THE LEAFLET

Certified Tree Advocates, volunteers who have completed Casey Trees’ advocacy training requirements, get all sorts of fun perks. These hard-working volunteers attend community meetings, write public comments, and testify at hearings to ensure trees are a top priority as we plan for growth in Washington, D.C. In return, we offer Certified Tree Advocates exciting opportunities to sit down with decision makers, learn new skills, and celebrate their successes.

Most recently, through a partnership with Anacostia Watershed Society, Certified Tree Advocates took to the water. Captain Matt Gallagher, Anacostia Watershed Society’s Manager of Community-Based Restoration, toured our band of merry advocates up and down the Anacostia River while discussing how trees and green spaces manage flooding, filter stormwater, reduce pollution, and much, much more:

A pre-boat tour shot of the group in Yards Park with the Anacostia River in the background and London Plane trees in the foreground.

Captain Matt piloting the tour boat, with Fort McNair and Southwest D.C. to the left.

Just before this photo was taken, we learned that the shade cast by riverside and streetside trees cools water, creating a better habitat for aquatic species.

Duck! High tide might make it tricky to get through this underpass.

Trees hard at work on Haines Point, absorbing a higher-than-usual tide from recent heavy rains.

Captain Matt explaining that one medium-sized maple tree absorbs and manages 2,500 gallons of stormwater per year. Each year D.C.’s trees filter over 300 million gallons of stormwater, or about 500 Olympic size swimming pools.

To round out the evening, we caught the sunset and a view of the Washington Monument at the confluence of the Anacostia and Potomac rivers.

Interested in becoming a Certified Tree Advocate so you can influence local policies and development projects? Join us for Stand Up for Trees, held twice a year in early summer and late fall. This workshop is the first step towards becoming a Certified Tree Advocate with Casey Trees. After the workshop, take just four advocacy actions and you’ll become Casey Trees’ next Certified Tree Advocate! As a Certified Tree Advocate, you’ll gain access to tools and resources to bolster your advocacy work and receive exclusive invitations to advocacy classes and events. This way, we can work together to ensure that D.C. continues to be the City of Trees.