Isabel Podolsky (she/her)
Please provide a brief summary of your research.
What’s so special about New York City’s Riverside Park? Is it its location? It’s one of many waterfront parks within New York City. In fact, the entire west side of Manhattan, NYC’s central borough and the location of Riverside Park, is a greenbelt. Riverside is a large section (330 acres) of this area, but many people are unaware of this fact, as they utilize the park in chunks rather than in its entirety. One could claim that this makes it a city park in size, but a neighborhood park in usage, but that would be an oversimplification. Is it its heritage? It features the pastoral landscapes that defined the style of Frederick Law Olmsted, but Olmstedian influences are common within NYC’s major parks due to the reach of his practice. When thinking of an example of an “Olmsted park,” the world-famous Central Park is far more likely to come to mind. Furthermore, Riverside is barely even a product of Olmsted; Robert Moses, as part of the West Side Improvement, expanded the park to its current size and scope, with its western border being the Hudson River. What truly makes Riverside special is the development that occurred after Olmsted and Moses: the individual efforts that shaped the park into its current physically diverse, vibrant, and community-oriented state. The primary intention of this research project was to understand how individual users relate to and interact with Riverside Park, and how the relationships that people have with the park are unique from those witnessed within the bounds of any other park in the city. Utilizing a nuanced picture of what makes the park unique developed through observations, readings, and interviews, I endeavored to establish conclusions about steps that should be taken to preserve and improve the park for future generations.
What made you interested in pursuing interdisciplinary research more broadly?
I came to Northwestern knowing that I wanted to pursue an unconventional and interdisciplinary course of study. My academic interests center on the processes, interactions, and tensions that occur between people and the places they shape and occupy. In the classroom, I’m able to explore this through my American Studies major, which allows me to craft my own concentration spanning a variety of departments from Civil Engineering to English. However, there’s only so much that I believe I can learn just by reading theory, so I knew that I wanted to make research a priority early in my college career. The Winter 2021 Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences Research Workshop gave me the opportunity to do just that, guiding me through the grant-writing process so that I could apply for (and eventually receive) a Summer Undergraduate Research Grant.
What made you initially interested in researching your project in particular?
I’m a New Yorker, born and raised. I’m also an aspiring urban planner, a career path that I decided to pursue at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Stuck within the boundaries of my neighborhood for the first time, I became fascinated with the ways in which the public spaces I’d taken for granted became the nexus of social life. Chief among them was Riverside Park, which morphed from a pleasant place to walk to my refuge from the uncertainty of 2020. Concurrently, I became interested in scholarship about parks in urban spaces. I realized that Riverside Park contains the facilities of a “city park” yet is patronized like a “neighborhood park,” so I proposed to define this middle ground accordingly, deeming it a “multi-community park.” This formed the basis of my grant proposal.
Describe your experiences with research thus far in your career.
This was my second independent research project (I did my first project in high school), but working independently on this project was definitely not easy. I love setting my own schedule, but independent research requires a different level of holding yourself accountable for accomplishing tasks. Conversely, since the only expectations I had to satisfy were my own, I was able to be very adaptable, allowing my project to evolve in ways I hadn’t anticipated. Ultimately, I found the experience to be challenging but incredibly rewarding. Most significant to my personal growth was the strengthening of my communication skills. When I was a freshman in high school, I quit after one day of cold-calling constituents on behalf of my city councilperson. I disliked having to contact strangers, but at least the phone offered a shield of anonymity. I never thought that I’d be the person standing on a street corner, asking passerby if they’d like to sit for a short interview, but when I wrote my grant proposal, I decided to make interviews the bulk of the data that I’d gather. I was very hesitant at first, but my confidence was bolstered by how friendly people were when I approached them, even if they didn’t consent to the interview. By talking to strangers within my community and the adjoining neighborhoods, I also gained a deeper appreciation for the space that I inhabit. As the interviewee who changed my project said, “possession is a powerful motivator,” and I know that my fresh sense of belonging will motivate me in my future endeavors.
Any tips or advice you have for students interested in pursuing undergraduate research?
Two things: your STEM-focused friends working in labs aren’t the only ones who get to have all the research fun, and no idea is insignificant! My project focused on what is effectively my own backyard. If you’re passionate about something, chances are there’s a project that you can pursue in order to explore it. The Office of Undergraduate Research is very supportive, and you can reach out anytime for advice! I also strongly recommend participating in one of their research workshops; grant proposals are tricky, but much more manageable when you have a group of people to bounce ideas off.
What’s the most interesting thing you’ve learned/read about/listened to this week?
It’s common for weatherpeople reporting on hurricanes to have a fan blowing wind on them offscreen for dramatic effect.
What is your most useless talent?
Saying the alphabet backwards in under five seconds!