Shade for ALL

GREEN JOBS, GREENER CITIES

Why It Matters

In Maricopa County, where 68% of Arizona residents live, extreme heat is happening more often and staying longer, contributing to more heat-related distress and illness, more heat-related emergency room visits, and more heat-related deaths. While all residents and visitors of Maricopa County are affected by extreme heat, those who are already vulnerable and more exposed to the outdoors are most impacted: children, elders, people with other health concerns, folks with limited income for air conditioning, those currently unhoused, outdoor workers, and those walking, biking, or taking transit.

Woman under tree in a shadow

In neighborhoods where there is more concrete and asphalt, record-breaking heat is reflected, trapped, and absorbed during the day and radiated and released at night, offering residents no reprieve. And yet a well-treed neighborhood–even just a few blocks away can feel 20 degrees cooler or more in the shade.

Urban nature works as a natural cooling system and is a crucial public health strategy to protect people from extreme heat and enhance well-being. By planting the right trees in the right places and expanding shade where people need it most, we can cool people’s everyday experiences walking to school or taking the bus or getting groceries, while improving air quality and boosting overall health for our communities.

This initiative works to create Shade for ALL by working with residents to develop Neighborhood Tree Action Plans and by offering paid learning opportunities and paid internships in Spanish and in English for people interested in green jobs that grow and sustain our urban tree canopy. It also supports entrepreneurs and business owners aiming to start or scale businesses that promote urban nature.

Neighborhoods

Shade for ALL

Group of people around a development plan for urban forestry. In collaboration with Phoenix, Tempe, Guadalupe, and Mesa, ASU and Unlimited Potential will host a Shade for ALL workshop series to design tailored Neighborhood Tree Action Plans.

Live in one of these areas? Come join us for a 2-workshop series (details on our Events page):

Phoenix

Lindo Park
South Central Corridor: Rio Salado, South, South Mountain areas
Desert West Park
Mountain View Park

Guadalupe + Tempe

Town of Guadalupe + Southwest Tempe, Baseline–Hardy neighborhood

Mesa

Sherwood Park area

Shade for ALL Workshop Series. The first workshop in the 2-part series is designed around a community game, with boards showing maps of planting opportunities in each neighborhood and where it is easier, harder, and hardest to plant—and why. Come play the Dreams of Shade game with neighbors, city leaders, community health workers, and ASU members to envision Shade for ALL that protects all residents when and where they need it most.

After the first workshop, our ASU team will research residents’ priority tree and shade locations on public property. We will also ask residents to talk with neighbors, business owners, nonprofits, churches, schools, and homeowners about planting trees on private property for the public good.

The second workshop will put tree and shade priorities, strategies, and interest together to create a Neighborhood Tree Action Plan using real information about what is needed and what is possible in each neighborhood. The result will be an actionable Neighborhood Tree Action Plan to realize—and maximize—Shade for ALL.

Workforce Development

Paid Learning, Green Jobs

Through community-industry partnerships, this initiative offers paid learning opportunities and paid internships in Spanish and in English for people interested in green jobs that sustain our urban tree and shade canopy. This comprehensive Urban Nature vocational program will include experiential courses, field training, stackable learning experiences, internships, and pre-apprenticeships that can bridge into long-term positions.

For residents in CEJST areas

Unlimited Potential and Bartlett Tree Experts		Spanish / English Arborist / Tree Care
Orchard Community Learning Center		Landscape Design, Rainwater Harvesting, Water Conservation, Agroforestry
Spaces of Opportunity		Agroforestry, Small Tree Care and Maintenance
Arizona Conservation Corps		Full-time crew with pre-apprenticeship opportunities and sawyer training
City of Tempe		Tree Stewardship
ASU Seed Start Center		Tree Starts and Nursery Operations

Urban forestation workers take new plant seedlings in pots and wheelbarrow for landscaping an urban setting

Venture Development

Pilots

Pilots
ASU will support entrepreneurs and community-based organizations in learning to create and fulfill urban forestry pilot contracts with anchor institutions, like cities, universities, churches, and other key organizations and businesses. This arrangement allows community-based organizations and owners of small businesses to learn procurement processes and develop their capacity incrementally, at a pace and scale that ensures their long-term viability.

Events

Shade for ALL Neighborhood Workshops: Lindo Park

Workshop 1
Date: September 19, 2024
Time: 5-7pm
Location: Muriel Smith Recreation Center | 2230 W Roeser Rd, Phoenix AZ 85041

Workshop 2
Date: October 24, 2024
Time: 5-7pm
Location: Spaces of Opportunity |1200 W Vineyard Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85041

Shade for ALL Neighborhood Workshops: Phoenix – South Central Corridor: Rio Salado, South, South Mountain areas

Workshop 1
Date: October 10, 2024
Time: 5-7pm
Location: South Mountain Community Center | 212 E Alta Vista Rd, Phoenix, AZ 85042

Workshop 2
Date: November 14, 2024
Time: 5-7pm
Location: South Mountain Community Center | 212 E Alta Vista Rd, Phoenix, AZ 85042

City of Tempe Tree Stewards Program

Tree Stewards Cohort, Fall 2024. Escalante Multi-Generational Center

September 26
October 3
October 10
October 17
October 24
November 7
November 14

Open Positions…

Unlimited Potential
Arboriculture Community Workforce Development Bilingual Trainer

Spaces of Opportunity
Agroforestry Educator
Executive Director

Hiring Underway…

Orchard CLC
Urban Forestry Educator [position filled]

City of Tempe
Community Greening Program Coordinator [ hiring process underway]
Community Tree Steward Program Champion [hiring process underway]

Arizona State University
Project Manager, Greater Phoenix Urban Forestry Accelerator [hiring process underway]
Program Manager, Seed Start Center [hiring process underway]
Project Manager, Urban Forestry Workforce Development [hiring process underway]

Student position: Content Creation and Program Evaluation Assistant [hiring process underway]

What the Program is About:

A new three-year project led by Arizona State University — in partnership with community-based organizations, municipalities, industry partners and national organizations — will work directly with Valley residents to co-create actionable neighborhood Shade for ALL plans while supporting economic growth.

Partners

Coming Soon

Get in Touch

The Greater Phoenix Urban Forestry Accelerator is a $5 million Justice40 Initiative funded by the USDA Forest Service Urban and Community Forestry Program, part of the Inflation Reduction Act. Led by the ASU Rob and Melani Walton Sustainability Solutions Service (RMWSSS), it will kickstart the creation of customized community forestry plans through a series of neighborhood-based workshops that put residents at the forefront of the planning process.