sustainable. our school needs to be held accountable. any serious plan moving forward has to include hiring two bilingual certified teachers for that many kids. the district must support parents and children with an immediate plan to keep our classroom safe and sane. our kids learning and thriving and parents are appreciated and valued. thank you for your time. 's. >> [speaking spanish] >> good evening. my name is jessica ortega and i am the mother of a fifth-grader at monro. [speaking spanish]

>> voice of translator: i'm here because i am very concerned and i realize that there are parents of other ethnicities that are just as concerned, not just latino parents in what is happening. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: as the other parents mentioned, we have gone through at least three principles and this has caused the school to become unbalanced and uncontrolled. the current principal lacks a proper work ethic and has not been able to handle the problems that we are facing. [speaking spanish]

>> voice of translator: i also want to express that this has also caused an emotional imbalance in both the parents and the children. it has been two weeks that we have been without a teacher and the people who have been sent, lack professional ethics and human kindness. i think that the academic portion is one part of its, by the other part is the emotional aspects that we have not focused on. [speaking spanish]

>> voice of translator: another thing that the principle has allowed is a fact that there are more than 40 children in the classroom. he comes from the musee from new york and the laws are different there. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i appreciate all of you and i

respectfully ask and hope that you will find a quick resolution to these problems because they are affecting all of the kids. a lot of my child friends are moving to other schools and i don't want to have to do that to him in his last grade at elementary school. >> good evening. my name is peter. my daughter is a fifth-grade student at munro elementary school. i am here to sound the alarm in regards to the situation that has quickly spiraled out of control under the guidance of the principal. the school year started on the 20th of august, absent of not one but 20 bilingual teachers we were promised. let me be clear. forty-one fifth-grade students started the year in an overcrowded room without a single qualified teacher.

firstly, it is worth noting the school is holding a meeting tonight to discuss this exact topic. most parents are not able to attach both meetings and many are there tonight to and are desperate to hear of any news or progress. my daughter has been a student at munro since kindergarten. it is a small school with a grunt -- great sense of community. we are grateful for the wonderful teachers that have worked tirelessly educating and shaping our daughter's future. in fact, they are sorely missed. the past seven days of schooling has been a disaster by all accounts. the third substitute teacher started this week. the overcrowded class has been reduced by some parents are choosing to take their child elsewhere. i feel ashamed that there is an element of release -- relief and hearing this terrible news. the fifth-grade students at munro elementary are being monumentally failed. i will repeat that. the fifth-grade students at munro elementary have been monumentally failed to. the communication has been disgraceful. there was no e-mail, no letter or phone call to even prepare us for the possibility of what was to unfold.

we were told by our children on the first day. no one knew where no one cared. the principal is negotiating alternatives from a position. for adjusting -- suggesting a english speaking teacher with a spanish-speaking aid is not enough. the majority of students are behind great level -- grade level and slipping quickly. trust has been broken and confidence is gone. sadly, our children are paying the price for the negligence. hopefully the union school district hears our cause of distress. the alarm bells are sounding. thank you. [applause] >> my name is danny kim. for 20 years, i was an educator. for the past six years, i have been a parent to just want to love my kids go to munro. and my son is in this fifth-grade class. for the past couple of years, he has experienced bullying. but the saving grace for my son

has been wonderful educators that have worked with him and his classmates to create a safe environment. that has been why we have trusted our school and the people who care for our kids. when my son came back this year, there was no teacher. on the first day, the sub made fun of him and another girl. the girl threw a pencil at his eye and and at that point, we knew that in that particular environment to, my son would not be safe. we are not just talking about learning, we're talking about safety. for my son, that meant i needed to pull him out and do what i needed to do as a father. that is what i did. i have given a lot to this district. he really is sad that it has come to this. my daughter is still at the school. i am glad for that. in in this case, my son has expressed the cost of that. why am here today is because i

support my fellow parents and the community at munro that something has to be done. thank you. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: good evening. my name is jasmine ortiz and i am also a mother of a student at munro. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: when the meeting started, i listened as they discussed renaming a school after our former mayor derek [speaking spanish].

