Building Careers and Canopies
Holistic workforce development for a nature-filled future
Location: Watts
Timeline: 2023 – 2026
Funded By: California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CALFIRE)
Project Partners: Watts Labor Community Action Committee, City Plants, City of Los Angeles
Building Careers and Canopies will train and employ at least 30 formerly incarcerated individuals who will participate in training and vocational support as well as planting and maintaining much-needed urban forestry projects in Watts.
Key Project Benefits:
Community based programming led by a community organization which has a fifty year history in serving Watts residents
Planting and maintaining 300 shade trees in areas that currently have as little as zero percent tree canopy coverage
Distributing 500 free trees and educating residents about water-efficient maintenance
Removing 2,453 metric tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, the equivalent to taking 529 gasoline-powered cars off the road for a year
Experts teaching vocational, nursery, and urban forestry skills using specially designed curriculum and participatory outdoor learning approaches
Participant certifications in chainsaw safety, occupational safety and health, tree care safety, firefighter training, wildland fire behavior, and first aid and CPR
Paid employment for all participants during the project and job placement support upon completion
Building on our existing work in Watts which has included the planting of several thousand trees in 2021 and 2022