Bringing trees to the Buffalo neighborhoods that need them most

If the City of Buffalo and its Parks and Recreation Division have their way, this tiny sapling will be joined by thousands of others as part of a new tree equity initiative that aims to fill gaping holes in the tree canopy for underserved areas across the city, from the East Side to Riverside to the Old First Ward.   

Once known as the “City of Trees,” with cathedral-like spans of Elms, Oaks and Sycamores, Buffalo has been working to recover from a century of historic losses to its urban forest due to disease, climate-related stressors, urban development, and poor growing conditions. Yet, disparities remain. Studies show sections of Buffalo – largely in line with low-income and minority populations – have canopy coverage as low as 10 percent, compared to up to 34 percent in the city’s more affluent districts, according to the Tree Equity Score, a national metric developed by the nonprofit American Forests.

That’s why the City of Buffalo has partnered with the UB Regional Institute (UBRI) and its team of community-based planning specialists to inform Buffalo’s most tree-bare residents about the opportunities and benefits of bringing trees to their neighborhoods, from fresh air, to shade and cooling, to higher property values, to better mental health.

The educational campaign focuses on building participation in targeted neighborhoods in the city’s 311 “request-a-tree” service, which allows homeowners as well as renters to request a free street tree for the front of their home. The city selects the proper tree species for the site, plants the tree, and provides basic maintenance, with residents pitching in to help water the tree during its fragile first few years. Buffalo’s street tree program got a boost in 2024 from an $8 million grant from the U.S. Forest Service in support of its efforts to reverse urban deforestation and reduce heat island effects for vulnerable populations.

Working with its first trained cohort of Street Tree Ambassadors (neighborhood-rooted citizens passionate about tree equity), UBRI’s staff and student-supported outreach team is meeting residents where they’re at – in their own communities. You can find them at festivals, farmer’s markets, and block club meetings in every corner of the city, decked out in “Buffalo Street Trees” T-shirts and matching tote bags stuffed with educational brochures, questionaries, FAQs, and surprising tree facts (for instance, did you know that Buffalo’s tree canopy captures enough CO₂ to counteract the emissions of 1,470 gas-powered vehicles, or that homes with treed streets have property values 60 percent greater than those without trees?).

The work is keeping the city busy with new tree-planting requests. Since the start of the year, UBRI’s online Buffalo Street Trees dashboard has recorded a threefold increase in tree requests in priority areas compared to the same time period in 2025. Along the way, they’re seeding the next wave of tree champions and laying the groundwork for a more resilient Buffalo.

“Buffalo Street Trees is really about changing the conversation in our city about trees,” says UBRI Director Bart Roberts, who starts each day with a visit to the tree dashboard. “Ultimately, we’re restoring trust and building buy-in for the city’s most challenged neighborhoods. Buffalo will be able to plant thousands of trees with this grant opportunity, but after it’s over, there will still be thousands of vacant tree sites left to fill.”

UBRI is working in close coordination with Buffalo’s Division of Parks and Recreation and its Bureau of Forestry in its efforts to bolster the request-a-tree program. City leaders say the partnership is based on UBRI's deep experience leading dozens of major public engagement initiatives across Western New York, including Imagine LaSalle, which involved thousands of residents in designing the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr., Centennial Park emerging today on Buffalo’s Lake Erie waterfront.

“The City of Buffalo is thrilled to have been awarded this historic funding to plant and maintain street trees in numbers not seen in decades," says Ross Hassinger, city forester with Buffalo's Division of Parks and Recreation. "Through this program we can grow street trees in neighborhoods that need them most and help build a sense of neighborhood belonging, healthier communities, and help restore our urban canopy."

The challenge ahead is not insignificant. Indeed, city data show street tree bin vacancy rates as high as 75 percent in Buffalo’s sparsest districts, compared to less than 25 percent in the city’s more forested neighborhoods. Gaps in awareness and trust, low homeownership rates coupled with high vacancy rates, and even apathy further complicate re-planting efforts in the city’s poorest districts.

UBRI and its entourage of tree advocates are up for the challenge. Since ramping up for the Spring planting season, Buffalo Street Trees’ team of 12 ambassadors have attended scores of community events – from school assemblies to neighborhood Earth Day celebrations – reaching hundreds of citizens.

They are reinforced by a UBRI support team working both behind the scenes and in the community to identify outreach opportunities, develop neighborhood-specific engagement strategies, and deploy a communications campaign that includes everything from tree tags, event flyers, and children’s activity books, to an information-packed website and social media campaign churning out engaging content like before-and-after videos of streets transformed by trees, “Myth-Busting Mondays,” and “FAQ Fridays.”