>> voice of translator: i i heard a member of the board mention that when you walk into that school, you can feel the love and the joy in that school. unfortunately, that's not happening at my child's school. [speaking spanish] [speaking spanish] he was really excited -- >> voice of translator: he was really excited about seeing his friends from the previous year at exciting about meeting his teacher and excited about his last year and his promotion. [speaking spanish]

>> voice of translator: as you have heard before for the reasons stated, a lot of parents have pulled their children from the school. one of those children was my child's best friend and my son is very sad he won't be able to celebrate his graduation with him. he doesn't want to go to school. [speaking spanish]

>> voice of translator: thank you for listening to me. i want us to find a solution. i want us to find a teacher that would treat our children with the love because that is important to them. he has been learning everything. he has realized that munro was not welcoming to them. the school was dirty when they started. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: there was still posterboard and torn pieces of paper from the previous year, this year. thank you, very much. [speaking spanish]

>> voice of translator: good evening. my name is benito ortiz. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: my son is also in the fifth-grade. he is the third one, third-generation at munro. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i remember in previous years, it has always been a great school. there was even some renovations done. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i want to be direct. this problem started to watch when years. [speaking spanish]

>> voice of translator: my son was bullied and the teachers and the staff and administrators have not been doing a good job. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: and i ask you to look at all the people who were here tonight. obviously something is wrong at this time that u.s. representatives look and find what is wrong. >> good evening. i want to thank the families who came out tonight. my name is rosemary and i'm a long-term -- long time. a community member. i've been there since 2002 with

two current students that while they are and i started a fourth and fifth grade class. my daughter is an alarming of lowell at a recent college -- college graduate. i lived what what blocks from this quality advocate for services for the families and residents of district 11. the students are representative and our working class immigrant community. a community that relies heavily on education to improve lives and education of children. these families are considerate, respectful and supportive of their children's education and the schools that they attempt. it is an understatement to say this administration, the current administration is committing a grave disservice to the community. families and our students and our staff. families in this situation are experiencing unnecessary tension , frustration and sadness with the time lost at work that they have had to take off. hurrying here overwork after cleaning houses. sleepless nights, a lack of

structure. and the one place where many people look for structure in the classroom. last year the administration disregarded community input throughout the academic year and failed to call for a single community meeting prior to submitting the budget. which i addressed or informed the district about. the result of having failed to communicate and collaborate with the families and the stop has created a current situation of an unsafe and overcrowded and ineffective learning environments. the situation is not only completely chaotic but especially disruptive to the children and their families causing numerous inconveniences and moving children to other schools across town and losing friendships made over the last five years and disappointment and that public school. my husband and i really want to continue your currently, we are told to support staff pops and from time to time but they are finding the situation incredibly difficult to control or instruct they are, intern, snapping at and punishing and sometimes criticizing our children for

something that is not their fault. this set up that she has set up is not working for us. our efforts as parents to support the administration initially allowed us to go into the classroom but then told us we weren't allowed. >> thank you. >> she continues to tell us we can assist and it tells us we can't. and puts up pneumatic -- numerous obstacles. >> good evening. i want to start by reiterating something that i think the board president said that you all have equity priorities. this is an equity priority right now, right here. if you want a project for the week or the month or the year, here we are. i am a long time munro parents. my daughters in the seventh grade and my son is in the fifth-grade. the difference in their experiences has been dramatic. not only is my son a former foster youth who has been repeatedly failed by adults and public institution, but he it has now been failed by his school.

despite being on the southeast side of the city and full of immigrant families, families have done a great job at educating children. many of whom, like my son have high needs. today i cannot say that this is true. we do not educate our students the same anymore. we have lost all of our veteran spanish-speaking teachers. we can't seem to keep a principal and we are putting the lives of our children at risk. they have no teacher, and all order has been lost. i feel quite certain that if this was clarendon or another school or any westside school, any of the fancy schools, that everybody wants to go to, this would never be tolerated. we are not a rich school but we are equally, if not more committed to demanding the same quality of education as students from those westside schools and we will not be ignored. our principal talks a lot about the spanish-speaking kids in our school who are mostly in spanish immersion and how they have the lowest test scores in all areas.

