A tree grows in LA: Urban Trees Initiative achieves its first planting

Waiting for the bus on a 100-degree day in Los Angeles can be a major endurance test. Move under the shade of a nearby tree, however, and you could feel a refreshing temperature drop of up to 15 degrees. That difference makes a scorching summer day more tolerable, and it can even prevent heat stroke.

Trees also help lower a city’s overall temperature, boost air flow and filter out pollutants. Unfortunately, some L.A. neighborhoods, particularly low-income communities, have very little greenery, if any at all.

In 2020, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences’s Public Exchange launched the USC Urban Trees Initiative to identify areas of L.A. most in need of trees and to help facilitate their planting and maintenance. The initiative has received support from the Bezos Earth Fund and recently convened a meeting with the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and local tree practitioners to discuss urban greening efforts in Los Angeles.

On Nov. 9, the very first round of trees were planted in the West Adams neighborhood, in partnership with the Koreatown Youth and Community Center (KYCC) and L.A. Sanitation and Environment. A total of 250 trees will eventually be installed. They’ll be cared for by KYCC for three years as they grow to maturity.

The tree planting demonstrates the efficacy of the Public Exchange program, which uses academic scholarship to solve complex social challenges. “Today’s event is a great example of what we can do when we work together — and just the beginning of our work to protect residents from rising temperatures and improve quality of life,” says Kate Weber, executive director of Public Exchange.

For local resident Dakota Maysonet, the new trees are bringing more than just cooler temperatures. “Trees … give a sense of calmness. It’s not just the oxygen and the shade, but this really great experience when you see the greenery and the birds and other wildlife. It really brings a great value to people’s lives,” he says.

In addition to the Urban Trees Initiative, Public Exchange is leading a project to revitalize the L.A. River, water conservation efforts in the Santa Clarita Valley north of Los Angeles, and a variety of other efforts related to climate and sustainability and health and well-being.

The tree planting event was a milestone for the Sustainability “moonshot,” developed by USC President Carol Folt in 2022 to promote green research, education, policymaking and practice.

For more on the tree planting, see USC News >>