Community Engagement

Get City youth shared their stories about their favorite trees and made their own Tree Puppets. They critically explored “Tree Equity,” navigating  the “Tree Canopy” online in different neighborhoods in Lansing. They also conducted and analyzed a survey to gain insights into the community’s ideas and views on trees. Finally, they designed a flier to encourage the community to take action and participate in planting activities, and to foster a sense of community towards building a more sustainable community. 

My Favorite Trees & Tree Puppets Activity

While discussing their favorite trees, the youth described the locations of these trees in their surroundings, their emotions, and special memories associated with these trees, as well as how they spend time around them. They explored online three fun facts about the tree, and what they wish others knew about these trees.

The youth showed their creativity by creating puppet trees from various materials, including recyclables, fabric, and sewing supplies. They engaged in multiple funny and wise dialogues between trees, tree-kids, and the tree-community, tree-car. In this way, they are able to convey messages about the importance of trees and how to create a more sustainable environment.

Daizhanay:  My favorite tree is a hickory tree. And I liked the tree because I could climb it and have lots of fun. There used to be a hickory tree near my grandma’s house, but she decided to cut the tree down because it might fall on her house. One old lady in my neighborhood died because a tree fell on her house and her tree was taller than her house from the storms.

Amarie:  My favorite tree is an oak tree. And my favorite thing about this tree is that it gives a home to animals. So I hope people cut less trees because it might hurt the animals’ living environment. 

And I feel like we should have a lot more trees in our environment for animals to live in the trees. Without the trees, people wouldn’t be able to breathe and they’ll also affect animals and then the ecosystem […]. 

And another good  thing about trees is that the trees help  catch all of that CO2 to help us live a better environment.

Chris:  Hi my name is Christopher and my favorite tree is the apple tree. Why my favorite tree is the apple tree because we get to pick up it and after I wash up and then we get to eat it. I go to my aunt’s house mostly on Sundays. She has an apple tree at the backyard. We go to the backyard to pick them and then we wash them and sometimes we send them away or we eat them. Apple trees give me funny memories and that’s why I love the apple tree.


Conversations with trees

Sam (Tree): I cleaned 24.3 ounces of air today. What did you do today?

Amiliano (Tree): I did nothing but I got peed on today. 

Amarie(Tree): Oh my gosh, I’m so tired of people hitting me. 
Wisam: What’s your message for the car? 
Amarie(Tree): Stop hitting trees. Don’t drink and drive.
Wisam: What’s your message for the factories?
Amarie(Tree): Stop putting so much pollution into the air. 
Wisam: Why that matter? 
Amarie(Tree): Because it can affect our environment and the 
                        animals and humans that live in earth. 

Amarie: My tree is mad because anytime somebody has to do the bathroom in the wild, it was like “Go pee behind that tree go pee behind the tree.” So he’s really mad that people always pee on him. So anytime somebody comes up to him, it tries to bite them.

Taya’s tree is upset because it was littered on. Her tree is very small, the size of a finger, due to the litter. Her tree symbolizes the impact of litter, highlighting its small size.

Chris: Boo hoo hoo. My wife died from the climate change.

Artifacts of My favorite tree activity