Grants for Tree Inventories and Invasive Species Removal

The following communities received grant awards in 2025 to enhance urban and community forestry in Illinois.

Arlington Heights Park District

Village of Bannockburn

Bloomingdale Park District

Boone County Conservation District

Butterfield Park District

DeKalb Park District

City of Edwardsville

City of Genoa

Glen Ellyn Park District

Village of Glencoe

Village of Hawthorn Woods

Village of Hazel Crest

Village of Hillside

Village of Homer Glen

Village of Indian Head Park

Village of Lakewood

Village of Lombard

Village of Maywood

Village of Minooka

Village of Mokena

Village of Morton Grove

Mundelein Park and Recreation District

Village of North Riverside

Park Ridge Park District

Village of Palatine

City of Rolling Meadows

Village of Romeoville

City of Springfield

Village of Westchester

Wilmette Park District

Tree Equity Grants for Disadvantaged Communities

The following communities received grant awards in 2024 and 2025 to enhance urban and community forestry in nature-deprived populations.

City of Belleville

Village of Bensenville

City of Berwyn

Berwyn Park District

Boone County Conservation District

Village of Broadview

Canal Shores

Village of Carpentersville

City of Chicago Heights

Chicago Heights Park District

City of Clinton

City of Darien

City of DeKalb

Douglas–Hart Foundation

Empowerment Opportunity Center

Friends for a Natural South Chicago

Greater Chatham Initiative

Heartlands Conservancy

Jackie Joyner Kersee Foundation

Joliet Junior College

Klehm Arboretum

Lake Forest Openlands

Lansdowne UP

Lawrence Development Corp / North River Commission

City of Markham

McCully Heritage Project

Midlothian Park District

City of Moline

Northern Illinois University

Village of Palatine

Riverdale Park District

City of Rockford

Village of Schiller Park

Village of Summit

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

City of Virden

City of West Chicago

West Chicago Park District

Wood Street Collective

Funding for this project is provided by the Inflation Reduction Act and the USDA Forest Service Urban and Community Forestry Program in partnership with The Morton Arboretum’s Chicago Region Trees Initiative. The USDA and The Morton Arboretum are equal opportunity providers and employers.

Urban and Community Forestry Grant for Government Entities

The following communities received grant awards in 2024 to enhance urban and community forestry in nature-deprived populations.

Belvidere

Belvidere Park District

City of Blue Island

Bolingbrook Park District

City of Burbank

City of Effingham

City of Elgin

Village of Franklin Park

Village of Hazel Crest

Village of Hillside

Town of Normal

City of Peoria

Roselle Park District

Round Lake Area Park District

Skokie Park District

Village of Streamwood

Forest Preserves of Winnebago County

Inventory and Management Plan Grant for Communities Over 75,000 Residents

The following municipalities and associated park districts received grant awards in 2024 to conduct an inventory of public trees and create an Urban and Community Forest Management Plan.

City of Chicago

Chicago Park District

Town of Cicero

City of Joliet

Rockford Park District

Grant Eligibility and SAM Registration

Your organization may need to fulfill certain requirements to receive grant funds.

Read the Request for Proposals (RFP) or Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) carefully to ensure that your entity is eligible to receive the offered funding.

CRTI recommends reaching out to the grant coordinator for each grant that interests you to talk about your proposed project before you start your application. This will help you to use your time and personnel wisely and you can make sure you have a viable project before starting. The grant coordinator contact information is typically listed in the RFP or NOFO.

State and federally funded grants require your organization to have a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and an active enrollment in the federal System for Award Management (SAM).

Registration is free; it is required in order to receive funds through CRTI and many other governmental entities. The registration process can take several weeks to complete.

Register or renew your organization’s SAM info.

Federal Resources

Additionally, new opportunities may be available under federal grant programs. Below are links to additional resources and grants that could advance environmental justice and climate goals within your community.

Please reach out to grants.crti@mortonarb.org for any additional information or assistance.

