River Network’s Rooting Resilience Program will provide funding and technical assistance to projects that build resilience and enhance communities’ abilities to plan and carry out forestry projects. Funding for these projects is provided by the Inflation Reduction Act and the Urban and Community Forestry Program of the Forest Service, an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The first round of grantees are local and state governments who will work with local community groups to increase tree cover, helping keep communities cool during extreme heat and increasing public access to green space. Learn more about each project below.

We are thrilled to be providing $6.2 million to these local and state government partners. Another $3.3 million will be awarded to community-based nonprofits and Tribal groups, with at least $2 million to Tribal groups specifically.

Are you part of a Tribal group or community-based nonprofit? Apply for the next round of urban and community forestry grants by October 23, 2024.

State of Hawai’i

The state will plant 6,000 rare and common native hardwood tree species on state-managed lands in O’ahu. The establishment of these sustainable forests will help conserve rare species and increase availability of wood to Native Hawaiian communities for use in traditional cultural practices. Populations of these trees have declined over time due to habitat alternation, invasive specifies, and climate change underscoring the need for this innovative project. Funding will help prepare the land for planting, provide stipends to community organizations to support tree maintenance, and buy seedlings. Funding from other sources will support community engagement, including culturally-grounded wood carving programs for community members. The state will partner with the Aloha Tree Alliance, Ko’olau Mountains Watershed Partnership, and the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa’s Pacific Cooperative Studies Unit.

City of Honolulu, Hawai’i

The city will plan, plant, maintain, and expand its urban trees to decrease effects of extreme heat due to climate change, focusing on disadvantaged communities. It will build a collaborative community tree plan through community engagement to determine where trees are most needed, using the city’s experience with other climate adaptation initiatives. The city will also assess tree coverage with satellite imagery and heat risk and social vulnerability with other quantitative sources. The city will also expand its existing Community Canopy Program, which raises awareness about impacts of climate change and hosts planting demonstrations, community workdays, and native and fruit tree giveaways to families in priority communities.

City of Hermiston, Oregon

The city will inventory its existing trees and use this information to build a comprehensive plan for the future of its urban forests. The plan will include planting 2,500 new trees and maintaining the health of existing trees in disadvantaged areas so that they provide shade for many years to come. The city will also create an education program for the public to participate in the care of the city’s urban forests, both through a local community-based organization and the public school system.

City of Port Townsend, WA

Port Townsend, in the Seattle metropolitan area, will soon have more affordable housing in its historic district through zoning updates. Rooting Resilience funding will help the city replant trees that were clearcut from the area more than a century ago. This increase in tree cover will increase nature access in areas that will soon have higher population density. Under this grant, the city will also update its tree conservation ordinance so that it plans for climate change impacts and ensures equitable access to trees and shade.

City of Shoreline, WA

The City of Shoreline, also in the Seattle metropolitan region, is also planning for more dense and affordable housing near public transit. It will use this grant to monitor tree health and create a plan for planting and maintaining trees in disadvantaged communities. The city will expand its current program to encourage residents to plant and maintain trees on their property. The grant will also support urban forestry education and stewardship programs, which will focus on tree planting, ecological restoration, and volunteer-led stewardship in parks within disadvantaged communities.

City of Seattle, WA

The project will remove invasive species from Delridge Native Forest Garden and replant with native conifers and understory plants that are culturally significant to regional Tribes. The city will coordinate with local communities on educational and volunteer programs on urban forestry. This work is a pilot project for how partnerships with regional Tribes and community groups could be expanded to other City-managed natural areas in Seattle. The city will work with local partners Green Seattle Partnership, Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, and the Delridge Neighborhood Development Association.

City of College Place, WA

Located in southeastern Washington State, the city will plant over 400 new trees and install irrigation alongside its main roadways, creating shade for the city’s multiuse path for cyclists and pedestrians. This funding will be used to implement the project envisioned as part of the city’s existing Urban Forestry Management Plan. The City will work with Noon Rotary, Sonbridge, and the Center for Humanitarian Engagement.

City of Tumwater, WA

The city’s canopy equity program will expand urban forest cover in disadvantaged communities through education programs on tree care that offer planting materials to residents. The city will also track air temperature in disadvantaged communities to see how much increased tree cover is helping mitigate extreme heat. The city will offer free tree health assessments to homeowners who might otherwise by default remove their trees, due to concerns that the trees might damage property as they age or weather storms.

City of Hillsboro, Oregon

The city will diversify the types of tree species in one of its urban forests, Jackson Bottom Wetlands Preserve. Oregon ash trees, which make up most of the forest, face decimation over the next decade due to the Emerald Ash Borer, an invasive insect species. This diversification will make the forest more resilient against this pest and more resilient to environmental disruptions from flooding and climate change. The preserve is next to low-income communities that have the city’s lowest tree cover and are most affected by the heat island effect. Maintenance of the forest and additional tree planting in yards and alongside streets will help reduce temperatures and clean the air. The city will work with Jackson Bottom Wetlands Preserve, Friends of Trees, Clean Water Services, and Oregon Department of Forestry.

Funding for the Rooting Resilience program is provided by the Inflation Reduction Act and the USDA Forest Service, Urban and Community Forestry Program. USDA and River Network are equal opportunity providers and employers.