It was a summer to remember at the High Line, commemorating 15 years since the opening of the first section of the park in 2009. To help us celebrate, our friends at Ruinart Champagne returned for year two of our partnership, this time to add extra sparkle to our birthday while spotlighting biodiversity and sustainability. Together, we launched “Conversations with Nature” on the High Line, a series of activations across the summer to mark this milestone year.

From late June through mid-July, we transformed part of the Chelsea Market Passage at 15th Street into the Conversations with Nature: High Line Anniversary Lounge. Visitors were invited to relax in the chic space, take in the beauty of the park, and toast to the High Line’s anniversary with a glass of Ruinart. In addition to being a place to relax and raise a glass, the lounge served as an on-the-park educational opportunity with interactive materials that encouraged visitors to learn more about Ruinart and the High Line’s shared commitment to sustainability.

Alongside the lounge, we launched a series of curated “Conversations with Nature: High Line x Ruinart Tours” from late June through August. The guided experience delved deeper into the park’s history, biodiversity, and sustainability practices to bolster environmental awareness and illuminate the ways we’re stewarding our gardens and their habitats. Tour guests that joined us during the duration of the Anniversary Lounge also had the exclusive opportunity to taste a glass of Ruinart Blanc Singulier, a singular expression of Chardonnay which serves as a testament to climate change-related challenges.

While it may not be obvious, both the High Line and Ruinart have to make thoughtful, intentional efforts to thrive in the face of challenges presented by climate change. At the High Line, our horticulturists are ever-conscious of prioritizing native, drought-tolerant, and low-maintenance plant species for our gardens. While our gardens appear wild, our gardeners feature carefully-chosen resilient species that will survive the varying microclimates of our 16 garden zones, intensified by the effects of climate change. Similarly, the viticulturists of Ruinart have to reckon with the atypical climatic variations of each year, constantly adapting to scorching temperatures, record sunshine levels, decreased rainfall, and more. The Ruinart Blanc Singulier our tour guests enjoyed is a product of just that—an exceptional wine drawn on Ruinart’s know-how to adapt to the climate variations their vines endure.

And it’s not just that we adapt to these new realities; we also help mitigate climate change and its unpleasant effects. In New York, the High Line’s 150,000+ plants filter air pollutants, capture and sequester carbon, create shade that cools the city, and help mitigate flooding by retaining stormwater. The resilient plant species we choose require less extensive resources to survive, while still providing abundant shelter and food sources for native insects, birds, and other animals. In France, Ruinart has collaborated with Reforest’Action to plant nearly 25,000 trees and shrubs in its Taissy vineyard in 2022, aiming to regenerate the soil and bring back the original fauna and flora to the land. The restored fauna, such as ladybugs, lacewings, birds, and bats, are an essential part of growing vines while also promoting biodiversity.

Our growing partnership with Ruinart is based on our shared commitment to addressing climate change and promoting biodiversity through sustainable horticulture and viticulture practices, respectively. Whether we’re gardening in New York City or tending to the vineyards of Reims, climate change affects us all. But, by partnering with like-minded organizations like Ruinart, we can keep shedding light on this topic and igniting dialogue with the community to bring environmental awareness to the forefront. Cheers to that!

Support

Ruinart is proud to support the High Line’s “Conversations with Nature” tours as part of its celebration of 15 years as a park.

Major support for art and biodiversity is provided by Ruinart Champagne.