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Parking Lot Cool

In these recent unseasonably hot days, have you noticed the heat radiating off blacktop? Black asphalt traps heat and releases it back into our cities. “But who said streets had to be black?” asked Ben Schiller, staff writer at Co.Exist. They pointed to Lawrence Berkeley Lab’s showcase of alternative paving surfaces to demonstrate how a parking lot alone can measure 40 degrees cooler if it’s lighter in color. In Los Angeles, you can visit TreePeople’s Center for Communitiy Forestry at our Coldwater Canyon Park headquarters to see this effect in action.… Read more >>

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It’s Raining! It’s Pouring!

On average, Los Angeles gets only a quarter of an inch of rainfall in May. And yet… This year—a very dry one at that—we got a full inch of rain with the last storm. That bit of rainfall not only helped squelch the wildfires (which had an earlier than usual start this year), but it took this season from being the 4th driest to the 7th driest winter on record.

And while that may still seem pretty dire, here’s some hope: That rain was harvested at TreePeople’s headquarters, and is now stored in our cistern to use as supplemental landscape irrigation this summer.… Read more >>

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Discover the North Valleyheart Riverwalk, April 21

In April we branch out on our next community tree walk with partners at the Village Gardeners, who will show us their beautification and restoration efforts along the Los Angeles River in Studio City. Trees and water unite in a leisurely and informative stroll through areas of the designated North Valleyheart Riverwalk Greenway, part of the L.A. River Master Plan. You’ll see the progress of major volunteer planting efforts and find out how you can become involved in raising the standard for environmental stewardship in this area.… Read more >>

Three Big Days, One Simple Act


While April 22 is just around the corner and Earth Day is a wonderful time to reflect and celebrate this incredible planet, this month there are two other days that highlight hugely important environmental issues. March 21 is International Day of Forests and March 22 is World Water Day.

How to celebrate? After all, these days commemorate such enormous global issues. If I had to choose one action, it would be this: plant a tree.

With the simple act of planting a tree, each of us can help maintain the urban forest and shift the water crisis, all with one easy but profound step.… Read more >>

Jim Hardie, TreePeople 216,000 gallon cistern

How TreePeople Catches Every Drop

Is Los Angeles a desert? Our city gets about 15 inches of rainfall annually, slightly more precipitation than, say, Missoula, Montana (though we have fewer days per year that are considered “wet”). Did you know this is enough to serve a fairly large population and irrigate its urban greenery?

But every time it rains an inch in the city of L.A., 3.8 billion gallons of runoff are sent to sea, sweeping trash, toxins, and bacteria into waterways and polluting our beaches and ocean.… Read more >>