The Impact of Trees on Health, the Environment & Their Cultural Significance
As Earth Month began, we asked a big question: What kind of world do you want to leave behind? Our answer? A world that’s cooler, cleaner, healthier — and filled with trees. In Week 1 of our Earth Month campaign, The World We Leave Behind, we explored the essential role trees play in shaping a more sustainable and equitable future. From the air we breathe to the cultural stories we carry, trees impact nearly every part of our lives.
With insight from SUGi CEO Elise Van Middelem, here’s what we explored this week:
1. Trees Are a Natural Solution to a Global Problem 🌳
Rising CO₂ levels. Soaring urban temperatures. Declining biodiversity. These are just a few of the environmental challenges we face today — and trees address every one of them.
In the words of Elise Van Middelem, CEO of SUGi, an organization bringing pocket forests to urban areas around the world:
“With temperatures all around the world — especially in cities — rising to new levels, trees and urban forests offer a natural solution to the challenges we face. They cool and clean the air, capture CO₂, emit oxygen, and filter airborne pollutants through their dense canopies.”
A single tree might not seem like much. But together? They’re nature’s infrastructure for a livable planet.
2. Tree Equity Is a Matter of Public Health & Environmental Justice 🌆
One of the most striking lessons from this week is that not everyone has equal access to trees.
In many U.S. cities, a map of tree coverage is also a map of inequality. Another Healthy Planet partner of ours, American Forests, coined the word, “Tree Equity,” to describe a troubling phenomenon: Low-income neighborhoods and communities of color often have fewer trees and less access to green space — making them more vulnerable to extreme heat, air pollution, and poor health outcomes.
This disparity is known as the urban heat island effect, and it’s a direct consequence of systemic disinvestment in these communities. In some areas, the lack of tree canopy can make neighborhoods up to 7°F hotter than others just a few blocks away.
We believe a healthy planet starts with healthy communities. And that starts with planting more trees where they’re needed most.
3. Why Kids Need Trees to Thrive 🧒
Trees aren’t just part of the environment — they’re essential for childhood play and development.
Studies show that children who grow up with access to green spaces are more active, more focused, and less stressed. Exposure to nature boosts creativity, imagination, and emotional resilience — key ingredients for healthy, happy kids.
That’s why green spaces and pocket forests around schools matter. SUGi has planted forests in over 140 schools, impacting 81,000 students worldwide.
“By bringing biodiversity back to playgrounds and nature into school curriculums, we can rebuild children’s connection to the natural world,” said Van Middelem. “Kids who have a stronger attachment to nature are likely to become its protectors — something we can all benefit from.” - Elise Van Middelem
4. Trees Hold Cultural and Ecological Wisdom 🌍
Across time and culture, trees have been revered as sacred symbols of strength, wisdom, and life. Many Indigenous traditions consider trees relatives — keepers of memory and medicine.
But today, as cities sprawl and green spaces shrink, this cultural connection is being lost. Rewilding with native plants helps restore both ecosystems and heritage.
“We often collaborate with Indigenous communities to understand what plant life was once there,” Van Middelem shared. “And in some instances, we create nurseries to restore these lost species.”
Pocket forests, like the ones popping up in city neighborhoods, don’t just offer environmental benefits. They revitalize local culture and give communities a tangible sense of place and pride.
Marylee Smunitee Jones holds space at the planting of the Northside Healing Forest in North Minneapolis.
The Takeaway: The Future Is Rooted in Trees 🌲
This week, we were reminded that trees are more than just part of the landscape. They’re part of the solution.
They clean our air. Cool our cities. Support our mental health. Protect our children. Preserve culture. And offer a way forward in the face of climate change.
As Life Time CEO Bahram Akradi said in his feature in Experience Life Magazine:
"Let’s keep looking to the trees. Along with the oxygen they provide, they offer living, breathing proof of how natural communities can come together to endure hardship, heal, and, in the rhythm of the seasons, flourish for generations."
The world we leave behind depends on the choices we make today. Let’s choose to grow something lasting.
Take Action 💚
Support local tree-planting and reforestation efforts
Advocate for more green space in your city or school district: See Tree Equity Score
Learn about native species and plant them in your own yard or community garden
Share this post to help spread the roots of awareness
Because the future is in our hands — and in our forests.