Christine Datz-Romero

Christine Datz-Romero is Executive Director of the Lower East Side Ecology Center. She is a longtime resident of the Lower East Side, and an environmental activist who has spent her life advocating for and pioneering community-centered approaches to environmental sustainability and recycling.

Originally from Germany, Ms. Datz-Romero arrived in New York City in 1980. She moved into an apartment on the Lower East Side, where she still lives today, and quickly became involved in the City’s environmental community.

What initially began as a personal interest in finding a place to drop off her recycling in the neighborhood soon transformed into a strong devotion to bring sustainable and accessible recycling to the Lower East Side community. In 1987, Ms. Datz-Romero and her late husband, Clyde Romero, founded the Lower East Side Ecology Center to centralize and expand the work they had already been doing.

The early years of the Lower East Side Ecology Center saw Ms. Datz-Romero spending long hours individually collecting recycling from apartment buildings, checking drop-off sites, and even making her own soil in order to transform the Center’s new physical location into a beautiful green space for the community. As the City slowly introduced curbside recycling, the Center’s scope of work expanded, and Ms. Datz-Romero began to transition the Center to focus on composting. Today, the Lower East Side Ecology Center operates a number of different programs, including electronics waste collection, community composting, park stewardship opportunities, and environmental education.

Ms. Datz-Romero’s immense dedication to and love for environmental justice, urban ecology, and community-focused work has transformed the landscape of environmental sustainability in the Lower East Side. Her passion and hard work have made these initiatives accessible to countless New Yorkers over the years, and her empathetic leadership sets an example for all.

Ms. Datz-Romero serves on the Board of the 6th Street and Avenue B Garden, is a member of the East River Alliance, and serves as a public member on Manhattan’s Community Board 3.

She holds a Bachelor's degree in Environmental Biology from Queens College and completed graduate work in nonprofit management at The New School. In her free time, she enjoys gardening, bicycling, and spending time outdoors.