Led by physician and horticulturist Dr. John Aston Warder, concerned citizens founded the American Forestry Association (now American Forests) in response to rapid and wasteful postwar development and intense wildfires.

As a result of AFA/American Forests’ example and influence, Minnesota creates its own state forestry association and is followed by 18 other states in the coming decades.

The first American Forestry Congress is held in Cincinnati’s Eden Park in conjunction with the first National Arbor Day tree planting and is attended by 50,000 people.

AFA/American Forests publishes “Notes on Some of the Forest Features of Florida,” a paper by Ellen Call Long that would have a seminal impact on the introduction of prescribed burning, a key practice used to improve forest resilience and limit major wildfires.

AFA/American Forests successfully advocates for a bill that grants the U.S. president power to set aside forest reserves. That same year, President Benjamin Harrison proclaims nearly 13 million acres of forest reserves.

American Forests magazine, the nation’s first conservation-focused periodical, debuts.

AFA/American Forests advocates for the administration and protection of forest reserves, resulting in the successful passage of the Forest Reserve Act.

President Theodore Roosevelt addresses an AFA/American Forests Congress in at Washington, D.C., where AFA/American Forests supports the creation of our first national parks.

AFA/American Forests plays a pivotal role in the passage of the Weeks Act, allowing for acquisition of forest reserves in the eastern U.S. to protect watersheds. This marks the first time in history that the federal government purchased land specifically in recognition of its ecological services.

Following World War I, AFA/American Forests launches memorial tree planting campaigns to plant trees in cities across America. First Lady Florence Harding plants the first memorial tree in Washington, D.C. This campaign was among American Forests’ earliest efforts to expand tree canopy in urban areas.

AFA/American Forests publishes the first of many articles by Aldo Leopold, one of the nation’s most revered nature writers and a man considered by many to be the father of wildlife ecology.

AFA/American Forests works with President Franklin D. Roosevelt to create Civilian Conservation Corps.

The National Register of Big Trees is established, documenting the largest living tree of each species in the U.S. The Register still exists after more than 75 years.

AFA/American Forests is presented a Smokey Bear statuette by the U.S. Forest Service in recognition of its years of forest fire advocacy and education work.

With the help of AFA/American Forests, a new task force forms to create a national program for wildlife control.

President Richard Nixon signs laws that authorize the creation of four new national parks, and AFA/American Forests advocates for a half a dozen additional pending national parks in bills in Congress.

AFA/American Forests begins a campaign fighting against privatization of federal public lands.

Although an advocate for urban forestry for decades, AFA/American Forests launches its first formal urban forestry program and convenes the first National Urban Forest Conference.

After years of advocacy by AFA/American Forests, President Ronald Reagan signs the 1985 Farm Bill, including the new Conservation Reserve program, into law.

AFA/American Forests creates the National Urban Forestry Council.

AFA/American Forests provides congressional testimony and works successfully to gain widespread support for improved research efforts on the impact of air pollution on forests.

AFA/American Forests launches the Global ReLeaf program, planting millions of trees to restore forest ecosystems both in the U.S. and around the world. The program would later be renamed American ReLeaf.

After decades of advocacy and policy work, AFA/American Forests wins the battle to convince Congress to pass a national urban forestry policy.

The first Global ReLeaf forest is established in Au Sable, Michigan. Twenty-three thousand jack pines are planted to expand habitat for the endangered Kirtland’s warbler.

Christopher Reeve stars in Global ReLeaf public service announcements on the Discovery Channel.

The first international Global ReLeaf project is funded in Hungary.

AFA/American Forests creates the Forest Policy Center, and Global ReLeaf is awarded the President’s Citation for Innovation.

AFA/American Forests advocates for a compromise approach to the spotted owl and old-growth conservation movement in the Pacific Northwest, combining both habitat protection and sustainable economic development.

The American Forestry Association officially changes its name to American Forests, focusing on its long legacy as a forest conservation leader.

American Forests is asked to draft legislation for a forest health initiative based on the existing National Forest Health Act.

The forest health initiative launches.

American Forests develops a GIS program to map and measure city tree canopy cover.

American Forests introduces CITYGreen software to analyze the environmental and economic benefits of urban tree canopies and green spaces.

American Forests premieres a public television documentary, “Silent Witnesses: America’s Historic Trees,” narrated by actor James Whitmore.

Global ReLeaf plants its 10 millionth tree. American Forests partners with the White House to plant Millennium Groves in every state and territory. It also announces a National Policy Agenda for Ecosystem Restoration and Maintenance for the 21st century.

U.S. News & World Report runs a story on American Forests’ CITYGreen work, titled: “A Pixel is Worth a Thousand Words: Satellite Images Reveal Startling Tree Loss in America’s Cities.” Similar headlines appear across the U.S. as CITYgreen studies are published in major cities.