if things continue as is, they will surely worsen. this is a high need population and for seven days, we have had three subs, 40 enrolled students in total chaos in the classroom, which i have witnessed. nothing about what i witnessed is acceptable and you are elected representatives who have the power to do something. at a minimum, we are asking for two certified teachers as promised by the principal and extra support staff or the fifth-grade spanish immersion class. thank you. [applause] >> thank you. thank you to all of the parents that came out for it munro. we appreciate your presence and your input. our next item is section g. i believe that is all of our public speakers. our next item is section g. the special order of business. we have not tonight. section h. is a discussion of educational issues. we have not tonight. section i is consent calendar

items are moved. we have none. section jay is the introduction of proposals to committee. altogether, we have four policies. the public and board comment on proposal. if anyone has signed up, which i have no cards at this time,. ok. all right. susan solomon. come on up. >> thank you. this is in relation to the policy for prior authorization to use personal belongings at school and reimbursement if they get lost or stolen. i just wanted to make sure that the board knows that there is a contract provision and both the search to vacated unclassified contract that says the following

this is article 14.4.5 active certificate and 15.2.6 at classifieds. the district shall reimburse a teacher or a pair just a educator for damages or theft resulting from attack, assault of physical threats, robbery or vandalism when said damage or theft occurs in the line of duty , including supervision without fault of the teacher. it is possible that i am misreading the policy, but it seems to me that this policy will only provide reimbursement if the personal belonging is being directly used for instruction. the contract doesn't specify that it is a belonging that is being used for instruction. thank you. >> thank you. item two is board policy 3350. and play travel expenses and work policy.

item three is board policy 5148, childcare and development at preschool early childhood education. can i hear a motion and a second for first reading? >> moved. >> second. >> thank you. unless i hear otherwise from council, we will be sending these policies to the rules policy and legislative committee ok. thank you. section k.'s proposal for immediate action and suspension of the rule. there are none tonight. section l is our board member process reports. appointment of commissioners to committee. at this time, we would like to announce that all of the board committees will remain the same. we made a leadership decision to

keep the committees in the same order because of the transition of board members which will occur in january and new appointments will be made in january. so just to reiterate the current committees and their chairs, buildings and grounds and services, i will continue to chair with matt haney. curriculum and program commissioner norton will chair with commissioner cook. rules policy and legislation, commissioner sanchez will chair with commissioner cook and commissioner ross say. the ad hoc committee on student assignments will be chaired with commissioner haney and commissioner norton. personal matters, labour relations and affordability, the vice president will chair with commissioner sanchez and commissioner norton. and the ad hoc school district city college joint committee will continue to be chaired by

myself and trustee, alex randolph. we will be with commissioner haney and commissioner norton and trustee selby. and the city college oversight committee will actually josh i currently am on but i have resigned from it. and commissioner cook and the vice president -- vice president cook will be taking that position as soon as we transition over. that will be the committees going forward. please let us know if you have any questions. item two, standing committees. we have no meetings that have taken place as a last board meeting except for buildings and grounds and we announced all of the action items on the apps. forge, two membership organizations. does anyone have any updates on that? and the other reports by board

members? vice president cook. >> i just wanted to wish everyone a happy first week of the year and on friday, i have been presuming my friday morning school sight visits. i would like to thank the tenderloin community school of san francisco and the chinese immersion school for welcoming me. i will be attending other schools this friday. also, on the first day of school , i attended wallenberg high school and another elementary school. i would like to thank them for welcoming me. the last thing is i'm a proud member of the san francisco mentor for success program. and my student is in the western indigestion. i got him a fortnight backpack to start the school year. apparently it grows in the dark which i did not know until he told me.

if you are not into the program, i encourage you to participate. >> any others? i too want to thank hillcrest and francisco even though the superintendent sounded like he went by himself like he was generous to let me join him. i want to thank both of those school communities for allowing us to be there on the first day of school. i also just wanted to welcome our new deputy superintendent two has disappeared. see how special she is. i just want to welcome her to our group and -- there she is. [laughter] you have cheesecake in your teeth? yeah. [applause] >> welcome and congratulations on your new role. i'm looking forward to working with you. any other announcements by board members?

ok. calendar of committee meetings. are there any upcoming meetings to announce. >> rules committee will be meeting on thursday, september 6 th at 6:00 pm. >> other meetings? anything scheduled at this time? no. section m. is other informational items. we have no reports tonight. it is a memorial adjournment. there is no memorial adjournment tonight. at this time, will take public comments for those who have submitted speaker cards for close session items. we have none this evening. section o.'s closed sessions of the board will go into closed session. we will be back.