USDA Forest Service Grants and Agreements Resource Center

US Department of Transportation Grants

US Fish and Wildlife Service Grants

More Federal Grants through Grants.Gov

EPA Region 5 grants

United States Conference of Mayors Local Infrastructure Hub Grant Search

Community Needs and Priority Areas

Determining your priorities as an organization is an important first step before applying for any grants.

When deciding if your organization should pursue a grant opportunity, ask the following questions:

1. What does your community need?
2. Is this grant opportunity in alignment with your existing mission?
3. Do you have the capacity and resources to follow through on your commitments?
4. Will the deliverables of the grant serve your needs as an organization or community?
5. Who else needs to be involved for a stronger and more meaningful project? Including multiple personnel and other partners in your proposal can greatly enhance your capacity and project outcomes.

Most funders have specific goals they wish to accomplish through the funding, and most grants are offered to help the funders reach their strategic goals. Be sure to read the request for proposal closely and look at the funder’s strategic plan to determine what key goals and outcomes they are working to achieve. The funder will often reference these plans in their request for proposal.

Some important federal and state of Illinois plans to consider include:

USDA Forest Service Urban and Community Forestry Ten-Year Action Plan

The plan’s purpose is to expand awareness of the benefits that urban forests provide to communities throughout the nation and to increase investments in urban forest resources for the benefit of current and future generations.

Illinois Forest Action Plan

This statewide resource and strategy is meant to guide forestry efforts in Illinois.

Priority Areas in Our Urban Forest

The resources below can also help you determine your community’s specific needs for increasing tree canopy.

Community Tree Canopy Summaries

These reports summarize the canopy cover, plantable space, and relative proportion of land use types for each municipality in the seven-county Chicago region (Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, and Will counties). They also compare those characteristics to similar communities and quantify some of the benefits these trees provide.

CRTI Priority Maps

This story map integrates canopy, temperature, air quality, and socio-economic vulnerability to determine priority areas in the Chicago region.

Tree Equity Score

This scoring index uses canopy, population density, income, health, and other socioeconomic factors to determine how a community’s tree equity compares to others around the United States.

Tree Canopy Tool 

This tool helps you visualize and identify changes in canopy in your community using historical and current canopy data and land designations.

Other Grant Opportunities

Other public and private funding sources may be available for your organization.

Browse the list below to determine if a funding opportunity is right for your goals.

Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning

Support to local governments, nonprofit agencies, the region’s transit service boards, and other organizations looking to plan and implement projects that will benefit the community and the region as a whole.

Learn more about the program.

FEMA Grants

Grant funds are available for pre and post emergency or disaster related projects. These funds support critical recovery initiatives, innovative research and many other programs.

Learn more about the program.

Financial Help for Brownfield Investigations and Cleanups

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency offers no or low interest loans to clean up brownfield sites that have already been assessed for contamination.

Learn more about the program.

Green Infrastructure Partnership Program

The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) can help local government organizations pay for the construction of green infrastructure (GI) on public property in Cook County. The selected partner is responsible for their project’s design, contract advertisement and award, acquiring any necessary property rights, construction, and long-term maintenance.

Learn more about the program.

Illinois Biodiversity Field Trip Grant

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources funds a field trip to study some aspect of Illinois’ biodiversity. Applications are typically due in January.

Learn more about the program.

Illinois Department of Natural Resources Architecture and Engineering Grants

Multiple grants through the Illinois Department of Natural Resources provide funds for new recreational facilities such as parks and playgrounds. The Bikeways Program provides for bike trail enhancement and development. The Boat Access program provides for new and improved boat accesses. The Snowmobile Access and Development program provides for new and improved snowmobile trails and trail access.

Learn more about the program.

Illinois Department of Natural Resources Illinois Schoolyard Habitat Action Grant

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources facilitates planting of native plants in schoolyards. Applications are typically due in January.

Learn more about the program.

