There’s been quite a bit of outrage over the Toys‘R’Us “Meet the Trees” ad campaign. If you haven’t seen it, I’ll give you a brief synopsis: kids think they’re going on a boring tree-related field trip, but instead get to go to Toys‘R’Us to pick out a free toy. Cue great wonderment and enthusiasm from…
News
Taking on the Tyranny of Turf
November 7, 2013It’s lining up to be another dry winter, with water reserves at worryingly low levels. So what’s with L.A.’s obsession with expansive green lawns? How did this landscape ideal, imported from rainy Northern Europe, come to mean the good life in water-scarce Los Angeles? Can we keep it up, or is there a better way?…
Not Enough Water, L.A.? Look Up.
November 4, 2013I am excited to announce that today’s edition of the Los Angeles Times carries a timely Op-Ed that I wrote titled, “Not enough water, L.A.? Look up.” Did Mulholland Get it Wrong? Nearly one hundred years ago today, William Mulholland stood before a crowd of 40,000 near San Fernando and unfurled an American flag, signaling…
Attention Pet Owners—An Opportunity for your “Pawlanthropy” to Benefit TreePeople
November 1, 2013Dogs love trees, and if you love dogs, you’ll love this news! Beginning today, November 1, 2013, every time you purchase a ten-pound box of The Honest Kitchen’s dog food at Healthy Spot locations in the greater Los Angeles area, you will directly support TreePeople’s work in greening our city. We are excited to announce…
Learning from Australia’s Drought: TreePeople Draws Lessons From Down Under
October 29, 2013In 2012, TreePeople began an exchange between government, research and community organizations in Australia and Southern California. The aim of the program: to share innovations, best practices and experience in urban rainwater capture, water conservation practices and drought response—topics that are increasingly relevant as the climate of the American Southwest (and beyond) changes for the…
Giving Back to the Universe
October 22, 2013When Dolores Reece decided to head an effort to revitalize the greenery in her Los Angeles neighborhood just north of the 10 Freeway, she felt as if it was something she was meant to be doing. A California native, Dolores grew up with a profound appreciation for the beauty of the natural world and our…
TreePeople Turns 40!
October 17, 2013In 1973, TreePeople was born from a teenager’s dream. From the beginning, Andy Lipkis’ vision was to connect the power of trees with the power of people to heal Los Angeles’ damaged ecosystem. From successfully inspiring the planting of a million trees in Los Angeles in time for the 1984 summer Olympics, to planting seven…
Meet Nicole Liner-Jigamian—TreePeople’s New Volunteer Manager
October 15, 2013By now I have met many of TreePeople’s wonderful supporters over e-mail or in-person. But in case I haven’t met you yet, I will take this opportunity to introduce myself. Before beginning this position I was eager to see what this organization and its 10,000 annual volunteers had in store for me. After a very…
Forbes Features TreePeople’s Water Work
October 10, 2013Our “sound bite” name of TreePeople is misleading. What we do goes way beyond trees. A recent article in Forbes describes the deeper side of our work, which is about building Los Angeles’ next water supply. Trees are inextricably linked to water—capturing, cleansing and storing rainwater and protecting us from drought and floods. As such, they…
Plug-In to the Los Angeles Business Council Summit
October 2, 2013With TreePeople’s mission to inspire and engage people in making Los Angeles sustainable and healthy, we can’t ignore the role that our transportation system plays with its massive consumption of energy, and generation of CO2 and air pollution. Our streets, roads and highways are the primary mechanism whereby we pollute and throw away over $400…
Show Your Pride and Come Out for National Public Lands Day
September 26, 2013“It is not what we have that will make us a great nation; it is the way in which we use it.” -Teddy Roosevelt This Saturday is the 20th Anniversary of National Public Lands Day! This is the nation’s largest, single-day volunteer effort for public lands. So what are your Saturday plans? How about saving…
Get Ready to Collect Some Rain (And Some Money!)
September 19, 2013Whatever you’re doing on Saturday, October 5, cancel it, call-in sick, quickly clone yourself, something. Just do whatever you need to do to get to TreePeople’s FREE Community Sustainability Workshop. Why the rush? Well, believe it or not, soon it will rain in Los Angeles, and now is the time to get ready. Native plant…