San Diego Parks Foundation - Tree Planting in Parks Serving Marginalized Communities

Outdoor spaces in urban settings are often highly developed and trees are often absent. The presence of vegetation – ‘Urban Greening’ – has been shown to increase a sense of community, decrease summer temperatures, improve air quality, increase bird and insect diversity and reduce crime. With support from SFF, the San Diego Parks Foundation initiated a planting effort that in 2020 and 2021 planted over 200 trees in selected urban neighborhoods. GPS data were collected on all the trees and tree survival rate was nearly 95%.