Transcript:

Planting trees in cities can provide vital cooling shade – and create job opportunities.

Emma Viera is executive director of Unlimited Potential, a nonprofit in Phoenix. She says some low-income areas of the city get far hotter than others, with more concrete and asphalt that retain heat and less shade and green space.

Viera: “Because of that, you have 10, 15 degrees difference between some areas and others.”

And climate change is causing more extreme heat. So her group is partnering with Arizona State University, the city of Phoenix, and other organizations to plant trees in some of the most vulnerable neighborhoods.

But getting the trees in the ground is just the first step.

To help those trees thrive, her group helps run a paid workforce development program to train residents of low-income areas in tree care.

Participants learn to plant and prune trees, prevent disease, and safely climb trees to cut branches.

So far, about 30 people have graduated from the 10-week program, and almost all are now employed.

So Viera says the program is helping build a healthy, thriving community.

Viera: “We are improving life at the personal level … but also in the neighborhood.”

Reporting credit: Sarah Kennedy / ChavoBart Digital Media