Arbor Day Foundation Tree Programs

The Tree USA programs are a suite of nationwide programs provided by the Arbor Day Foundation to include, but not limited to, Tree City USA, Tree Line USA, Tree Campus, Tree Campus K-12 USA, and Tree Cities of the World. Details about the Arbor Day programs can be found at https://www.arborday.org/our-work. Qualifying participants may be operating in your neck of the woods. Participating organizations may have tree-mendous resources, expertise, and incentive to collaborate with local tree-related initiatives when fulfilling respective program requirements. Do you have a local interest in planting and protecting trees? Perhaps you should be reaching out to the participants of these programs? You may find common ground when planting trees in the ground.

Tree City USA

Tree City USA provides the framework necessary for communities to manage and expand their public trees. The program’s four core urban forestry management standards include:

1. an established tree board or department,
2. an existing tree ordinance,
3. urban forestry budget, and
4. Arbor Day observance.

Tree Line USA

The Tree Line USA recognizes the best practices in public and private utility arboriculture, demonstrating how trees and utilities can co-exist for the benefit of communities and citizens. The Arbor Day Foundation collaborates with the National Association of State Foresters on this initiative. The program’s five core, utility arboricultural standards include:

1. Quality tree care,
2. Annual worker training,
3. Tree planting and public education,
4. Tree-based energy conservation program,
5. Arbor Day observance.

Tree Campus

The Tree Campus USA higher education program helps two and four-year accredited colleges and universities to establish and sustain healthy trees with student involvement. The five core standards include:

1. An existing campus tree advisory committee,
2. Campus tree care plan,
3. Campus tree budget, or dedicated expenditures,
4. Arbor Day observance,
5. Service-learning project.

Tree Campus K-12

The Tree Campus K-12 USA program inspires the next generation of tree stewards through experiences that bring the benefits of trees to life inside and outside the classroom. The program is in collaboration with Project Learning Tree (PLT) and Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI). The program encourages schools to create purposeful opportunities for students to interact with trees. The four core standard requirements include:

1. A tree campus team,
2. A tree-related education plan,
3. Hands-on experience,
4. Arbor Day observance.

Tree Cities of the World

The Tree Cities of the World program is an international effort to recognize cities and towns committed to ensuring that urban forests and trees are properly maintained, sustainably managed, and duly celebrated. The five core requirements include:

1. Designated tree care responsibilities,
2. A set of governing rules for the management of tree and forest resources,
3. Updated tree-related inventory,
4. Allocated resources for the management of trees,
5. An annual celebration of trees.