Advocacy
Header photo: Varied thrush in the Sorbus Collection (courtesy Larry Hubbell).
SR 520 Bridge impacts, Parks Levy & more
As part of our core mission to sustain and protect the Washington Park Arboretum, the Foundation engages in advocacy at the local, city, and state levels. Examples include:
- Our work to minimize the impacts of the SR520 Bridge replacement project on the Arboretum and secure mitigation funding from the project for improvements, such as the Arboretum Loop Trail.
- Our support of the 2008 Parks and Green Spaces Levy, which allocated roughly $2.5 million to Washington Park Arboretum to fund Master Plan projects such as the Pacific Connections Garden.
Other important advocacy initiatives have included working to secure funding at the state level for Arboretum curation, and working at the city level to secure funding for Arboretum maintenance and operations.
How You Can Help
Please help support our advocacy efforts by joining as a member, by donating to the Foundation, making your voice heard at public meetings, and/or voting to protect our treasured urban green space at the ballot box.

Arboretum Partners doing a celebratory “vine cutting” to open the new Arboretum Loop Trail.
Photo by: @samfuphoto

Earth Day Volunteers Pull 50+ Cubic Yards of Weeds!
May 12, 2022
A total of 116 volunteers participated in our annual Earth Day at the Arboretum work-service event on April 23. They removed more than 50 cubic yards of ivy, blackberry, and other invasive weeds from plant collection beds and natural areas—covering a combined area of...

Arboretum-Based Research Tackles the Azalea Lace Bug
Apr 19, 2022
Since 2015, the invasive azalea lace bug (Stephanitis pyrioides) has been causing serious damage to azaleas and rhododendrons in our state, including in the Arboretum. A tiny aphid relative, the lace bug removes chlorophyll from Rhododendron foliage, weakening the...

Wild and Wonderful Willows of the Arboretum
Mar 18, 2022
Beautiful willows, such as the Salix gracilistyla 'Melanostachys' pictured here, are blooming in the Arboretum's Witt Winter Garden and beyond. In the latest issue of the Arboretum Bulletin, writer and estate gardener Daniel Mount discusses the wild and weedy willows...