Partnership Highlights

The Greening the Gateway Cities Program (GGCP) is a collaboration of state agencies, municipalities, and non-profit partners to plant trees in the Environmental Justice neighborhoods found in the twenty-six Gateway Cities in MA. The Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) supplies grant funding to the local non-profit partners to support the GGCP through outreach, education, and community engagement. Our partners encourage residents of the designated planting zones to participate in the program and communicate the benefits of trees to a wide and diverse audience.

The competitive grant process occurs every fiscal year. The current partner organizations for the GGCP are:

Active Partners

The partners listed below work in collaboration with EEA and DCR staff on approved grant proposals that will increase the urban canopy in Gateway Cities and improve the quality of life for residents living in Environmental Justice neighborhoods.

Groundwork Lawrence

Groundwork Lawrence (GWL) has been making change happen since its beginnings in 1999. Through its environmental and open space improvements, healthy food access programs, youth education, employment initiatives, community programming and events, GWL creates the building blocks of a healthy community, and empowers residents to improve their quality of life. GWL is committed to “changing places, changing lives, and changing systems” through on-the-ground projects that help to transform local communities. To accomplish this, GWL leads and supports a variety of partnership-driven efforts that bring together the public, private, and nonprofit sectors to solve complex environmental and health problems and sustain a long-term vision for neighborhood change and renewal. In 2007, GWL launched its own Green Streets urban forestry program and, since 2016, has proudly partnered with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ Greening the Gateway Cities to plant 2800 trees in Lawrence and support outreach efforts in the neighboring city of Haverhill. GWL houses all aspects of this urban forestry effort under one roof, providing outreach and engagement, tree selection and planning, and tree planting, all conducted by GWL staff, making Lawrence unique among Greening the Gateway Cities communities. You can learn more by visiting www.groundworklawrence.org.
Groundwork Southcoast

Groundwork Southcoast (GWSC) is focused on Leadership, Stewardship, and Community Engagement by investing in environmental leadership of youth in the south coast of Massachusetts. Through employing youth to work and lead in their community we strive to build racial and social equity in our environmental justice neighborhoods. One of our target neighborhoods in which we have been working for the past four years is also the GGCP target area for New Bedford and we are excited to be a part of increasing our community tree canopy. You can learn more by visiting groundworksouthcoast.org.
Growing Places

Growing Places (GP) is a nonprofit serving North Central Massachusetts (NCMA) since 2001 that seeks to improve the health of our region through an equitable, just local food system and sustainable environment. Our volunteer-driven organization is rooted in our history of providing backyard vegetable gardens to empower residents to supply their own healthy food and improve their well-being, but we have expanded in response to community need. Today, we work to create long-term, sustainable changes in our community – changes focused on increasing fresh food access and environmental sustainability through programs such as our community gardens, mobile market, farmers markets, CSA program, HEAL Winchendon food system rebuilding initiative, and outreach for Greening the Gateway Cities tree canopy program. You can learn more by visiting growingplaces.org.
Lowell Parks and Conservation Trust

LP&CT was founded in 1990 by residents with a vision to protect the natural resources upon which the city of Lowell was built. LP&CT provides conservation leadership and programs which focus on four major areas: land protection, stewardship, environmental education, and special places. Since 1995, we have planted thousands of trees throughout Lowell in partnership with the city and a variety of other agencies. We're excited that GGCP will provide the resources we need to engage residents to help us dramatically increase our impact on Lowell's urban canopy.
One Holyoke CDC

Founded in 1971, OneHolyoke CDC is a private nonprofit organization dedicated to improving housing for low- and moderate-income Holyoke residents. Since its establishment, the organization has created over 160 new homes in the Flats, Churchill and South Holyoke neighborhoods and rehabilitated hundreds of apartments and provided thousands of home improvement grants to homeowners through the Neighborhood Improvement Program. Our Community Engagement Program has launched a Holyoke Thrives/Prospera campaign focused on five core areas: Civics, Health, Education, Public Safety, and the Flats Community Building. In each area, our strategic plan outlines a variety of methods to address the needs of the Holyoke community. You can learn more by visiting www.oneholyoke.org.
ReGreen Springfield

Through our tree advocacy efforts, ReGreen Springfield has collaborated with businesses, community organizations, educational partners and government agencies to promote the reforestation of Springfield, improve growing conditions for trees and engage new allies in tree care and monitoring, education and citizen science. We realize that the strength of our city is found in the neighborhoods. The Greening the Gateway Program is one of our most important neighborhood engagement and greening programs. With this as the foundation for our work, we have embarked on an effort to ‘regreen’ the city… one tree at at time. You can learn more by visiting regreenspringfield.org.
Salem Sound Coastwatch

Salem Sound Coastwatch is a coastal watershed non-profit that promotes environmental awareness and stewardship through partnerships with residents, municipalities, state and federal agencies, and other NGOs. Salem Sound Coastwatch is excited to be working the City of Salem, DCR and the Greening Gateway City Program. Leading the way to a healthier sea and shore for over 30 years, Salem Sound Coastwatch mobilizes volunteer efforts that engage people with their environment to make local change happen. Here are some of the ways this is accomplished: • Promoting environmentally friendly landscaping practices that reduce stormwater runoff while conserving water and reducing chemicals • Focusing efforts on greening urban spaces and increasing urban tree canopy by promoting more trees and better tree maintenance • Connecting youth, educators and community members to their local watershed, coastal and ocean ecosystems through hands-on, place-based learning to build greater engagement with nature and science • Working to increase community resilience to climate change through education, adaptive planning and local actions.
Westfield Puerto Rican Association WEPRA

The Westfield Puerto Rican Association (WEPRA inc.) is a nonprofit 501C3 organization that advocates for the education, history, and culture of the Puerto Rican community of Westfield, MA. We provide college scholarships to Latino Westfield residents and raise the flag of Puerto Rico every year. We love our community of Westfield! Several years ago, we joined with DCR and EEA as volunteers at the Westfield Farmer’s Market to advocate for tree plantings and to sign up folks interested in planting new trees. You can learn more by visiting www.wepra.org.

Grant Recipients

Partners of Greening the Gateway Cities Program work at the direction of the Foresters of the Department of Conservation and Recreation to implement this energy conservation project.

Legacy Partners

Partners of Greening the Gateway Cities Program work at the direction of the Foresters of the Department of Conservation and Recreation to implement this energy conservation project. (Something to clarify the relationship between DCR and NGO).