>> they get the authority at the district to be omitted.

section q. is adjournment. this meeting is adjourned. thank you.

>> good morning sunshine. all right. let me begin by introducing myself. i am mohammed nuru, the director of san francisco public works. [cheers and applause] >> i want to welcome you. we are here today to celebrate urban forest and the many benefits that trees bring to the environment. volunteers joined city workers in the tenderloin and the south of market this morning to plant 80 trees.

among those trees were at the london breed tree. [laughter] >> and myrtle woods. today we will all have an opportunity to do a little planting also. today, we are also expanding our urban forest. as thousands of delegates are coming to town for the upcoming global climate action summit. our mayor, london breed, has made environmental stewardship a cornerstone of her administration and is making sure that san francisco continues to lead the fight against global warming. let's give her a hand for her leadership. [cheers and applause] >> we are honored to have her here with us this morning. without further ado, let's welcome our mayor back london breed. [cheers and applause]

>> mayor breed: thank you all for being here today. you know, randy just asked me, why am i and the tenderloin almost every day we i was here cleaning up on saturday, i continue to do walks in this neighborhood and a make phone calls to many of the city officials because we know that there are a lot of challenges, not just in the city, but especially in this community. this community needs a lot of love. we have to continue to provide the support correct bring the attention here and supports many of the residents here. i am committed as mayor to doing that. thank you, mohammed for choosing this location. this week is the global action climate summit which is taking place right here in san francisco. people from all over the world, not just the united states, will be here in san francisco, to talk about ways in which we can improve our environment.

san francisco can't do it alone. we need partners all over the world to take real action appeared here in san francisco, we have been a leader in environmental change. [cheers and applause] >> mayor breed: i am proud that san francisco is joining with other cities, state and regional governments to promote the policies to protect our environment. locally, we are confronting climate change on several fronts from embracing green building practices, to leading the nation in zero waste efforts, to working to meet our 100% energy goal through clean power ss. if you haven't joined already, please join and become a super green power member. [cheers and applause] >> mayor breed: another way we support our environment, is supporting a thriving urban

forest. trees combat climate change by removing carbon dioxide from the air, storing carbon and releasing oxygen into the atmosphere. they also improve air quality. we will show how, with data, here in a little bit, that thanks to the tree benefits calculator, which i just heard of, data that clearly shows these trees are key in helping to save our environment. planting more trees not only improves the environment, it also makes our neighborhood greener and more beautiful. every neighborhood in san francisco should have a thriving urban forest. the city is committed to working with our nonprofit partners like friends friends of the urban forest, to plant trees throughout our city. [applause] >> mayor breed: earlier this morning, as mohammed nuru said,

we planted over 80 trees in the tenderloin and south of market neighborhood. [cheers and applause] >> mayor breed: these trees join over 250,000 trees, not only in our city, but also in our parks. in 2016, san francisco voters passed at the street tree san francisco initiative which sets aside $19 million a year to maintain and care for our street trees. we just didn't pass it at the ballot, the ballot manager got nearly 80% of the vote in the person who lead that effort is right here with us today. state senator, scott wiener. [applause] >> mayor breed: the overwhelming support for this measure shows our community's desire to take care of the trees we have, as well as planting new ones. growing our urban forest will help us meet to goals of the

global climate action summit. creating sustainable communities , and promoting transformative climate investments. the summit is a great catalyst for real action to make a difference in protecting our earth and i hope you can join us at any of the many events that will be taking place all week throughout our city. thank you all so much for being here today. and now, at this time, i want to introduce, senator scott wiener kahclo again, as i said, authored a bill that helped provide the $19 million to take care of our trees when he was a member of the board of supervisors. he has been a leader in san francisco and is now a leader in sacramento, pushing for the record numbers of legislation that will help san francisco become a better place, and especially for our planet. ladies and gentlemen, state senator, scott wiener. [cheers and applause]

