Trees for Cities, a UK-based charity, is on a mission to fill our streets with trees. It is the only UK charity working at a national and international scale to improve lives and create greener streets, cleaner air and less pollution by planting trees in cities. To date they have planted over 1.2 million trees in towns and cities across the UK and around the world.
Their latest project is one solution to the climate crisis that everyone can get on board with: the national street tree sponsorship scheme, Trees for Streets.
Trees for Streets is a tech for good project, funded by the government’s Green Recovery Challenge Fund and City Bridge Trust. Its mission is to fund the planting of more than 250,000 additional street trees nationwide over the next 10 years, by supplementing council tree planting budgets through public and corporate sponsorship.
By producing more oxygen, creating shade, absorbing pollution and preventing flooding, the Trees for Streets aims to benefit the 84% of the UK population living in urban areas and future generations across the world.
David Elliott, CEO at Trees for Cities, said:
“The time to act is now. By planting trees, we celebrate something we all love and cherish. Something that brings urban communities together and actively works to promote healthy living, as well as addressing pollution and the stresses of city lifestyles.
“This new project amplifies the aims of our charity by inspiring and empowering urban communities to take a leading role in greening their streets. It has the potential to leave a lasting legacy on every street up and down this country and bring the multiple benefits of urban trees much closer to home, for everyone.”
The Trees for Streets app makes it easy for anyone to sponsor a tree in their neighbourhood by making a request to their local council, empowering people to take an active role in greening their streets. The council then checks the suitability of the chosen location, and makes arrangements to plant a tree the following winter; the best time to plant young trees to ensure they grow and thrive.
Find out more: treesforstreets.org