TreePeople and Metro Partner to Green Los Angeles

June 21, 2016

With the opening of the Expo Line extension last month and more on the way, Metro’s role in shaping Los Angeles has been on our minds. But did you know that Metro does more than build and provide public transportation?

TreePeople has partnered with the LA County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) to create Green Places, a resource toolkit to support communities in re-imagining and reinventing  their neighborhoods. The project is the result of months of work engaging dozens of experts, community organizations and Metro departments to create safe, healthy, livable communities that promote walking, biking and alternative forms of transportation.

The interactive website offers ideas and practical steps for implementing projects–from one-day events in Metro Park and Ride lots, to tree plantings and local water capture projects. Some ideas can be implemented by you and your community, while others require coordination between city and county government agencies. It even includes tools  to build partnerships and ensure that a project is properly maintained!

The project was funded by the California Strategic Growth Council through the Urban Greening Grant Program. We’re proud to support Metro and Los Angeles Department of Transportation in this work, which included dozens of organizations as members of a technical advisory committee.

TreePeople looks forward to our continued involvement as Metro helps Los Angeles transition to a more sustainable future! Let’s make LA green!

Want to learn more? Visit the Green Places website to start a project in your community. 

By Edith de Guzman

Edith de Guzman, Director of Research, Natural Urban Systems Group, has been with TreePeople since 2003, where she manages research into best practices for the sustainable transformation of the Greater Los Angeles area. Exploring environmental, social and economic aspects of urban ecosystems, she works to collect and disseminate research that identifies the efficacy, benefits and applicability of various approaches to urban sustainability, with a special focus on watershed management. Edith received a master's in Urban Planning from UCLA and a bachelor's in History/Art History, also from UCLA.