>> thank you, mayor breed. i really want to say how proud i am to be a san franciscan for many it, many reasons. but having a mayor who deeply cut deeply gets it when it comes to climate, makes me very proud. thank you for all of your incredible work. [applause] >> i also want to welcome to san francisco and the tenderloin, my colleague assembly member, eduardo garcia from the coachella vallie area. who last year authored a marquee climate bill. he is a real leader on climate. one of the real honours of serving in the legislature, is in addition to representing this community, you work with people from all over the state and you have to try to learn and understand the different communities. they are all very different.

different than your own. one thing that is for sure is that when it comes to climate, when it comes to the problems that climate change is causing, we are all in this together. it might manifest in slightly different ways and in different parts of the state, but it is affecting all of us. we all have to pull together and understand each other's needs and make sure that we are addressing the existential threat. the conference is happening here in san francisco but this is about all of california, and frankly, the entire world. about whether we will stop strangling this planet and keep it alive and healthy and vibrant for our kids and our grandkids and i were great grandkids and whether we will really have that forward-looking approach planned for the future and make sure people can live here. i also want to say that i want to join in my gratitude that this is happening in the tenderloin.

although i did not represent the tenderloin on the board of supervisors, i always made sure to know what the challenges were in this neighborhood. they are many. the tenderloin and south of market as well, there's not enough open space. a lot of kids but not a lot of open space. not nearly enough trees and streets that aren't very safe. too many people are being injured and killed in streets on the tenderloin and south of market and we have all been working very hard to have a new great open spaces. new parks. more trees. traffic calming so we understand that the neighborhoods are not just about the cars that go through but the people who live here and the children who are here every day. so i want to thank -- [applause] >> i want to thank public works and recreation and park for the changes to the urban forest for all of us working together to

make sure that the tenderloin and other neighborhoods are clean, green, healthy unlivable for everyone. thank you, very much. [applause] >> thank you, scott. trees net incredible environmental benefits. one way could we have been able to qualify this is with the tree benefits calculator. i will ask erica, our natural resource specialist with dave eat treat company and with the usda forest service to come up and demonstrate how this tree benefits calculator works. where is erica clete come on up. [applause] >> thank you, so it is a software suite that was developed by the u.s. forest service. it came out in 2006. it has been around for quite a while. we have several different tools within it. some very entry-level tools and

some that are more comprehensive but the point of them is to assess the urban forest and then to tell the benefits about them so we can use it for advocacy and management purposes. so if you guys want to play along, you can get your mobile devices out. you need to use chrome or firefox. and madame mayer, you might want to play along with. >> mayor breed: ok. >> so you can turn this on. and i have it set up. i will go back. this is i tree planting. google it. and then hit on start a project. he will get to the location tab. we want to point in our location can you see that klee. >> she is filling out the different drop-down menus. we do it by state and then

county level, city level. perfect, yet -- yes. you can scroll through to the next button and what you've got on the next page is the project parameters. those are the basic ones. they are already filled in for us. you can change them if you want to but we will keep them as they are right now. and then we've got where we can fill in the tree. do you want to pick one of the trees that was planted klee sycamore or brisbane klee ? >> mayor breed: so many trees. >> there is quite a big list of their. >> mayor breed: i'm not on the list we ? >> you are not on the list. i did look up the box trees.

those are both in the drop-down menu. if a tree is not on here that you want to use, then you will want to pick a similar species in size, structure and whether or not it is deciduous. >> mayor breed: we will pick sycamore right here. all right. so now you can put you in it is flush to the building. this will give us energy bit it -- information. it cannot be a detriment to the building if it is an evergreen tree that is blocking son in the wintertime. that can be a detriment to your energy savings. we will go ahead and keep the species. built after 1980. i doubt that building is like that but we will keep it and there peerk unless you want to change it. it probably just has heat.

