Project Overview:
The PBC Office of Resilience is partnering with Community Greening, a local urban forestry non-profit, and the PBC Parks & Recreation Department to expand tree canopy in the Glades region, including the South Bay, Belle Glade, Pahokee, and Canal Point communities. The Resilient Glades Tree Campaign will plant trees at six PBC parks, host at least eight tree giveaway events where Glades residents will receive native and fruit trees, pilot a small urban food orchard, and support Community Greening's youth workforce development team. The project will decrease urban heat impacts, improve air quality, absorb stormwater, increase native biodiversity, and increase access to fresh produce. This project would not be possible without the support from the City of South Bay, the City of Belle Glade, the City of Pahokee, the Palm Health Foundation, Florida Clinicians for Climate Action, the PBC Cooperative Extension Office, the PBC Office of Community Revitalization, and the PBC Housing & Economic Development.
Project Components:
Tree Giveaways to Glades Residents
The Glades Tree Campaign project will give away 2,000 native and fruit trees to Glades community members through at least eight (8) events throughout the Glades region between fall 2024 and spring 2027. At each event, Glades community members will be able to take home two trees per household.
Tree Plantings in PBC Parks in Glades Region
The Glades Tree Campaign will plant 376 trees across six (6) County parks to increase access to shaded outdoor recreational areas. Community members are invited to volunteer at these tree-planting events. Community Greening will provide all the necessary tools, gloves, and water/snacks, and will train volunteers on how to help. There will also be a DJ on hand to keep things fun! Stay tuned for more details and upcoming events.
Pilot Urban Orchard
The Project team will collaborate with Glades community stakeholders to identify potential locations to install an urban orchard. This orchard will include a variety of fruit-bearing trees to help increase local access to fresh produce. The project team will partner with a local organization to help care for the orchard and distribute harvests to community members. Stay tuned for more details!
Youth Workforce Development
Community Greening will partner with a locally-led youth development organization to support planting events and tree giveaways, and help water and maintain newly planted trees in parks. The youth will receive competitive hourly wages as they gain work experience in the “green collar" sector and learn about urban forestry and community improvement. Stay tuned for upcoming workforce opportunity details.