Last updated: November 2024
Phoenix is grappling with severe urban heat problems. As the city continues to grow, it is expected to experience a rise in temperatures of three to five degrees on average in the coming years. This makes urban heat a significant concern, especially for vulnerable populations. Phoenix’s extensive urban sprawl, combined with a lack of green space, has exacerbated the urban heat island effect, where cities become significantly hotter than surrounding rural areas due to the high concentration of concrete, asphalt, and infrastructure. In 2022, Nick Lodato, the principal of Emerson Elementary School, wanted to mark the school's 100th anniversary in a meaningful way. He decided that planting trees would be the perfect way to celebrate this milestone while also benefiting the community. The tree planting event not only symbolized the school's strong sense of community but also represented an investment in its sustainable future. Prior to the project, Emerson had only 9% tree canopy cover, which was far below what is necessary to address some of the pressing environmental challenges Phoenix faces. Tree cover has become critical infrastructure for heat mitigation. Trees provide natural shade and help cool the environment by reducing surface temperatures, which in turn lowers energy consumption and promotes better public health. In addition to offering shade, the native, drought-tolerant trees and plants planted at Emerson will also contribute to carbon sequestration, purify the air, and improve mental health by creating more green spaces for relaxation and outdoor activities. To complete this project, Emerson Elementary partnered with the Arizona Sustainability Alliance (ASA), a local nonprofit. Together, they planted over 100 trees and plants across the school’s campus, with approximately 125 people attending the event. Volunteers included students and their parents, Tau Psi Omega fraternity members, APS employees, neighbors, former Emerson students and teachers. (1-3)
Trees planted at Emerson Elementary
https://eu.azcentral.com/picture-gallery/news/local/arizona-environment/2022/03/07/photos-tree-planting-emerson-elementary-school-phoenix/6967406001/
Overview
Nature-based solution
- Grey infrastructure featuring greens
- Green playgrounds and school grounds
Key challenges
- Climate action for adaptation, resilience and mitigation (SDG 13)
- Climate change adaptation
- Climate change mitigation
- Environmental quality
- Air quality improvement
- Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
- Green space creation and/or management
- Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10)
- Social justice and equity
- Environmental education
- Sense of community and community engagement
Principal problems in Functional Urban Area (FUA)
- Climate-Related Hazards
- Drought
- Heat stress & Extreme temperatures
- Environmental Degradation
- Biodiversity loss
- Air pollution
- Health, Well-being and Social cohesion
- Physical health harm (from pollution, wildfire, extreme temperature)
- Mental health issues (stress, anxiety)
Key priorities
Climate action (adaptation and/or mitigation), Social Justice and community
Focus
Creation of new green areas, Creation of any other green urban spaces, Knowledge creation and awareness raising, Educational and awareness raising programs
Project objectives
The goals of the Emerson Elementary Tree Planting Project were:
To celebrate the school's anniversary by strengthening the community through tree planting, promoting sustainability for both the environment and the community.
To educate the community on sustainable planting practices and raise awareness about environmental sustainability.
To mitigate the effects of urban heat, air pollution, and lack of green space, while addressing educational gaps around sustainability.
To create cooler spaces for children and improve outdoor environments for future generations.
To plant native drought resistant trees and plants that enhance carbon sequestration and contribute to environmental health. (1-3)
Implementation activities
Emerson Elementary School partnered with the Arizona Sustainability Alliance (AZSA) Tree Planting Program to organize a community-focused tree planting event. The project was funded by raising over $20,000 from eight different organizations and more than 40 individuals. The event successfully engaged around 125 participants, including students, parents, local volunteers, and community members. During the event, over 100 native, drought-resilient plant species, including 58 trees and 58 plants, were planted across the school grounds. The project also provided an opportunity to promote educational awareness about sustainable planting practices, with the expertise of Trees Matter and AZSA guiding the community on how to adopt environmentally friendly methods for tree planting and climate change mitigation. (1-3)
Climate-focused activities
Climate change adaptation:
- Increase urban vegetation cover to reduce urban heat island effect
Climate change mitigation:
- Increase the availability of green urban space for carbon storage (street tree cover)
- Improve carbon sequestration through selection of more adaptable species
Communities vulnerable to environmental hazards or climate change impacts
Yes
Specification of climate or environmentally vulnerable communities
Urban heat islands, Minority or marginalized ethnic groups
Main beneficiaries
- Public sector institution (e.g. school or hospital)
- Citizens or community groups
Governance
Management set-up
- Led by non-government actors
Type of initiating organisation
- Non-government organisation/civil society
- Citizens or community group
Participatory approaches/ community involvement
- Crowd-sourcing/Crowd-funding/Participatory budget
- Dissemination of information and education
- Joint implementation (e.g. tree planting)
- Co-management/Joint management
Details on the roles of the organisations involved in the project
The tree planting project at Emerson Elementary was initiated and organized by the school’s principal, Nick Lodato. The event saw active involvement from various community groups, including students and parents from the school, local neighbors, and Tau Psi Omega fraternity members, who all volunteered their time to help plant trees. The Arizona Sustainability Alliance (AZSA) played a key role by partnering with Emerson Elementary to offer expertise and organizational support through their Tree Planting Program. Additionally, Trees Matter, another local NGO, contributed by providing educational guidance during the event. The project also received support from private sector entities such as Arizona Public Services (utility company) and My Central Phoenix Realtor, as well as assistance from Banner University Medical Center Phoenix. (1-2)
Project implemented in response to ...
