush pockets of greenery are interconnected by corridors of trees and vegetation, not only providing relief from the heat but also acting as natural air purifiers keeping air pollution down. New water features are woven into the urban fabric so people can cool down and offering serene spaces for city dwellers.

Schools are also getting a green makeover with the development of “Schoolyard Oases,” where once-barren playgrounds are now vibrant, shaded spaces filled with vegetation and heat-resistant surfaces, turning them into welcoming sanctuaries for students and the community alike. Community-based adaptation plans ensure equitable distribution of resources and protection.

Wildlife

A close up of an native plants on the new york waterline

What if whales and dolphins swam in the East River? A white-tailed deer took a leisurely walk down Union Street? A North American River Otter had a sunbathe at Gantry Park while a beaver swam around, exploring the little streams for the best spot to build a dam? A kestrel blinked at you from a tree when you opened your window in the morning? What animals would you see down your block?

The centre of one of the world’s largest cities, New York, was once a diverse natural landscape of hills, valleys, forests, wetlands, beaches, and streams, supporting abundant wildlife and sustaining people for thousands of years before Europeans arrived in 1609. Before bankers and nightlife, the Lenape people used the area’s waterways for fishing, hunting and trade. Manhattan’s biodiversity per acre rivalled national parks like Yellowstone.

Regenerating ecosystems to support abundant biodiversity right to the middle of our city also means better human health, physical and mental.

Swimmers

A futuristic image of people swimming and kayaking in the Hudson river

What if we treated this river with dignity, restored its health and transformed it into a clean and safe swimming spot, with water quality maintained by advanced filtration systems combined with the filtrating power of plants. Explore the floating parks and playgrounds, making the river a central part of city life, where people socialise, exercise, and cool down. This vision of a healthy river is rooted in shared wellbeing for both people and the planet.

Wellbeing economy

a view of people enjoying the new york waterline

A wellbeing economy is a way of running an economy to improve everyone’s wellbeing while protecting the planet.

Did you know that care-workers in New York, who are majority migrants and women, have on average 11 hours of unpaid work in their 24-hour shifts? What if we were all valued and treated with dignity? This is a New York which prioritises labour rights and trade unions’ negotiating power, and creates spaces for restoration, rejuvenation, reparation and joy.

This is a New York with more progressive taxation on both income and wealth for individuals and corporations. This is a New York that has safety nets and innovation nets to share prosperity and provide security during a period of deep transformation through universal basic income and dividend programs.

This future is a story about protecting the wellbeing of a community by safeguarding the resources we all rely on.

Housing for the future

An image of the new york skyline with green ecofriendly skyscrapers

By 2075, the US average life expectancy will rise from 76 to 87 years. An ageing population requires greater spending on health, welfare provision and long-term care, it shifts the burden of disease, and it may lead to shortages in the labour force unless the pension age is raised in tandem with life expectancies. This society will need to care for an ageing demographic and massively improve their living conditions. Discrimination particularly against women’s financial security in old age is still pervasive. In the empowerment turnaround, women gain economic security through a universal basic dividend, and an expanded pension scheme.

IN 2075 New York City, the shocking levels of income inequality of the past have been addressed through progressive taxation and wealth taxes, empowering workers, and dividends from a Citizens Fund. This future prioritises affordable housing for young families, the elderly, migrants and New Yorkers who have become priced out of the city they call home.

Floating Citizens' Assembly

At its heart, a good democracy is about giving power to people, allowing all to have a say in their future. Today, most people agree that the world needs to change to become more fair and sustainable. But many societies are paralysed by divisions. Is there a way forward?

This Floating Citizens’ Assembly is a space to engage anyone who is invested in their future to take a seat at the table. Here they can participate in the steering of society, and foster an environment for change and collaborative problem-solving. Citizens’ assemblies can help strengthen democracies by providing new ways to resolve contentious issues, and they are only one of the many new ways that 2075 New York City inhabitants are actively involved in their democracy.

Breathe

What happens when justice and safety is at the heart of economic decision making, tackling air pollution head on? Welcome to the clean energy revolution, bigger than any revolution we have witnessed before. Currently the markets are solving issues such as air-pollution with short-term techno-fixes like ‘bubble-schools’ for those with the dollar to splash. But to really see a systemic shift, action is required.

 If we continue with our current practices, North America’s wildfires will worsen, leading to dangerously poor  air quality in NYC. Higher temperatures will cause stagnant air conditions, trapping pollutants and worsening respiratory health, especially for vulnerable populations, while the wealthy can escape. But by 2075 all vehicles in the city will cause zero air pollution and energy will be from renewable sources, keeping pollution to a minimum. Wildfire pollution beyond the city will still be a threat but the city will provide safe places for the most vulnerable. 

Greening the city

A futuristic vision of the new york skyline with wind turbines and hot air balloons

The New York City of 2075 is fortifying its future with bold investments in resilient infrastructure designed to withstand the challenges of a changing climate. Massive green infrastructure projects, such as permeable pavements, rain gardens, and green roofs, are being implemented citywide to manage flooding, reduce runoff, and improve water quality. Building codes have been overhauled to bolster resilience against sea-level rise and extreme weather, ensuring that structures are better equipped to handle the growing threats posed by hurricanes and storm surges. 

New York City will emerge as a leader in climate action, successfully implementing Local Law 97 and slashing building emissions across its iconic skyline. On a global scale, concerted efforts to limit temperature rise bear fruit, significantly reducing the intensity of heat waves and extreme weather events. New York’s transformation serves as a beacon of resilience and innovation, showing how a city can turn the tide against climate change with ambitious policies and a commitment to a sustainable future. 

Focusing on the needs of inhabitants enabled NYC to drive down material use and reduce air pollution. Comfortable homes are provided, and systemic optimisation ensures new energy- and materials-saving ways of working, travelling and socialising.

The Energy Turnaround

In the Giant Leap, in the coming decades we electrify everything and transition to clean energy. By 2075, New York is powered 100% from clean energy. This is one of the biggest transformations in the history of the city.

As we green the grid, the city will also become more energy efficient. Like food, much of our energy is simply wasted. But analysis shows that global energy demand in 2050 could be up to 40% lower than today if all energy efficiencies are implemented.

Taste the future

Have a bite on the Floating River Cafe, with a self-sustaining farm that cultivates food, ecology, and habitats. This multi-species cafe will feature a menu showcasing protein-rich algae, seaweed, fish, and oyster delicacies. Explore a food system that is resilient, that can feed us all and without growing our environmental footprint.

We know income also drives dietary preference toward the all-consuming Western diet. We know agriculture is limited by the inevitable scarcity of land, water access, and poor soil quality. As it stands, food insecurity and food price hikes will increase due to disruptions in our global and local food systems. But there are opportunities for better food systems: explore a hyper-local produce food-system where humans, animals, plants and fungi are all given an equal seat at the table. Urban agriculture initiatives expand, improving local food security and reducing the urban heat island effect. Regional food systems are strengthened, enhancing resilience to global supply chain disruptions.

To feed a growing and wealthier global population, the UN estimates we need 50% more food by 2050. Rather than expanding agriculture into forests and wetlands, the 2075 model of farming supports local production for local consumption, enhances the rich diversity of life, and restores our soils to good health.