1.5-minute read
When we first heard the term tree equity, we wondered—what could it mean? Trees getting their fair share? Trees getting what they have coming to them? As it turns out, tree equity isn’t about what trees get; it’s about what they give and how they’re distributed. Trees are often sparse in socioeconomically disadvantaged urban neighborhoods. Achieving tree equity ensures that every community has enough trees to attain the highest level of life-enhancing health and climate benefits.
To make a case for urban forestry investment in areas with the greatest need, our planting partners at American Forests have developed the Tree Equity Score Project, enabling cities and towns of at least 50,000 people to calculate whether enough trees have been planted to positively impact all of their residents. This spring, American Forests will deliver Tree Equity Scores to all 486 Census-defined urbanized areas in the country—home to 70% of the U.S. population.
Mapping tree cover is the first step in addressing harmful environmental inequities and climate change-induced problems that affect everyone, but especially the most vulnerable. Planting trees to achieve neighborhood by neighborhood green equity helps create healthier, safer, more climate-resilient communities by:
Improving air and water quality
Lowering temperatures
Reducing heat related illness
Improving mental health
Enhancing cognitive function
Reducing stress
Reducing energy use
Reducing flooding
Increasing biodiversity
Increasing carbon storage
So far, American Forests has created pilot Tree Equity Scores for Rhode Island, Phoenix and Tucson, AZ, Detroit, MI, Houston, TX, Puget Sound, WA, San Francisco Bay, CA, and Miami, FL. You can find out how these urban areas stack up tree-wise at TreeEquityScore. We’ll keep you posted on new scores as they roll out. In the meantime, you can learn more about American Forests’ plan to maximize the health and climate benefits of urban tree planting to ensure everyone gets their fair share of nature from Vibrant Cities Lab.
Btw, it’s officially Earth Week! Exciting! You can find educational resources and activities to help teach K-12 students to nurture nature at WideOpenSchool. And from April 20-22, you can follow Restore Our Earth™ events at EarthDay. See you there!
