March Community Day 2025
All our amazing volunteers!
Our March 2025 Community Day was extra special because we partnered with San Antonio’s Department of Urban Forestry to give out 175 fruit trees in addition to 130 fresh produce bags.
Our current work is focusing on urban heat islands which are caused by urban neighborhoods having more concrete and asphalt than trees. This causes the concrete and asphalt to soak up the sun’s energy and heat up the surrounding areas. Without trees, grass, and other vegetation to combat this effect, urban areas see hotter temperatures. Hotter temperatures in addition to many working class San Antonians not being able to afford to run their ACs and/or working outside jobs means that many people don’t ever get relief from the heat. So SWU targeted neighborhoods with a Tree Equity Score of 70 or less. The areas on the Tree Equity Score map are based on Census Tracks and are assigned a score of 1-100 (with a lower score meaning less trees). By targeting neighborhoods with lower scores, we are working to get trees into areas that need them most.
We also hosted a Pop Ed class on urban heat islands, how trees help cool the areas around them, and how to care for a new tree. By doing this, we hope to increase the odds a tree from our giveaway will survive and thrive for many years to come. We also wanted our members to understand why we chose to give out trees in the first place.