The Trees for Tigers initiative is introduced to help save Siberian tigers from extinction.

American Forests plants Freedom Trees, Patriot Trees and Memorial Trees to honor victims and heroes of 9/11.

Actor Val Kilmer joins American Forests to plant 20 millionth tree in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Congress passes the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003, which includes several policies developed and advanced by American Forests.

American Forests establishes a Katrina ReLeaf Fund to restore tree cover to areas deforested by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

After a year of advocacy by American Forests, the Federal Land Assistance, Management, and Enhancement (FLAME) Act to establish a federal emergency fund for the suppression of severe wildfires is signed into law on October 30.

American Forests joins Oprah’s Angel Network to plant trees around Habitat for Humanity for those displaced by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

American Forests launches the Endangered Western Forests initiative, which focuses, in its first stage, on the dangers facing the high-elevation whitebark pine of the Greater Yellowstone Area.

Outside Magazine names American Forests one of the nation’s most “smartly managed [charities] with transparent financials, efficient spending, and track records of on-the-ground success.”

American Forests publishes award-winning “Urban Forests Case Studies: Challenges Potential and Success in a Dozen Cities,” a major study of best practices in U.S. urban forests.

American Forests launches Community ReLeaf, a program dedicated to expanding urban tree canopy in cities across the U.S. through building partnerships, conducting tree canopy assessments, funding demonstration projects, and advancing public support.

Working with a blue-ribbon panel of experts, American Forests surveyed the 50 most populous U.S. cities on the health and maintenance of their urban forests and named the 10 Best Cities for Urban Forests in the U.S: Austin, Charlotte, Denver, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, New York, Portland, Sacramento, Seattle and Washington, D.C.

American Forests partners with Eddie Bauer and actor Ryan Reynolds to plant our 50 millionth Global ReLeaf tree and complete our 1,000th forest restoration project.

American Forests launches its Priority Landscapes initiative to create a more comprehensive approach to protect habitat for endangered and threatened species. Key landscapes include Texas thornscrub forests in the Lower Rio Grande Valley, home of the endangered ocelot and hundreds of bird and butterfly species; jack pine forests in the Northern Great Lakes, home of the endangered Kirtland’s warbler; and whitebark pine forests in the Northern Rockies and Cascades, home of the grizzly bear and other iconic species.

American Forests assumes leadership of the Forest-Climate Working Group and launches an ambitious new forest-climate strategy.

After five years of advocacy, Congress passes a fix to the way wildfires are funded through the U.S. Forest Service budget. American Forests was a leader in the coalition that tirelessly worked on this effort to ensure firefighting is adequately funded, but not at the expense of all other priorities of the U.S. Forest Service, including forest restoration, managing urban forests, and replanting our national forests.

American Forests partners with the newly formed U.S. Climate Alliance, hosting its first national Learning Lab to help states achieve their climate change goals through programs and policies affecting natural lands, such as forests, farms and wetlands.

American Forests launches its Tree Equity: Career Pathways Initiative. The initiative aims to equip people from urban neighborhoods that lack trees with skills and opportunities for careers in urban forestry, a field experiencing a shortage of skilled workers.

American Forests launches a pilot to develop a cutting-edge suite of Tree Equity tools for Rhode Island. The state will use the urban forestry tools to help achieve its climate and health goals.

American Forests and the World Economic Forum create and co-lead the U.S. chapter of 1t.org, a global community committed to conserving, restoring and growing 1 trillion trees by 2030. U.S.-based corporations, government entities and non-profit organizations make pledges to create healthy forests and help mitigate and adapt to climate change, as well as to advance social equity. By the end of 2020, nearly 1 billion trees were pledged.

Thirty years after it launched, the American ReLeaf program has now planted more than 65 million trees.

American Forests co-authors two groundbreaking studies examining the nation’s reforestation needs and the obstacles of meeting them. One study finds that the nation’s tree nurseries must double seedling production for the U.S. to meet its full reforestation potential. In another, researchers determine that urbanized areas in America need to plant a total of 31.4 million trees a year in order to advance Tree Equity.

The Girl Scouts of the USA partners with American Forests to launch the Girl Scout Tree Promise, an initiative to plant 5 million trees in five years.

American Forests releases its first nationwide tally of Tree Equity scores for all urbanized areas, including 150,000 neighborhoods and 486 cities with at least 50,000 residents. The online tool finds that neighborhoods with a majority of people of color have 33% less tree canopy on average than majority white communities.

The Phoenix City Council becomes the first local government entity in the U.S. to vote to create a Tree Equity program.