Samantha Impaglia 
Three Hoboken High School students are doing their part to help residents take care of their gardens while also keeping excess rainwater off the Mile Square’s flood-prone streets. Project H20boken is a new initiative run by students Ian Crespi, Jacob Linder, and Zoe Magaletta that is using a micro-grant from the City to purchase materials for nearly 250 gardening kits. The kits will be available in mid-May and are completely free for residents. Read on for more about H20boken and how Hoboken residents can secure a gardening kit.
Photo Credit: Project H20boken
What is Project H20boken?
H20boken — funded by the City of Hoboken Youth Climate Action Fund — is a new project run by Hoboken High School students Ian Crespi, Jacob Linder, and Zoe Magaletta, and advised by HHS Biology teacher Jean Lebegue. The initiative allows Hoboken residents to sign up to receive a container gardening kit that can be set up outdoors, completely free of charge.
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“If you live in Hoboken, want to have a garden (or expand one), and make Hoboken greener, this initiative is for you!” Zoe, Ian, and Jacob shared with The Hoboken Girl.
H20boken is established under the HHS Environmental Science Club and has developed practical rooftop garden kits for the community after surveying local buildings and testing soils for water retention capabilities, per the website. After lacking funds to bring the project to fruition several years ago, the idea was revived when the City of Hoboken’s Youth Climate Action Fund received support from Bloomberg Philanthropies. After impressing the City with their proposal, a $5,000 grant was secured, and H20boken was back in business.
The gardening kits are 16.6 inches by 7 inches by 6.8 inches, and can be used on patios, stoops, roofs, and other outdoor spaces. The kits are designed to collect excess rainwater, keeping it from reaching the flood-prone streets of Hoboken and potentially causing damage, while also allowing local gardens to thrive.
The resilient nature of the plants and materials included in the kits makes them easy to care for, per the students. Residents can expect to see a mix of ryegrass, hyssop, and mountain mint in each one, as well as a 17-inch plastic planter and a 6-quart bag of Miracle-Gro dirt. Assembly instructions can be found here.
“We got this idea together for the 2021 # NJSTEM Communities Challenge project, and we presented it as a way of making Hoboken more resilient to storms (gardens collect water) and to generally increase local green space,” Zoe, Ian, and Jacob said. “Now, in 2025, we’ve been able to use a microgrant from the city of Hoboken and Bloomberg to purchase materials for nearly 250 kits, and we are ready to give them out.”
The students shared that they will also compare before and after photos of spaces before and after using the kits to show their progress to the community and local government.
How Can I Get a Gardening Kit?
All Hoboken residents can sign up now for free to receive kits with seeds and soil by mid-May on the website. The kits are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Once the kit is received, all you have to do is follow the gardening guide provided under the ‘Instructions and Guides’ tab for setup. Zoe, Ian, and Jacob emphasized the importance of this project to the local community and want to get as many Mile Square residents signed up as possible.
“If you want to help fight flooding in our community, apply now!!” they shared.
For more information about H20boken, head to the website. Any questions about the project can be sent to [email protected].
See More: A Guide to the Gardens of Montclair + When to See Blooms
What is the Hoboken Youth Climate Action Fund?
The City of Hoboken’s Youth Climate Action Fund invites applications for micro-grants of up to $5,000 to support community climate action projects led by local youth. The fund, made possible by a $50,000 grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies, aims to empower young residents to spearhead initiatives addressing urgent climate challenges within the City. Eligible projects must be led by individuals aged 15 to 24 who live, work, or go to school in Hoboken, and projects must focus on designing and producing initiatives and programs aimed at mitigating climate change and enhancing community resilience. More information can be found here.
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