THE LEAFLET

When we drink a glass of water, write in a notebook, take medicine for fever, or build a house, we do not always make the connection with forests. And yet, these and many other aspects of our lives are linked to forests in one way or another. Around 1.6 billion people – including more than 2,000 indigenous cultures – depend on forests for their livelihoods, medicines, fuel, food, and shelter. Globally forests are key to combating climate change and contribute to the prosperity and well-being of current and future generations.

While DC’s 2 million trees are busy, they need all the help they can get. We need your help to make DC a sustainable city with an impressive canopy. Help us protect the trees of our urban forest and enable them to fight the threats they face from climate change, disease, pests, and development. Support our work at caseytrees.org/give.

In fact, DC’s hardworking urban forest:

• Has over two million trees
• filters enough rainwater to fill 502 Olympic size swimming pools
• is worth about $2.4 billion. Yes. Billion.
• is one of the most cost-effective and efficient natural climate solutions.
• stores 649,000 tons of carbon which is equivalent to 2,381,830 tons of Carbon Dioxide every year. That’s equivalent to removing 506,772 vehicles from the road. If you were to line those vehicles up end to end they would stretch from Boston to Miami.
• Saves city residents a cool $3.5 million annually in energy costs by shading our workplaces, roads, churches, sidewalks, schools, parks, and homes.
• Encourages positive mental health and well-being of all residents.

Too often we don’t think of trees as public infrastructure, but in a very real sense, they are. From improving air quality, lowering temperatures, absorbing stormwater, and providing mental health benefits, trees are not just nice to have or nice to look at. When you support Casey Trees you’re giving an everlasting gift to city residents, visitors, and wildlife.