let's say the tree is an excellent condition. it is probably in part son. you can use that drop-down. it is probably with all the buildings around here. that is the end of that tab where you are on the tree tab and then you hit next. you get all of the output. then you can see here, you have your summary of what we put in, we have estimated, for 40 years, with the benefits will be, and then you can't -- here we go. we are talking about carbon. this tree, in 40 years, i think we originally put in it was 1 inch. in 40 years, this tree would grow and give us an avoidance of 595 pounds of carbon dioxide. that is huge. on the sequestration is 720

pounds. the avoided is what is avoided from energy output. you don't have to keep that building. the power plant is not putting out those emissions. the tree is doing the work for it. and then you can scroll across the top here and you can do the other categories. you can do air pollution, rainfall interception, biomass, storm water damage. there's lots of other benefits that come out of this. [cheers and applause] >> thank you for playing along. >> mayor breed: of course. now i know how to use it. >> it is important that we know how to use the tree benefit calculator because we are able to know how much carbon offset we have. that carbon offset turns into caps on it allows us to buy more trees and continue to grow our tree canopy which san francisco desperately needs. growing the tree canopy so we can be compared to other cities. we will get there peerk these

tree calculator is going to make this happen, right? thank you for all that. next we will hear from mark. he is executive director of city forest credit. it is an organization which helps companies reduce carbon footprints by funding tree planting initiatives in the fight against global warming. come on up. [applause] >> thank you, very much. there is one group that is not here that we want to be here. that is the corporate citizens of san francisco. they are here? great. thank you, very much for those of you that are here. because public funding is stretched to the max. we need to find out a way to bring in corporate residence and corporate citizens to help us keep san francisco healthy, green and equitable. my organization is a nonprofit in seattle. we are making it possible for

local projects during carbon plus credits. we hope to generate a whole new source of generating revenue for urban forest. so i will keep it quick. and let jenna take over. [applause] >> ok. before i bring you up, thank you for keeping that quick. i know all of you know that green urban forest is not about one government agency or one organization or a group of volunteers. it takes a commitment from all of us. like they say, it takes a village, it takes all of us. just for tree planting today, we had a lot of great parties. i will start with the public works department. the burke bureau of urban forestry for taking the lead. [applause] >> we have, from the department of environment, commissioners,

directors and all staff for helping us. please give them a hand. [applause] >> we have a nonprofit partner, friends of the urban forest. thank you very much for coming out. [applause] >> we have city forest credit his, who you heard from. we have california relief, and we have california urban forest. we also had many volunteers from the neighborhood. excitement. simon and the tenderloin community benefit district, thank you all for being a great neighbor. i know you will help look after those trees that we planted. i'm counting on you. and our friends at u.c. hastings college. they were also out today in numbers helping us. let's give them a big hand. [applause] >> another partner who we will hear from is my friend, mr clean s.f. and we have mr parks here

as well. phil ginsberg is a general manager of recreation and park. we have over 131,000 trees and 4,000 acres. let's hear from phil ginsburg. thank you. [applause] >> thank you mohammed. we are the recreation and park department are very proud to be part of the green team. captained by our mayor mayor, my favourite tree. [laughter] >> but with the incredible partnership and help of private and public partners. and mohammed's incredible leadership. it does take a village, as mohammed noted. he also noted that we have 131,000 trees in our park land in san francisco on 4,000 acres of parkland. these 131,000 trees were planted over 150 years in the very birth of this city's park system.

interesting that we have about ten trees or so that surround the spots. this used to be a parking lot 30 years ago. and now admittedly, it is a fixer upper, but if you come back because we break ground on a beautiful renovation to the site in january with mohammed's partnership and we hope to cut a ribbon on a beautiful new space with even more trees here in july of 2019. [applause] >> as everybody noted and as the benefits calculator will verify, our trees absorb co2 and other air pollutants. but they also have absorb stormwater. every 100 mature trees observes 200,000 gallons of rainwater. yet another strategy in our fight against climate change. also not referenced in the incredible biodiversity that we have in our canopy.