Running that operation is Ehler Htoo, an associate planner at UBRI and graduate of UB’s dual Master of Architecture/Master of Urban Planning program. “We need to start with education about the benefits of trees to change people’s perspective,” says Htoo, who tables with ambassadors several times a week at events in the project’s target areas. “A lot of people don’t know they can request a free tree from the city. That in itself is a big gap. A central part of our role is to help bridge that gap and let people know the program exists.”

Htoo says the project’s Street Tree Ambassadors – trained through four intensive sessions that included a tree-planting workshop at a local nursery – are extending the program’s reach by tapping into their own civic and environmental networks. “Our ambassadors have been critical to the effort. Because they are active in these communities, they are a familiar face and can reach more people with the educational aspects of the program.”

For Street Tree Ambassador Brittni Anderson, an environmental advocate who serves on the board of the Buffalo Women of Environmental Learning and Leadership, the program is an opportunity to ensure every resident enjoys the benefits of trees – particularly those living on the East Side, where her efforts are focused.

A professional in the health care sector, Anderson says the health benefits of trees have resonated with the residents she’s met out in the community. “Low-income neighborhoods are already at a health disadvantage,” she says. “Why wouldn’t we take all the benefits a tree has to offer to those who need it most?”

According to UBRI research, Buffalo’s trees are estimated to prevent 100 incidents of asthma attacks and acute respiratory symptoms per year by filtering air pollution. Trees also drastically reduce Urban Heat Island effects, with tree-lined neighborhoods as much as nine degrees cooler in the summer months compared to those with the fewest trees. Says Anderson, recalling her childhood spent playing on Buffalo’s tree-lined streets: “What an unfortunate thing it would be if kids can’t go outside to play because it’s too hot.”

Outreach team members report that while some residents are enthusiastic, others are ambivalent, noting concerns about maintenance, such as watering and pruning. “Buy-in is needed from the resident,” says Anderson. “I think that’s why we’re here. It’s so important for the person requesting the tree to make that investment – in the tree, but also in themselves and in their own communities so that all can continue to live in a thriving neighborhood. That’s the work this program is doing – laying the foundation for a better future.”

That future includes UB students Olivia Okwudili and Wema Kiboino, who have found inspiration through their work supporting the project’s educational campaign.

“All of this work is in service of making urban forestry feel accessible, relevant, and community owned,” says Okwudili, a student in the MS in Real Estate Development program whose research, writing, and design is behind the project’s social media presence and educational materials. “I design each piece of content to meet residents where they are, draw them deeper into the initiative, and ultimately move them toward requesting a tree. This project has reinforced for me that re-treeing a city is not simply an environmental act, it is a community wealth-building act. Being able to contribute to the community that I live and work in has been genuinely formative.”

Kiboino, a graduate of the BA in Environmental Design program and current Master of Architecture student, supports the project’s outreach events and crafts its website content, from street tree species profiles to best practices in tree care. She says on-the-ground engagement in the community is a direct application of her education. “My academic training in these fields emphasizes the value of participatory design as an approach that invites community members to play an active role in shaping their environment. The interactions we have with residents provide valuable insight into their perceptions, aspirations for their communities, and perspectives on this initiative, which then inform our approach. Ultimately, the Buffalo Street Trees project reinforces the role of community participation in successful urban and environmental initiatives.”

Htoo says one of the added benefits of the program and the community conversation its fostering is continuous improvement in Buffalo’s request-a-tree program and broader reforestation efforts. “We take the comments and ideas we hear from the community and bring them back to the city. Community engagement is like a never-ending feedback loop – testing out new ideas, seeing what works, getting more input, and adjusting again.”

Members of the public interested in getting involved have a range of options. In addition to requesting their own tree, residents can invite the Buffalo Street Trees team to community meetings, organize a blockwide planting with their neighbors, or spread the word with downloadable flyers and social media posts. Buffalo Street Trees also closely coordinates with and encourages participation in other tree-planting efforts in the region, including a largely volunteer-run campaign led by Re-Tree Western New York and the Buffalo Green Fund, public space greening efforts by the Olmsted Parks Conservancy and Ralph Wilson Park Conservancy, and an Erie County initiative to advance climate resilience through urban gardens and forests. Learn more at buffalotrees.org   

In the meantime, if you come across a tree tagged by the Buffalo Street Trees initiative, say “hello” to your new neighbor and scan the QR code to learn more about the dozens of tree species – from Ruby Red Horsechestnuts to Sawtooth Oaks – coming soon to a street near you.