The Brown Bag Lunch Series is a monthly webcast held at the lunch hour. The goal is to provide informal training opportunities for local urban and community forestry practitioners. The trainings highlight successful programs and practices that you may want to adopt in your community.

ACT member organizations engage thousands of volunteers nationwide to transform cities for the better. Together, members of Alliance for Community Trees have planted 7.8 million trees in cities, with help from 450,000 volunteers. We're proud of our collective achievements, but there is much more work to be done to make our cities healthy, sustainable, and successful.

National NeighborWoods Month is a united campaign to celebrate trees and raise awareness for the value of urban forests. During October, ACT member groups across the U.S. will engage thousands of volunteers in stewardship events and educational programs, communicating a shared message that trees are essential to the health and livability of communities.

August 8-9, 2008
Kellogg West Conference Center & Lodge
Pomona, CA
Registration deadline: July 25, 2008

The Alliance for Community Trees, Arbor Day Foundation, and California ReLeaf are teaming up to offer an intensive two-day training program focused on the needs of nonprofits, service groups, volunteer coordinators, and community organizers engaged in urban and community forestry.

Faith-based Advocacy: Galvanizing Communities to End Childhood Obesity, an initiative of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, supports faith-based coalitions (Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, interfaith) to advance community policies or environmental changes that improve access to healthy foods and/or opportunities for physical activity.

Do Something is inviting America's middle and high schools to reduce their carbon footprint this fall through the "Increase Your Green" competition. Participants must make concrete efforts toward reducing the environmental impact of their school during the eight-week competition. All initiatives must be youth-designed and -led. A representative from each group must submit an online report of the school or club's actions to save energy, reduce waste, and raise awareness during the competition.

The mission of the Melinda Gray Ardia Environmental Foundation is to support educators in developing environmental curricula that integrate field activities and classroom teaching and that incorporate basic ecological principles and problem solving. Grants are in amounts of up to $1,500 each.

The PepsiCo Foundation primarily supports nonprofit organizations located in U.S. communities where company employees live and work. The emphasis of the Environment category is water resource management in developing nations. The Thought Leadership category supports research initiatives that address issues critical to the betterment of society.

The Patagonia Environmental Grant Program provides support to small, grassroots activist organizations with provocative direct-action agendas, working on multi-pronged campaigns to protect the environment. Patagonia primarily funds local groups working to protect local habitats in the United States.

TogetherGreen is a new National Audubon Society program to build conservation leadership, engage people in conservation action, and achieve lasting conservation results. The program is open to all members of the Audubon network (certified Chapters, state and national programs, and Center programs) as well as independent Audubon entities that wish to form a cooperative arrangement with National Audubon Society for this purpose. However, an important requirement for all grantees is the significant involvement of an additional partner-organization outside the Audubon network that will allow us to reach new audiences and increase the impact of project results.

College Park, MD (July 1, 2008)- Grab your camera and document urban forestry in action during NeighborWoods Month. Send us your most dramatic, artistic, and heartfelt photographs that capture the spirit of volunteerism through NeighborWoods. If we pick your image, you will win $500. In addition, we will post your winning photo on our website and on future NeighborWoods promotional literature. Photos can be landscape or profile, action or portrait, individual or group, etc. Before submitting, please be sure to read the contest rules.

The Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics is an educational, nonprofit organization dedicated to the responsible enjoyment and active stewardship of the outdoors by all people worldwide. Connect Grants provide direct support and training grants for organizations and people that serve culturally diverse communities. Grant awards range between $500 and $2,500 and can be used for Leave No Trace educational materials and/or to cover the tuition of a Master Educator Course.

The Union Pacific Foundation's mission is to improve the quality of life in the communities served by Union Pacific Railroad, primarily in the Midwestern and Western United States. Through the Community-Based Grant Program, the Foundation provides grants in the following areas of interest: Community and Civic, Fine Arts, and Health and Human Services.

National NeighborWoods Month is a united campaign to celebrate trees and raise awareness for the value of urban forests. During October, tree groups across the U.S. will engage thousands of volunteers in stewardship events and educational programs, communicating a shared message that trees are essential to the health and livability of communities. Last year, NeighborWoods Month staged 235 events in 62 cities, engaging over 15,000 volunteers in hands-on service to care for city forests.