In partnership with Edgewater Neighborhood Association, we are co-hosting a final tree walk in Mattapan. Join us on Wednesday, July 13th, to explore the neighborhood and learn about the importance of trees in our urban environment. 

Edgewater Food Forest 640 River Street, Boston @ 5:30 pm

Speak for the Trees is happy to announce that we have been selected as a recipient of the Buffalo Exchange Tokens for Bags® program from July through December 2023. You can now donate to Speak for the Trees just by shopping at Buffalo Exchange in Davis Square. Instead of a plastic bag, the Tokens for Bags® program offers every customer who makes a purchase one “token” valued at five cents (the cost to produce a bag) to donate to one of several local charities selected by the store. The program has generated over $926,025 for hundreds of local nonprofit organizations since 1994 and has saved over 18.5 million plastic bags from the landfill.

Boston Urban Forest Friends (BUFF) is a coalition of organizations, community groups, and individuals focused on increasing partnerships and collaboration around growing Boston’s urban canopy. The symposium, which was held on June 24th, brought together 60 people both in-person and online, offering a unique platform for residents and organizations to learn, celebrate, and share their stories of contributing towards a greener Boston.

Speak for the Trees recently hosted our first annual Teen Tree Summit on Saturday, July 10th. This event celebrated the work and educational opportunities for youth in the green career sector offered by  Speak for the Trees, BOLD Teens, Eastie Farm, Roxbury Environmental Empowerment Project (REEP), The Food Project, and Mass Audubon’s Youth Climate Leadership Program. Speak for the Trees is grateful to the US Forest Service for funding the event, which brought together 23 teens from across the city to learn, share, and build connections.

Our Community Outreach Manager, Jerel Ferguson, received a Certificate of Recognition from the Codman Square Neighborhood Development Corporation, for his support in improving the quality of life in the greater Codman Square community. Speak for the Trees has partnered with the CSNDC as part of the EPA’s Environmental Justice Small Grants Program. Through this EPA grant, Speak for the Trees has engaged with, learned from, and educated local residents about community forestry as a tool towards climate resilience, clean air, and healthy neighborhoods. Marilyn Forman, Director of Community Organizing and Resident Engagement (CORE), and James Mackey, Director of Brothers Building, recommended that Jerel receive this honor. 

Keep your eyes open for our new watering truck! It has been making its rounds around the streets of Boston caring for various street trees and park trees that we have planted. You can catch a glimpse of it and our Tree Care Associate, Mekhi Edge, watering in various locations: East Boston Memorial Stadium, Noyes playground, and Brooke Charter School are some of the many places the truck can be spotted. Harambee Park, Fitzgerald Park, and Loesch Park are also some of the local parks that the truck will be at. Give him a wave if you see him riding around.