Tree Trust

Tree Trust’s mission is to transform lives and landscapes by engaging people to build skills for meaningful careers, inspiring people to plant trees, and making our community a greener, healthier place to live.

We do this in a couple of ways.

We plant trees because a vibrant urban tree canopy is essential to a healthy planet.

Our Community Forestry department organizes efforts to increase the urban tree canopy through community and school-based volunteer plantings, municipal tree distributions, and other special forestry initiatives. In 2025 we planted or distributed approximately 7,000 trees. Perhaps you volunteered to help. Or maybe you received tree through one of a dozen tree sales. Our 2025 planting and distribution season has concluded, but we hope you'll join us in person in 2026!

We equip people to achieve family-supporting, skilled trade and green careers to create economic opportunity and equity.

For the trainees in our Career Pathways programs, transformation begins the moment a young person steps in. Whether they are planting trees, building trails, or framing homes, they are not just learning how to work; they are activating the strengths, talents, and leadership potential they already carry.

Many begin their journey through the Summer Youth Employment Program, where paid outdoor work becomes a powerful platform for building confidence, connection, and community pride. As youth contribute to public spaces, they cultivate responsibility, teamwork, and a deeper sense of self-worth, affirming their value and capacity to lead.

Some continue their growth through YouthBuild, a nationally recognized program that blends academic support with hands-on construction training and training in tree care. Participants earn industry credentials, develop leadership skills, and contribute to real community projects. In YouthBuild, they build more than infrastructure; they build resilience, direction, and belief in their ability to shape their own futures.

Others discover their purpose in the natural world through Branches, Tree Trust’s green industry Pre-Apprenticeship program. Over the course of 10 weeks, young adults receive paid training in landscaping and tree care, gaining transferable skills, earning credentials, and connecting with employers in urban forestry and related fields. Branches is where environmental stewardship and personal growth merge, cultivating careers rooted in impact, intention, and leadership.

Across all Career Pathways programs, Tree Trust integrates employment readiness, 21st-century skill development, financial literacy, and leadership development, ensuring participants leave with more than just a paycheck. They leave with a plan, a voice, and a vision for what comes next.

Career Pathways at Tree Trust are more than workforce development; it is life development. It is an investment in people, in potential, and in the power of transformation.

You make transformation possible.

At Tree Trust, every young person who steps into our programs begins a journey of growth—because of you. Your support opens doors to paid training, mentorship, and meaningful careers in the green industry. You don’t just fund programs. You fuel futures. And you'll help us plant more trees in 2026!

There is never a better time to make a gift to Tree Trust. All one-time gifts will be matched 1:1 and all new and increased monthly gifts will be matched 2:1 through December 31, 2025.

All donations are 100% tax-deductible. Our federal EIN: 41-1291626.