The UPS Foundation Awards Keep America Beautiful Affiliates with Community Tree Planting Grants
30 Communities Receive Grants Totaling $150,000 to Support Local Projects
STAMFORD, Conn.. June 24, 2013 /3BL Media/ – Keep America Beautiful (KAB) and The UPS Foundation today announced the recipients of the 2013 KAB/UPS Community Tree Planting Grants. Thirty grants, totaling $150,000, are being awarded to KAB affiliates throughout the country with a focus on tree planting initiatives in urban and suburban communities.
The UPS grants are part of UPS’s Global Forestry Initiative designed to plant more than 1 million trees around the world by the end of 2013.
The grant projects range from Keep Georgia Beautiful’s initiative to plant community orchards on public lands, to Keep Casper (Wyo.) Beautiful’s program to add native cottonwoods to its tree canopy, to Keep Norfolk (Neb.) Beautiful’s effort to replace trees affected by recent drought conditions. The program also links KAB affiliate organizations with local UPS employee teams who will provide essential volunteer support to plant the trees, in addition to the grant funding.
“The simple action of planting a tree results in many meaningful outcomes. For example, planting a tree within 50 feet of a residence can increase its property value,” said Becky Lyons, chief operating office, Keep America Beautiful. “Through this far-reaching tree planting initiative, The UPS Foundation is helping Keep America Beautiful to create vibrant communities made up of beautiful public places that are socially connected and economically sound.”
“Not only is Keep America Beautiful supporting our Global Forestry Initiative, but, it’s also providing local volunteer opportunities for our employees to help preserve, protect and restore forests around the nation,” said Eduardo Martinez, president of The UPS Foundation. “This is the sixth year Keep America Beautiful is a UPS Foundation grantee.”
The KAB/UPS Community Tree Planting Grant Program is one element of The UPS Foundation’s overall support of KAB, which totaled $225,000 in the past year, designed to strengthen KAB’s affiliate network. The UPS Scholarship Program was established to encourage and strengthen individual leadership of KAB affiliates by providing $1,500 scholarships to six affiliate leaders so they could attend at KAB’s 60th annual National Conference. These grant awards were presented to KAB affiliates in recognition of their volunteer initiatives with local UPS locations throughout the United States. The UPS Foundation also supported KAB’s Vision for America Award, which is presented annually to distinguished leaders whose personal and corporate commitments have significantly enhanced civic, environmental and social stewardship throughout the U.S.
About The UPS Foundation
UPS (NYSE: UPS) is a global leader in logistics, offering a broad range of solutions including the transportation of packages and freight; the facilitation of international trade, and the deployment of advanced technology to more efficiently manage the world of business. Since its founding in 1907, UPS has built a legacy as a caring and responsible corporate citizen, supporting programs that provide long-term solutions to community needs. Founded in 1951, The UPS Foundation, which celebrated its 60th anniversary in 2011, is responsible for facilitating community involvement to local, national, and global communities. In 2012, UPS and its employees, active and retired, invested more than $97.5 million in charitable giving around the world. The UPS Foundation can be found on the web at UPS.com/foundation. To get UPS news direct, visit pressroom.ups.com/RSS.
About Keep America Beautiful, Inc.
Keep America Beautiful is the nation’s leading nonprofit that brings people together to build and sustain vibrant communities. With a network of more than 1,200 affiliate and participating organizations including state recycling organizations, we work with millions of volunteers to take action in their communities. Keep America Beautiful offers solutions that create clean, beautiful public places, reduce waste and increase recycling, generate positive impact on local economies and inspire generations of environmental stewards. Through our programs and public-private partnerships, we engage individuals to take greater responsibility for improving their community’s environment. For more information, visit kab.org or follow KAB on Twitter.
