TREEAMS Nursery Launches at Aldersgate

Students from across Los Angeles gathered this week at the Aldersgate Retreat Center in Pacific Palisades to launch the second TREEAMS (Trees + Dreams) nursery, marking an exciting next step in a growing student-led wildfire recovery movement inspired by Dr. Jane Goodall. Hosted by Seven Arrows Elementary School, the event brought together elementary, middle, and high school students, educators, ecological restoration experts, and community partners to support long-term environmental healing following the 2025 Los Angeles wildfires.

The gathering carried special significance as many students participating were themselves impacted by the Altadena and Pacific Palisades fires and deeply empathized with families currently facing evacuations due to severe weather and fires in Simi Valley. Through their own experiences, students understand firsthand the devastation wildfires can bring to communities and the importance of planting the right trees in the right places to help create more resilient landscapes and help deter fires from spreading.

TREEAMS was created to empower young people to take meaningful action in the recovery process by planting 5,000 trees across Altadena, Pacific Palisades, Malibu, and surrounding communities over the next several years. Because many fire-impacted properties are still not ready for replanting, students are growing young native trees now on school campuses and community sites, where they will care for them over the next 1–2 years before donating and planting them permanently in neighborhoods as rebuilding progresses.

During the event, students replanted small native California sycamores and coast live oaks into 15-gallon containers, transforming the historic Aldersgate campus into a living nursery for the next generation of trees. The nursery trees will now be cared for by TREEAMS volunteers until schools, parks, and community members across Los Angeles are ready to receive them. Students from EF Academy Pasadena—who helped launch the first TREEAMS nursery earlier this spring—worked side-by-side with younger students from Seven Arrows, Pacific Palisades Charter High School, and Marquez Charter Elementary School, modeling peer-to-peer environmental leadership and collaboration.

The day also included the completion of a bioremediation and planting project on the Pacific Palisades Woman’s Club slope. In partnership with the Center for Applied Ecological Remediation (CAER) and the Palisades Forestry Committee, students participated in hands-on restoration work designed to address fire-related soil contamination and support the creation of resilient native landscapes compatible with the area’s existing Coast Live Oaks.

More than simply planting trees, the event reflected the power of youth leadership, empathy, and hope in the face of adversity. By taking action, students are helping lead the way toward a greener, more resilient future for Los Angeles communities recovering from wildfire.

SEE MORE ON INSTAGRAM