... an EU policy or strategy?
Unknown
... a national policy or strategy?
Unknown
... a local policy or strategy?
Yes
(Shade Phoenix plan (7). )
Type of enablers
Capacity-building projects, Change agents (individual with major role influence on launching), Funds, subsidies or investment for GI/NBS in the city (available for the city or provided by the city)
Financing
Total cost
€10,000 - €50,000
Source(s) of funding
- Funds provided by non-governmental organization (NGO)
- Crowdfunding
Type of funding
- Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)
- Donations
Non-financial contribution
Type of non-financial contribution
- Provision of land
- Provision of labour
Who provided the non-financial contribution?
- Citizens (e.g. volunteering)
Impacts and Monitoring
Environmental impacts
- Climate change
- Lowered local temperature
- Expected lowered local temperature
- Strengthened capacity to address climate hazards/natural disasters
- Expected strengthened capacity to address climate hazards/natural disasters
- Enhanced carbon sequestration
- Expected enhanced carbon sequestration
- Environmental quality
- Improved air quality
- Expected improved air quality
- Green space and habitat
- Increased number of species present
- Achieved increased number of species present
Economic impacts
- Increase of green jobs (e.g. paid employment positions)
- Expected increase of green jobs (e.g. paid employment positions)
- Generation of other type of work opportunities (e.g. voluntary, work for rehabilitation)
- Achieved generation of other type of work opportunities (e.g. voluntary, work for rehabilitation)
Socio-cultural impacts
- Social justice and cohesion
- Improved liveability
- Expected improved liveability
- Health and wellbeing
- Improved physical health
- Expected improved physical health
- Improved mental health
- Expected improved mental health
- Education
- Increased support for education and scientific research
- Expected increased support for education and scientific research
- Increased knowledge of locals about local nature
- Achieved increased knowledge of locals about local nature
- Safety
- Improved community safety to climate-related hazards
- Expected improved community safety to climate-related hazards
Type of reported impacts
Presence of formal monitoring system
Unknown
Presence of indicators used in reporting
No evidence in public records
Presence of monitoring/ evaluation reports
No evidence in public records
Availability of a web-based monitoring tool
No
Potential risks of implementation and trade-offs
Unknown
References
1.
Syed (2022). Trees growing at Emerson Elementary will expand the shade canopy and build community. [Source link];
2.
Arizona Sustainability Alliance (2022). AZ Sustainability Alliance: Emerson Elementary School Centennial Tree Planting. [Source link];
3.
Arizona’s Family (3TV / CBS 5) (2022). Making Phoenix more green with APS, Herrera Elementary School, Trees Matter. [Source link];
4.
Mendoza, M (2022). Trees planted at Emerson Elementary School in Phoenix by Arizona Sustainability Alliance. [Source link];
5.
Maricopa Association of Governments (n.d.). Arizona Demographics . [Source link];
6.
The Nature Conservancy (2024). Addressing Heat and Air Quality in Phoenix. [Source link];
7.
City of Phoenix (2024). ShadePHX. [Source link];
8.
Office of Heat Response and Mitigation (n.d.). Office of Heat Response and Mitigation . [Source link];
Trees planted at Emerson Elementary
https://eu.azcentral.com/picture-gallery/news/local/arizona-environment/2022/03/07/photos-tree-planting-emerson-elementary-school-phoenix/6967406001/
Trees planted at Emerson Elementary
https://eu.azcentral.com/picture-gallery/news/local/arizona-environment/2022/03/07/photos-tree-planting-emerson-elementary-school-phoenix/6967406001/
Trees planted at Emerson Elementary
https://eu.azcentral.com/picture-gallery/news/local/arizona-environment/2022/03/07/photos-tree-planting-emerson-elementary-school-phoenix/6967406001/
Trees planted at Emerson Elementary
https://eu.azcentral.com/picture-gallery/news/local/arizona-environment/2022/03/07/photos-tree-planting-emerson-elementary-school-phoenix/6967406001/
Trees planted at Emerson Elementary
https://eu.azcentral.com/picture-gallery/news/local/arizona-environment/2022/03/07/photos-tree-planting-emerson-elementary-school-phoenix/6967406001/
Trees planted at Emerson Elementary
https://eu.azcentral.com/picture-gallery/news/local/arizona-environment/2022/03/07/photos-tree-planting-emerson-elementary-school-phoenix/6967406001/
Trees planted at Emerson Elementary
https://eu.azcentral.com/picture-gallery/news/local/arizona-environment/2022/03/07/photos-tree-planting-emerson-elementary-school-phoenix/6967406001/
Trees planted at Emerson Elementary
https://eu.azcentral.com/picture-gallery/news/local/arizona-environment/2022/03/07/photos-tree-planting-emerson-elementary-school-phoenix/6967406001/
Information about this nature-based solution was collected as part of the Naturescapes project funded by the European Union under Grant Agreement No 101084341.