Contact: Katherine Snider, Rockefeller Foundation Communications, 212-852-8488, ksnider@rockfound.org  

NEW YORK, Feb. 9 /Standard Newswire/ -- The creation of a Jane Jacobs Medal to honor the activist, author and urbanist was announced today by the Rockefeller Foundation. Awarded annually by the Rockefeller Foundation, Jane Jacobs Medals will recognize two living individuals whose creative vision for the urban environment has significantly contributed to the vibrancy and variety of New York City.

Photo: Jane Jacobs

The 2007 Jane Jacobs Medal will be accompanied by prizes totaling $200,000. The selection of the winners and allocation of the prize money will ultimately be decided by the members of a Medal Selection Jury (see complete list below), which is co-chaired by George Campbell Jr., president of The Cooper Union, and arts patron and philanthropist Agnes Gund, and includes Rockefeller Foundation trustee David Rockefeller, Jr. One award will recognize leadership and lifetime contribution; the other will recognize new ideas and activism that reflect the ideals of Jane Jacobs. The two Jane Jacobs medalists will together represent the creativity, innovation and dynamism of New York City. The 2007 Jane Jacobs Medal will be administered by the Municipal Art Society (MAS).

The Rockefeller Foundation launched an Urban Design Studies program in the 1950s that helped foster the emergence of the new discipline - urban design and theory. As part of this initiative, one of the Foundation's grants was to a then-obscure writer from Greenwich Village, Jane Jacobs, for the research and writing of a book, "The Death and Life of Great American Cities." Almost fifty years later, the book is considered an urban classic. Jane Jacobs died in April 2006 at the age of 89.

In announcing the award, Darren Walker, Vice President, Foundation Initiatives at the Rockefeller Foundation, said, "In addition to being known for her writing and theory, Jane Jacobs is remembered as an activist who took her principles to the streets. Through her close participation in, and study of, her community, Jacobs brought fresh thinking to the relationship between the needs of living communities and the urban environment. To honor her indomitable spirit and life's work, the Rockefeller Foundation has established the Jane Jacobs Medal to celebrate individuals whose accomplishments exemplify 'Jacobsonian' principles and practices in New York City today."

Nominations for the Jane Jacobs Medal can be submitted electronically on www.rockfound.org/efforts/jacobs/janejacobs.shtml until 5 p.m. EST on March 2, 2007. The recipients of the 2007 Jane Jacobs Medals will be announced in June. An award ceremony will take place in September, in conjunction with a new exhibit on Jacobs that will open at the Municipal Art Society.

MAS President Kent Barwick said, "We are honored to work with the Rockefeller Foundation on the Jane Jacobs Medal, and we greatly appreciate the Foundation's support of our upcoming exhibit. I can't imagine a better time to celebrate and explore the life and work of a woman who challenged the way we think about, preserve, and develop New York City. As the debate about the growth and the development of the City continues, I keep thinking to myself: 'What would Jane say?'"

The Municipal Art Society of New York is a private, non-profit membership organization whose mission is to promote a more livable city. Since 1893, the MAS has worked to enrich the culture, neighborhoods and physical design of New York City. It advocates for excellence in urban design and planning, contemporary architecture, historic preservation and public art.

The Rockefeller Foundation was established in 1913 by John D. Rockefeller, Sr., to "promote the well-being" of humanity by addressing the root causes of serious problems. With assets of more than $3.5 billion, it is one of the nation's largest private foundations.

More information on the 2007 Jane Jacobs Medal and Jury, as well as Jane Jacobs' life, is available on the Rockefeller Foundation website at www.rockfound.org/efforts/jacobs/janejacobs.shtml.