Urban forestry nonprofit · est. 2012
Canopy Works plants and tends street trees in Rust Belt neighborhoods that summer forgot — 48,000 trees so far, each one watered, pruned, and guaranteed for its first five years.
Rooted across 71 neighborhoods in Buffalo, Cleveland, and Detroit — where tree cover maps almost exactly onto old redlining maps.
What we do
We work block by block in Buffalo, Cleveland, and Detroit — where tree cover maps onto redlining maps almost exactly, and summers keep getting hotter.
Residents pick the species from a shortlist suited to their block. We handle permits, utilities, and the digging — together.
6,100 trees planted in 2025 alone
Fund a plantingA paid eight-week summer job for teenagers: arboriculture basics, chainsaw safety, and a first line on a resume.
2,430 graduates · 68% stay in green jobs
Meet the corpsVacant lots become community orchards: apples, pears, serviceberries — harvested and shared by the block that tends them.
19 orchards · 14 tons of fruit in 2025
Visit an orchardFree monthly workshops on watering, mulching, and pruning — because a planted tree is a promise, not a finish line.
312 workshops · always free
See the calendarGive
Most tree charities count what goes in the ground. We count what is still standing five years later — and we put our name on it.
Prefer stock, a donor-advised fund, or a bequest? Write to giving@canopyworks.org and a human named Priya will reply within two days.
Stories
The measurable stuff matters — surface temperature, stormwater, asthma rates. But this is what people actually tell us.
My porch used to be unusable after noon in July. Now the whole block sits out under the maples. It changed who I see every day."
Tree Corps was my first paycheck. Three summers later I'm an apprentice arborist making twenty-nine an hour. I climb for a living."
Sixty-one planting days and I still cry a little at every one. You put a tree in the ground with strangers and leave as neighbors."
Transparency
FY2025 revenue was $4.65M — 61% individual donors, 27% foundation grants, 12% municipal contracts. Every filing below is one click away, no email wall.
Volunteer
Three hours on a Saturday morning. No experience needed — we bring the trees, tools, gloves, and a very serious coffee urn.
Can't make a Saturday? Corporate planting days and school field trips run year-round — write to volunteer@canopyworks.org.