There are no role models. Those in charge overlook qualified minorities and women for key leadership roles. In communities that are culturally rich, the successful community forestry programs respect different cultural groups. Nearly all cultures incorporate trees into their mythologies, and the planting of trees can serve to bond people in a neighborhood and affirm an array of ethnic rituals. However, only programs that are innovative and respect the uniqueness of the people they are serving will work.
People have to feel empowered by the program.
For example, the University of Connecticut Cooperative Extension System has created a program which links adult role models, such as police and fire fighters, with at-risk youth in Hartford, Meriden and Stamford, who work together with established tree groups to plant and care for trees. The prize was money for trees to be planted on school grounds. The objective was to involve young people in local environmental issues. A theater group in San Francisco sponsored bus tours of inner city neighborhoods led by environmental experts to give participants ideas for lyrics. The program attracted a culturally diverse group of young persons between the ages of 15 and 29.