Who We Are

Born from the vision of a teenager more than 50 years ago, TreePeople inspires people to come together to grow a more climate-resilient Southern California. We have planted and cared for millions of trees, restored thousands of acres of fire-scarred wildlands, and helped to educate hundreds of thousands of environmentalists.

When California experiences climate emergencies, TreePeople researches and implements sustainable solutions to protect and restore natural resources. When fires burn, TreePeople restores native ecosystems to grow more resilient wilderness areas and communities. When communities face extreme heat, TreePeople plants and distributes shade trees. When schools are covered in asphalt, TreePeople greens schoolyards. When students worry about the future, TreePeople provides tools and education to train our next generation of environmental leaders. As the world faces increasing threats from climate change, TreePeople helps unite communities around actionable solutions.

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What We Do

What We Do

Community Forestry

Through our urban planting and tree care events and tree distributions, we work with communities to increase tree canopy and green space where it’s most needed, building resilience in the face of climate change.

Restoration & Conservation

TreePeople trains and mobilizes thousands each year to increase the climate and fire resilience of Southern California’s wildlands. By cultivating native plants in our nursery, removing invasive species, prioritizing biodiversity, and providing long-term site management, our comprehensive restoration model helps facilitate long-term recovery for degraded sites and burn scars, assuring they are healthier and more fire-resilient for future generations.

School Greening

We create green learning environments that enhance academic achievement, support health and well-being, and create safe places to play in nature. Through partnerships with school communities and districts, we advocate for, implement, and manage school greening projects to protect students from extreme heat, air pollution, and polluted water.

Education & Outdoor Equity

Every year, TreePeople engages tens of thousands of students in parks and on campuses to teach environmental literacy and provide hands-on, actionable solutions to our climate crisis. We also offer tools to teachers so they can continue to deepen students’ understanding of our local ecosystems.

TreePeople Land Trust

We steward more than 3,000 acres of land in the Santa Monica Mountains–protecting these spaces for the benefit of future generations. Programs include public recreation, environmental education, scientific research, and more.

Policy & Advocacy

TreePeople works from the policy level to the grassroots level to facilitate science-based policies, incentives, and applicable demonstration programs to transform Southern California utilizing nature-based solutions.

Research

TreePeople’s Research Department has been at the forefront of urban environmental science for over a decade, producing scientific reports that inform and inspire action on issues like water security, soil, drought resilience, and urban heat.

Water

TreePeople supports communities in rethinking the way we manage water by modeling best watershed management practices and engaging people through education and participation in community retrofit projects. This demonstrates how our schools, homes, streets, and alleys can be transformed to improve water quality, increase water supply, and provide community benefits. We show how simple changes can protect our water, reduce pollution, and create greener spaces.

Coldwater Canyon Park

TreePeople’s 45-acre headquarters on Mulholland Drive in the Santa Monica Mountains offers nature trails, experiential education, and cultural programming and is home to TreePeople’s Native Plant Nursery.

Get Involved

Events at the Park

TreePeople events are where arts and environmental education converge in Southern California – creating a new space to explore the connections between creativity and ecology.

Learn

TreePeople has nearly 50 years worth of resources and educational materials for you to learn from and take action with. Transform your community with our handy videos, project kits, and downloadable resources.

Shop

For nearly 50 years, TreePeople has planted over 3 million trees with 3 million volunteers across Southern California. Purchasing these products helps us plant and care for the next 3 million!

Tree Dedication Cards

Looking for a way to honor, celebrate, or memorialize a loved one? Purchase physical and virtual cards to send today! Each card supports TreePeople’s mission planting trees and restoring ecosystems, educating the next generation of environmentalists, and researching for our future.

Wildfire Resilience Fund

Wildfires are a natural part of California’s landscape, but their increasing intensity threatens our forests, communities, and green spaces. At TreePeople, we are dedicated to fire resilience, working to restore fire-scarred lands, prevent future devastation, and protect the biodiversity of Southern California. Yet, we can’t do it alone—we need your help.

Donate today to TreePeople’s Wildfire Resilience Fund and be a part of the solution.

Monthly Giving

Canopy funds will directly benefit our initiatives in urban and school greening for underserved communities, support our wildfire restoration initiatives, and allow us to provide environmental education to thousands of students each year.

Blog

2025 TreePeople Gift Guide

The holidays are just around the corner, and if you’re STUMPED about what to get the environmentalist in your life, don’t fret—we have you covered!  From the granola girlie who likes to look cute while hitting the trails to the person whose whole personality is hating invasive species, we have a great gift option for…

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Help us plant THOUSANDS of native milkweed plants to save the western monarchs!

The western monarch population has reached a near record low. According to the Xerces Society, fewer than 10,000 butterflies were found overwintering in California during their annual monarch count last winter—the second lowest number recorded since tracking began in the 90s.  Unfortunately, these beloved and essential pollinators face a myriad of threats across their migratory…

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Five options for a more sustainable Christmas tree

Christmas trees are a great way to infuse your home with cheer during the holiday season. But farming real trees just to cut them down isn’t ideal—and producing a bunch of brand new plastic trees is even worse. So how can you make sure you’re celebrating in the most sustainable way possible? Here are a…

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How to find fall color in Southern California

Some people say we don’t have fall in Southern California… and it’s true our seasons do work a little differently here.  Because we have a Mediterranean-type climate, the time of year we call fall is really more like a shift from “hot and dry season” to “cool and wet season.” And because the cool season…

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