Our Programs

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Welcome! The Minnesota Tree Care Advocate Program (MNTCA) is housed in the Urban Forestry Outreach & Research (UFOR) Lab of the Department of Forest Resources at the University of Minnesota. 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.

 

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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.

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. More importantly, in excess of 114,000 documented volunteer hours have been contributed by the Minnesota Tree Care Advocate volunteers since 1993.

The intent of the program is  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.

MNTCA is an umbrella program with two main volunteer programs: Tree Care Advisor and Tree Steward. These programs vary in the type of education received, training length requirements, if they are individual or community-based programs, and education and volunteer hour requirements after the initial training. If you are interested in gaining an in-depth understanding of your urban forest and are committed to volunteerism, click below to learn more about each program.