Climate Change - American Forests

What Drives Us

Climate Change

Forests are the best nature-based solution to climate change

Photo: Marcus Kauffman, Oregon Dept. of Forestry

Why It Matters

Annually in the United States, forests and forest products capture and store almost 15% of the country’s carbon emissions from burning fossil fuels. They have the potential to capture nearly twice as much if we take such actions as planting more trees and using climate-smart practices to manage forests.

But climate change supercharges the traditional stressors on forests, making it harder to harness the full potential of forests. Pests and diseases that attack trees are prevalent, and droughts are frequent. Also, uncontrolled forest fires are larger and more severe. In California alone, more than 162 million trees have died since 2010, largely because of climate change-related stressors.

How Are We Addressing Climate Change?

Our approach to addressing climate change is three-pronged. We develop new tools and do scientific research to help solve complicated puzzles. We create place-based partnerships from cities to large forest landscapes so we can develop and implement restoration and reforestation plans. And we build movements that inspire and empower action at a large scale.

Catalyst Initiative and Fund

The Catalyst Initiative and Catalyst Fund are a key part of our promise to help at least 100 cities make meaningful progress on Tree Equity by 2030 through best-in-class tools, resources and equitable funding.

Resilient Forests

Conservation Finance

Innovative funding mechanisms can go a long way to closing the gap in funding needed to grow thriving, climate-resilient forests.

Climate Water Wildlife

Urban Forestry Technical Assistance

American Forests is helping cities around the country create effective urban forestry master plans.

Climate Equity Water

Resilient Forests

American Forests and the Girl Scouts of the USA are working together to plant 5 million trees across the United States in the next five years.

Resilient Forests

Restoring White Oaks

American Forests supports restoration projects to plant white oaks and improve their odds of survival.

Climate Water Wildlife

Resilient Forests

American Forests works to save Hi-5 pine trees, which are critical to wildlife habitat, regional water supplies and recreation.

Climate Water Wildlife

Resilient Forests

Forest Soil Carbon Initiative

Our Forest Soil Carbon Initiative determines the factors that influence forest soil carbon, and how our actions can protect and restore that carbon storehouse.

Resilient Forests

Forest Carbon Modeling

Forest carbon modeling creates detailed projections of how much carbon forests capture and how our actions can build or deplete that carbon.

Resilient Forests

Carbon Financing

American Forests is evolving how we work to better include carbon finance opportunities that address the challenging finances of reforestation-based carbon removal.

Resilient Forests

Eldorado National Forest

Since 2006, American Forests has planted more than one million trees in the Eldorado. These trees are planted according to our climate-smart principles.

Climate Water Wildlife

Resilient Forests

San Bernardino Mountains

American Forests has been restoring wildfire-ravaged forests across California’s San Bernardino Mountains for nearly two decades.

Resilient Forests

American Forests is restoring resilient forests in the Camp Fire's burn scar, site of California's deadliest wildfire.

Resilient Forests

Shared Stewardship

Shared stewardship encourages organizations to join forces and work across state, county or jurisdictional lines to protect forest landscapes and watersheds.

Climate Water Wildlife

Resilient Forests

The Reforestation Pipeline

The United States does not have the reforestation infrastructure, including nursery capacity, to meet the demand and opportunity for reforestation. How can we address this dilemma?

Climate Water Wildlife

Resilient Forests

Climate-Smart Reforestation in the Rio Grande Valley

American Forests uses a variety of tactics to grow thornforests that can better adapt to future climate conditions.

Climate Wildlife

Resilient Forests

The Reforestation Pipeline in the Rio Grande Valley

American Forests works with our partners to scale up nursery infrastructure and seed collection in the Rio Grande Valley.

Climate Wildlife

Resilient Forests

Thornforest Conservation Plan

The Thornforest Conservation Plan identifies thornforest habitat and restoration opportunities in the Rio Grande Valley.

Climate Wildlife

Resilient Forests

Climate-Smart Forest Restoration

American Forests’ climate-smart forest restoration work helps to create forests that can adapt to a changing climate.

Resilient Forests

Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge

American Forests helps restore Hakalau's mountain forests, with the specific goal of boosting habitat for endangered birds.

Climate Wildlife

American Forests is pioneering a new way to build a diverse urban forestry workforce through its city-based Tree Corps model.

Our Impact

American Forests has planted more than 65 million trees since 1990 — that's 150,000 acres of forest.

Plant Trees With Us

Get Involved

There is a lot you can do to ensure that our forests in cities and large landscapes are healthy for generations to come. Be a voice for forests.

Take Action

Support Our Work

Every gift helps American Forests restore forests in cities and large landscapes — for people, wildlife and the planet. Give today and help us protect forests for tomorrow.

Donate Today