Illinois Department of Natural Resources Special Wildlife Funds Grant Program

The Office of Resource Conservation’s Division of Wildlife Resources administers four special grant programs that are funded by Illinois sportsmen through the purchase of Habitat Stamps and Migratory Waterfowl Stamps. These are the Illinois Habitat Fund, State Pheasant Fund, State Furbearer Fund, and the Migratory Waterfowl Stamp Fund. Together, these programs are designed to protect, acquire, enhance, or manage wildlife habitat and to support limited research and educational programs to further advance this mission.

Learn more about the program.

Illinois Department of Natural Resources Urban Forestry Sub-Grants

Periodically, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources awards funding to public landowners to conduct urban forestry practices. This includes inventories, planting, management plans, and ordinances. Contact Colette Copic at ccopic@mortonarb.org for more information.

Illinois Forestry Development Council (IFDC)

The IFDC periodically has small grants available for projects that support forestry practices and improvement of forests in the state of Illinois.

Learn more about the program.

Illinois Green Infrastructure Grants

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency offers funding to demonstrate green infrastructure best management practices to control stormwater runoff for water quality protection in Illinois.

Learn more about the program.

Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant Program

Funding for this grant program is derived from the Illinois Natural Areas Acquisition Fund (NAAF) and must be used by the Department of Natural Resources for the acquisition, protection, and stewardship of natural areas, including habitats for endangered and threatened species (Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development Act, 525 ILCS 35/14). The Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant Program was established to make grants to conservation land trusts for the purpose of promoting stewardship actions on eligible lands.

Learn more about the program.

Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program

To be eligible for enhancement funding, a project must be located on public property and must demonstrate a relationship to surface transportation. The enhancement projects must enhance the transportation system either by serving a transportation need or providing a transportation use or benefit. Activities are not eligible if they are routine maintenance projects.

Learn more about the program.

Keep America Beautiful Community Grants

Keep America Beautiful provides grant opportunities to support communities in preventing littering, promoting recycling, and building clean, green, and beautiful neighborhoods. Through a coalition of corporate sponsors, Keep America Beautiful seeks innovative grant applications for programs that will unify communities as they implement community improvement projects.

Learn more about the program.

National Wildlife Federation Sacred Grounds

Houses of worship are required to conduct outreach within their own congregation and into surrounding communities through workshops, garden tours, native plant sales, and other forms of education. These efforts contribute to the development of networks of faith communities and community partners working together to build healthy habitats and communities.

Learn more about the program.

Nonpoint Source Pollution Grants

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency provides opportunities to local units of government and other organizations to protect water quality in Illinois.

Learn more about the program.

Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources provides funding assistance to local government agencies for acquisition and/or development of land for public parks and open space.

Learn more about the program.

Public Museum Capital

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources helps public museums in Illinois expand and upgrade facilities and create new exhibitions and other physical facilities to enhance public museums’ abilities to meet their mission.​

Learn more about the program.

Streambank Cleanup and Lake Shore Enhancement

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency provides funds to assist groups that have established a recurring stream or lakeshore cleanup.

Learn more about the program.

Sustainable Forestry Initiative Community Grants

Community Grants are awarded for collaborative community-based projects, activities, or events supporting SFI’s mission to advance sustainability through forest-focused collaborations, across the United States and Canada.

Learn more about the program.

Sustain Our Great Lakes Program

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation provides funding on a competitive basis to projects that sustain, restore, and enhance our nation’s fish, wildlife and plants, and their habitats. Browse NFWF’s conservation programs and learn how to apply for a grant.

Learn more about the program.

TD Green Space Grants

Through the TD Green Space Grants program, municipalities in the United States and Canada are eligible to receive grants in support of local forestry projects in the areas of great need within a community.

Learn more about the program.

TREE Fund Education Grants

The TREE Fund provides a wide range of grants to fund forestry related education programs.

Learn more about the program.

TREE Fund Research Grants

The TREE Fund provides a wide range of research grants on forestry and arboriculture.

Learn more about the program.

Trees Forever

Grant funds are available for Illinois communities to plant trees, conduct tree inventories and management plans, and remove dead and hazardous trees.

Learn more about the program.