Arbor Day Foundation and Toyota Sponsor Five Tree Planting Events as Colleges and Universities Prepare to Seek 2012 Tree Campus USA Recognition

LINCOLN, Neb., Oct. 15, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As a growing number of colleges and universities apply for 2012 Tree Campus USA recognition, the Arbor Day Foundation and Toyota announced five tree planting events at campuses throughout the country this fall.

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The events acknowledge the accomplishments of five 2011 Tree Campus USA recipients and offer students and staff the opportunity to participate in hands-on campus conservation.

Tree Campus USA, a national program launched in 2008 by the Arbor Day Foundation with generous support from Toyota, honors colleges and universities and their leaders for promoting healthy trees and engaging students and staff in the spirit of environmental stewardship.

The first event was held October 3, at the University of Colorado-Boulder, with the second scheduled today at Los Angeles Valley College, the first community college in California to participate in Tree Campus USA. Subsequent events are slated for Delaware State University in Dover, DE; LaSalle University in Philadelphia, PA; and Georgia State University in Atlanta, GA.

"Participation in the Tree Campus USA program and tree planting events like these is a terrific opportunity for service-oriented and environmentally-conscious students," said John Rosenow, founder and chief executive of the Arbor Day Foundation. "We're excited to continue working with Toyota to help spread the spirit of stewardship to young people across America."

"At Toyota, we believe in empowering individuals to make our communities cleaner and greener," said Patricia Salas Pineda, group vice president of National Philanthropy and the Toyota USA Foundation at Toyota Motor North America. "We look forward to working with students and staff of diverse backgrounds this fall and in the coming months as even more colleges and universities become a part of Tree Campus USA."

During 2011, the Arbor Day Foundation and Toyota helped campuses throughout the country plant 30,000 trees, and Tree Campus USA colleges and universities have invested more than $22 million in campus forest management. More information and a complete list of 2011 campuses are available at arborday.org/TreeCampusUSA.

About the Arbor Day Foundation: The Arbor Day Foundation is a nonprofit conservation and education organization of one million members, with the mission to inspire people to plant, nurture and celebrate trees. More information on the Foundation and its programs can be found at arborday.org, or by visiting us on Facebook, Twitter or our blog.

About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE: TM) established operations in the United States in 1957 and currently operates 10 manufacturing plants.  Toyota directly employs over 30,000 in the U.S. and its investment here is currently valued at more than $18 billion, including sales and manufacturing operations, research and development, financial services and design.

Toyota is committed to being a good corporate citizen in the communities where it does business and believes in supporting programs with long-term sustainable results. Toyota supports numerous organizations across the country, focusing on education, the environment and safety. Since 1991, Toyota has contributed more than $600 million to philanthropic programs in the U.S. 

For more information on Toyota's commitment to improving communities nationwide, visit http://www.toyota.com/philanthropy. 

SOURCE Arbor Day Foundation