The Greening of Detroit is an

urban forestry Urban forestry is the care and management of single trees and tree populations in Urban area, urban settings for the purpose of improving the urban environment. Urban forestry involves both planning and management, including the programming o ...

program and

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

partner in

The Detroit Partnership The Detroit Partnership (DP), known as The Detroit Project until 2008, is a student-run organization at the University of Michigan with the mission of connecting the Ann Arbor and Detroit communities through active service-learning. Each year, t ...

; it was founded in 1989. In addition to

planting trees Tree-planting is the process of transplanting tree seedlings, generally for forestry, land reclamation, or landscaping purpose. It differs from the transplantation of larger trees in arboriculture, and from the lower cost but slower and less re ...

in the Detroit area, the organization engages in urban forestry education, job training, and other community programs. In 2011, Greening planted 12,156 trees in Detroit, and as of November 2017 has planted over 100,000 trees in the city since the organization's inception. The organization is involved in

urban farming Urban agriculture, urban farming, or urban gardening is the practice of cultivating, processing, and distributing food in or around urban areas. It encompasses a complex and diverse mix of food production activities, including fisheries and for ...

, working to maintain and improve urban farms in Detroit. Greening is also working to improve air quality. Its annual operating budget is approximately $3.8 million. Lionel Bradford is the president of The Greening of Detroit.

Programs

Detroit December 2015 33 (Greening of Detroit garden)

The organization works to coordinate and utilize vacant

lots Lot or LOT or The Lot or ''similar'' may refer to: Common meanings Areas *Land lot, an area of land *Parking lot, for automobiles *Backlot, in movie production Sets of items *Lot number, in batch production *Lot, a set of goods for sale together ...

in Detroit for urban

garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate both ...

s and tree nurseries.

Produce Produce is a generalized term for many farm-produced crops, including fruits and vegetables (grains, oats, etc. are also sometimes considered ''produce''). More specifically, the term ''produce'' often implies that the products are fresh and g ...

grown in the gardens is used to provide Detroit citizens with food, and trees grown in the converted vacant lots are replanted in the city. The conversion of the vacant lots also improves their appearance and serves to reduce vandalism. At Romanowski Park in Detroit, The Greening of Detroit has partnered with area schools to educate students about nutrition and gardening during the

growing season A season is a division of the year marked by changes in weather, ecology, and the amount of daylight. The growing season is that portion of the year in which local conditions (i.e. rainfall, temperature, daylight) permit normal plant growth. Whil ...

.Louv, Richard (2012)
''The Nature Principle: Human Restoration and the End of Nature-Deficit Disorder''
Algonquin Books. pp. 203-204. The group is working to use

bioremediation Bioremediation broadly refers to any process wherein a biological system (typically bacteria, microalgae, fungi, and plants), living or dead, is employed for removing environmental pollutants from air, water, soil, flue gasses, industrial effluent ...

techniques to restore contaminated land in the city, including an abandoned lot owned by

Detroit Public Schools Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) is a school district that covers all of the city of Detroit, Michigan, United States and high school students in the insular city of Highland Park. The district, which replaced the original Detr ...

.Southwest Detroit tree-planting plan fuels toxic relationship
Jim Lynch, ''

The Detroit News ''The Detroit News'' is one of the two major newspapers in the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan. The paper began in 1873, when it rented space in the rival ''Detroit Free Press'' building. ''The News'' absorbed the '' Detroit Tribune'' on Februa ...

'', 23 May 2014

Detroit Conservation Corp

The organization's Detroit Conservation Corp. (DCC)

workforce development Workforce development, an American approach to economic development, attempts to enhance a region's economic stability and prosperity by focusing on people rather than businesses. It essentially develops a human-resources strategy. Work-force deve ...

program was started in 2006, in partnership with

LaSalle Bank LaSalle Bank Corporation was the holding company for LaSalle Bank N.A. and LaSalle Bank Midwest N.A. (formerly Standard Federal Bank). With US$116 billion in assets, it was headquartered at 135 South LaSalle Street in Chicago, Illinois. LaS ...

. This job training program was developed "to provide unemployed Detroiters with valuable job training and certification in the green industry." This partnership has continued with

Bank of America The Bank of America Corporation (often abbreviated BofA or BoA) is an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered at the Bank of America Corporate Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. The bank w ...

