About Us

Welcome to the Tree Care Advocate website! If you are committed to volunteerism, to helping make your community and state a healthier place to live, and if you think that trees, shrubs, vines, and other natural resources add to the quality of life in your community, then you've found a home.

The Minnesota Tree Care Advocate program (MNTCA) is part of the Urban Forestry Outreach & Research (UFOR) Lab at the University's Department of Forest Resources. Since the program began as a two-year pilot project funded by the USDA Forest Service in 1993, hundreds of people from Minnesota and Western Wisconsin have completed the training. The program aims to develop a network of trained, community-based volunteers to assist state agencies, municipalities, local organizations, and residents across Minnesota in cultivating robust and thriving urban and community forests. Since its inception in 1993, MNTCA volunteers have donated 114,000 volunteer hours!

If you are interested in gaining an in-depth understanding of your urban forest and are committed to volunteerism, look at what it takes to participate as a Tree Care Advisor or Tree Steward.