in the panhandle alone, which is essentially a botanical garden, we have 65 different species of trees. and as important as trees are, it is not the only strategy to fighting climate change. they are just one piece of the puzzle. it includes waste diversion. the parks department diverts 97% and reuses 97% of the greenways. [cheers and applause] >> i'm very proud to say, that in 2021, golden gate park will be the largest urban park in the nation maintained entirely through recycled water. [cheers and applause] >> together, we are all doing our part. for this neighborhood, there is so much love and attention and a push like never before to create healthier communities. in addition to all the trees that were planted, and in addition to this playground renovation cap just a few blocks away, it is another playground

which undergoes a renovation and january 9th -- of 2019 as well we celebrate other parts. there are elements of health and vibrancy just blossoming in this neighborhood. the last thing i want to say is it is really important. it is one thing to plant a tree and another thing to maintain it we need to be so thankful and appreciative of the men and women in public works and at recreation and park at all of the volunteers to help us maintain the urban canopy, and representing the recreation and parks department are two of our most incredible and devoted gardeners. thank you for being on the ground and keeping our planet healthy. thank you, everybody. [applause] >> thank you. thank you, very much. also helping sponsor today's tree planting event, is the american forest. it is a nonprofit conservationist organization.

joining us from american forest is the president and c.e.o. of the organization. welcome, john. [applause] >> thank you. although i come from that strange place called washington d.c. where people aren't sure if climate change is real, i can tell you that it is. and that those of you standing over there in the shade are enjoying this surprisingly hot september day in san francisco a lot more than the folks are standing in the blazing sun. which is why a lot of folks headed off under that tent which is like a fig tree. when we think about what urban forest means for climate change, we need to think into lanes. we need to think about climate action and what they're doing to slow climate change down and we need to think in terms of climate justice. whether -- whether there are protection for climate change impacts. even here in san francisco there are extremely hot days. and what they can do to bring shade and other protection.

i will tell you, even though i am from far away, i feel this one in my soul. my grandmother lived here in the tenderloin for 30 years, working for the city of san francisco. she was a real champion for equity and diversity in this city. i knew -- i know if she were here today she would think about what we are doing and it would be the perfect synergy of climate action and climate justice. i want to give you a couple of numbers to hold onto. we talked about really local numbers and what can one tree duke. i to roll that up a bit. here is your first number. 7.2%. urban trees across america reduce energy use for heating and cooling by seven to -- by 7.2%. translate that in your head to the carbon initiative. he did not have to use all that energy for heating and cooling our homes. the next number is 100 million. that is the metric tons of carbon dioxide that are

sequestered by urban trees all across america, every single year. that is about two% -- 2%. one of the most powerful things we can do is what we're doing right here. bringing more tree canopy cover into the city and taking better care of the tree canopy cover. i will give you one more number, and this one speaks about climate justice issues. the number is ten. there was research done by some folks at the rollins university a public health. they project about by the middle of the century, not some high-tech -- fantastical time in the future, we will see a tenfold increase in heat related deaths. guess what we that will not be among -- guess what we ? that will be predominantly people in neighborhoods like the tenderloin. that is why we need to be here planting trees for climate

action i'm planting trees for climate justice. the second thing i want to talk about is, this is another thing. this isn't about american force or about any one of the private partners or anyone in the public sector today. this is about all of us pulling together. we all came together to create this event. we have not yet had a chance to recognize the corporate partners by playing a huge role in funding this work and making up the gap in funding that we need for what money we are not getting from the public sector. we have a rich brown today from bank of america -- [applause] >> he has been an anchor to partner with organizations. we are doing the same thing all over the country. a national organization helping local organizations to be successful. that is made possible because a bank of america's support. and the other corporate partner that has helped us find this planting here today is epsilon.

these are companies that are huge champions for urban forestry across the country and they are providing part of the missing increment of funding that we need to take this work to scale. it will take all of us pulling the ropes together to fully deploy urban forest. we really thank you all for being here today to lift this issue up and lift this opportunity up and give it the attention it deserves so we can carry it forward. thank you very much. [cheers and applause] >> thank you. we are coming to the closing of our program. we have two important things left. ben and jayda will leave you -- lead you down -- around the corner to plant a tree. they left one for us to finish the job. we asked for one so we could have one. trees are very close to our

hearts. so this memorial planting is appropriate. seconds, erica will be available to talk more and show you how the tree calculator works. this is a new thing that everybody should be able to use. we can calculate how much benefit we can get if we can continue to build to the tree canopy and build the streets of san francisco. thank you very much for coming and i appreciate everyone. thank you. [cheers and applause]