(which acquired LaSalle Bank in 2007), which provided a $200,000 grant for the Detroit Conservation Corp (Formerly GreenWorks) program in 2012. The Detroit Conservation Corp program provides training for jobs in

landscaping Landscaping refers to any activity that modifies the visible features of an area of land, including the following: # Living elements, such as flora or fauna; or what is commonly called gardening, the art and craft of growing plants with a goal o ...

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

and

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. Th ...

, and upon completion of the program, participants are afforded an opportunity to take the Landscape Industry Certification exam.

Green Corps

The Greening of Detroit employs 200 students in their Green Corps program every summer. The employees are picked from a pool of 2,000 prospects, and the jobs pay minimum wage. In the process of their work to maintain various plantings in Detroit, Green Corps employees also learn about

urban ecology Urban ecology is the scientific study of the relation of living organisms with each other and their surroundings in an urban environment. An urban environment refers to environments dominated by high-density residential and commercial buildings ...

Controversy

According to a report by Christine E. Carmichael, a researcher from the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

, during Greening’s tree planting in Detroit from 2011 to 2014, 24% of residents submitted a "no-tree request", more than 1,800 out of the 7,425 possible trees. Although they recognized the benefits of urban forestry, their personal experiences with the city government’s initial

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. The most concentrated d ...

of the area after the

1967 Detroit riot The 1967 Detroit Riot, also known as the 12th Street Riot or Detroit Rebellion, was the bloodiest of the urban riots in the United States during the "Long, hot summer of 1967". Composed mainly of confrontations between Black residents and the De ...

led to distrust. The city government’s stated reason for deforesting the area was to control the spread of

Dutch elm disease Dutch elm disease (DED) is caused by a member of the sac fungi (Ascomycota) affecting elm trees, and is spread by elm bark beetles. Although believed to be originally native to Asia, the disease was accidentally introduced into Americas, America ...

, including spraying

DDT Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, commonly known as DDT, is a colorless, tasteless, and almost odorless crystalline chemical compound, an organochloride. Originally developed as an insecticide, it became infamous for its environmental impacts. ...

from helicopters over residential areas, but some African-American women interviewed by Carmichael viewed the deforestation and helicopters as increased

surveillance Surveillance is the monitoring of behavior, many activities, or information for the purpose of information gathering, influencing, managing or directing. This can include observation from a distance by means of electronic equipment, such as c ...

of their communities in response to racial tensions, and consequently did not trust reforestation efforts. On the other hand, Greening representatives were under the impression that residents didn't recognize the importance of urban forestry. These differing perspectives on the city’s history through different lived experiences was described by Carmichael as “heritage narratives”. Neighborhood residents also felt distrust towards Greening staff for not involving residents meaningfully enough in planning and decision making, as well as the fact that most of their volunteers were white and not from Detroit, a city with an African-American population of 83% in 2014. Additionally, residents felt that large trees already planted on city property weren’t properly cared for by the city, causing issues with safety and the appearance of neighborhoods, and that they would also be made responsible for the trees that Greening planted without their input. Residents participating in the report were more willing to accept the trees if they got to choose what kinds of trees would be planted. In 2014, some residents also protested against Greening’s removal of playground structures and planting trees in southwest Detroit’s Bridgeview Park. Greening’s intent was to remove contaminants such as

arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As and atomic number 33. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in combination with sulfur and metals, but also as a pure elemental crystal. Arsenic is a metalloid. It has various allotropes, but ...

and

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

with the new trees through

phytoremediation Phytoremediation technologies use living plants to clean up soil, air and water contaminated with hazardous contaminants. It is defined as "the use of green plants and the associated microorganisms, along with proper soil amendments and agronomi ...

, but residents voiced concerns such as that they didn’t get to give input on the project, especially as a Black community; digging health hazards; and a possible rodent population increase. They were also not informed of the contaminated soil by the time the project started, although the

district, which held ownership of the land, had previously erected a fence to prevent trespassing. In response to Carmichael’s study, Greening expanded involvement of residents in planning and planting, as well as increased their number of community-engagement members from one person to four people, all of whom lived in Detroit.

References

External links

* {{Official website, http://greeningofdetroit.com/ Urban forestry organizations Organizations based in Detroit 1989 establishments in Michigan Non-profit organizations based in Michigan Environmental organizations based in Michigan Forestry in the United States 1980s in Detroit