BOSTON, Mass. — The Trustees of Reservations today announced Urban Outdoors, a new initiative to strengthen partnerships between land trusts, community organizations, municipalities, and residents to support long-term urban conservation, stewardship, and access to green space in cities across Massachusetts.

The program launches this summer with events in Holyoke, Springfield, and Worcester, and marks The Trustees’ first sustained investment in urban environmental justice communities across the state as part of a new five-year strategic plan to welcome and connect more people to nature.

“Urban Outdoors’ goal is to connect with existing organizations to see how we can collaborate to protect, steward, and activate urban green spaces, including community gardens, urban farms, urban wilds, and neighborhood gathering spaces,” said Vidya Tikku, The Trustees’ regional vice president for Boston and Urban Outdoors. “Access to nature can be challenging in our urban centers, and we want to bring our expertise from our work in Greater Boston into additional cities that are experiencing the largest growth in environmental justice communities and climate change impacts, connect with local organizations, and work on projects to help increase long-term access to green space that supports public health, climate resilience, and cultural connection.”

The four cities chosen for the initial launch of Urban Outdoors were picked because of existing community relationships, growing environmental justice needs, and organizations that are already working to connect people to the land.

Springfield: Honoring What Was Already Here

Urban Outdoors will launch in Springfield on June 24, co-hosted with the Pocasset Pokanoket Land Trust (PPLT) and Open Pantry Community Services at the Open Pantry Community Garden, 287 State St. The event will bring together youth, PPLT staff, and Open Pantry staff for hands-on stewardship activities and a shared lunch, opening with a blessing from Chief George Spring Buffalo and Chief Lee Sky Watcher Hutchins.

PPLT is not a conventional land trust. It is a tribally-led nonprofit rooted in an Indigenous cosmology that understands land not as property, but as a living relationship — one that connects the Pocasset Wampanoag Tribe of the Pokanoket Nation, affiliated tribes, clans, and Urban Indian communities across the Northeast to their ancestral home. The organization’s Food Sovereignty Program is led by Food Sovereignty Director Sister Anna Gilbert-Muhammad, who has worked at the Open Pantry garden since 2019, producing and distributing nearly 2,000 pounds of food to community members.

“The Pocasset Pokanoket Land Trust is honored to stand alongside Open Pantry and The Trustees in this work. Since 2019, our Food Sovereignty Program has supported the Open Pantry Community Garden — growing and sharing nearly 2,000 pounds of food with community members,” said Chief George Spring Buffalo, Executive Director and Founder of PPLT. “This partnership reflects what we have always known: that honest relationships hold our communities together. We are also grateful to work alongside our affiliated tribes, bands, and clans in Springfield — including Chief Lee Sky Watcher Hutchins, Kiki Godfrey’s Nipmuc clan, and others — as we continue our mission to reconnect people to the land and to one another.”

“We are thrilled to be able to host a true community garden. Our new partnership with PPLT and Urban Outdoors will be instrumental in fostering a tremendous sense of pride and togetherness for many years to come,” said Jonathan Holden, development officer at Open Pantry Community Services.

Holyoke: Rooted in the Community

On June 23, Urban Outdoors heads to Holyoke for a gathering with Nuestras Raices at La Finca, 24 Jones Ferry Road, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nuestras Raices has spent decades building food sovereignty and community power in Holyoke. The conversation will center urban agriculture, food access, stewardship, and what long-term community care for land requires. The program will be in Spanish, with English interpretation available.

Springfield: Food, Policy, and the Next Generation

On July 29, Urban Outdoors returns to Springfield for an event with the Springfield Food Policy Council at the Walnut Street Farm Store, 200 Walnut Street, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Youth leaders will drive the conversation, exploring food systems, land access, and what equitable food policy looks like from the ground up, followed by a shared lunch.

Worcester: Growing the Next Generation of Stewards

The final kick-off event will take place on July 30 in Worcester with the Regional Environmental Council (REC), from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. (location TBD). The event will bring together REC’s YouthGROW participants for farm-based work, facilitated discussion, and lunch. The week prior, YouthGROW youth will visit The Trustees’ Powisset Farm in Dover — harvesting produce for CSA shares and getting a first-hand look at what conservation work looks like at scale. The Worcester events are designed as a bridge to connect urban youth to land, each other, and careers in stewardship.

New Bedford: Building Toward What’s Next

The Trustees already stewards Allen C. Haskell Public Gardens in New Bedford and has been building community relationships through its Mobile Adventures initiative. This summer, Urban Outdoors staff will deepen those partnerships and begin activating Haskell Gardens as a hub for environmental education, outdoor learning, and community stewardship on the South Coast. New Bedford’s role in Urban Outdoors will continue to develop through the fall.

“Every organization we’re partnering with this summer has been building trust in their community for years — some for decades,” said Lee Matsueda, Urban Outdoors program manager. “We’re not arriving with answers. We’re showing up to listen, to learn, and to figure out together what The Trustees can offer that genuinely serves these communities for the long haul.”

For more on Urban Outdoors, go to www.thetrustees.org/urban-outdoors.

About The Trustees

The Trustees of Reservations is Massachusetts’ largest – and the nation’s first – land conservation and preservation nonprofit. Today, through the support of Members, donors, and partners, The Trustees helps conserve nearly 52,000 acres and welcomes the public to more than 120 inspiring locations across the state to experience landscapes where nature, wildlife, and people all thrive.