Oh, I almost forgot! Last Thursday we participated in Focus the Nation at Johns Hopkins and Maryland Institute College of Art . Focus the Nation is an educational initiative that promotes civic engagement. On January 31, thousands of colleges, universities, high schools, middle schools, places of worship, civic organizations and businesses took part in this amazing event to raise awareness about global warming solutions.

The Tilt team split into two groups. Denise and Mike went to Johns Hopkins and gave a powerpoint presentation on TreeBaltimore and how their initiative of increasing the tree canopy will help our local environment. Danny, Jess and Hayley went to MICA to talk with students about the Urban Forest Project and how they can take part in our volunteer opportunities with the UFP.

I want to send out a special thank you to Jenn Tucker for volunteering her time in this event! We had a great response and are more excited as each day passes because our UFP team is ever expanding!

Check out these videos about Focus the Nation here! This and other initives like it are popping up all over the country and its so great to be a part of it! We want you to be a part of it too.

Hey everyone, Denise here! We’re just so psyched about Baltimore’s enthusiasm for the Urban Forest Project . Your energy pours forth everyday with so many people calling, emailing, dropping in – they want to know how they can help the UFP be an awesome experience. The answer is simple – and very cool too. Be a UFP sponsor!!!

Check this out. The UFP tells the story of trees – and why we need more of them. During the UFP, you will see “trees” throughout Baltimore that are created from banners on poles. Now imagine a real tree in it’s place. How easy it is to see the difference made by one single tree! The real difference is of course what it does for our environment, but wow, to be surrounded by them is truly visually inspiring.

Be a sponsor. You help us “plant” the UFP trees by sponsoring the banners that are hung on the poles. Each banner displays the banner sponsor’s name on the bottom (see below)! How amazing it will feel to see YOUR NAME there!!! And you know all your friends will want to check it out. Your contribution pays for the banner to be printed and then, when the UFP ends, all proceeds are donated to TreeBaltimore - which plants REAL trees throughout the city!

Sponsor a banner now! Save a tree and make your contribution online. You’ll see all the other ways you can help too. One of the best ways, always, is to tell your friends and employers to help too. Be sure to ask your neighborhood businesses for their support!

This movement towards growing greener is happening everyday because you truly care. And so do we. Thank you for sponsoring the UFP and creating change!

You can now find Baltimore: The Urban Forest Project merchandise at several stores in Hampden. Below is a photo of our display at WhollyTerra. You can also find t-shirts, buttons, hand-painted tiles, and bag pre-order forms at Shine. Look for UFP merchandise coming soon to other retailers across the city. But as always, you can shop 24/7 online. T’s and buttons make great gifts, and don’t forget to preorder your bag today! Each bag is made one of a kind out of the banners in the exhibition. Check out the image below of how Chad Miller’s “Bmore Hon” bird would look as a bag! These will be going fast!

Chad Miller’s “Bmore Hon” bird

You can find UFP merchandise at:

WhollyTerra
3406 Chestnut Avenue
Baltimore, MD 21211

and:

Shine
1007 W 36th St
Baltimore, MD 21211
(410) 366-6100

Check out the pics below of the Tilt team speaking about The Urban Forest Project and TreeBaltimore
at last night’s CSBA happy hour!

Hi all! Danny here. I’d really like to thank everyone who came out to Red Maple last night for the Mix & Mingle. It turned out to be a great success!

Everyone here really appreciates the community response we’ve gotten so far for this project and we hope the sky’s the limit in the coming months.

Below is a little grouping of images from last evening. Enjoy!

Hey, its Jess. I wanted to thank everyone for supporting the UFP. I have donated my time to create small pieces of art work for you to collect and to remind you to create change everyday. Contact me to purchase them through my website www.jessicampegorsch.com. The tiles are $50 and a great gift for the holiday season. And of course, all proceeds will be donated to Tree Baltimore. Can’t wait to hear from you.

The Urban Forest Project is a growing national exhibition working in conjunction with the Times Square Alliance and World Studio in NYC. Tilt Studio Foundation, Inc. is located in Baltimore and we discovered this project when it ran in NYC last fall. We are introducing the Urban Forest Project to Baltimore in the Spring of 2008 from April 11th-June 27th.

The project brings together 200 artists, designers and College students, 75+ K-12 students, and another 100+ businesses to produce a visual story based on the image of a tree and the idea of sustainability. Each participant was asked to design a banner, to be hung throughout Baltimore City. The banners will lead visitors to Druid Hill Park, Wyman Park Dell, Herring Run Park, Patterson Park and Carroll Park. In each park, we will have installations and day long events that help to promote and drive traffic to the park

After the closing, the banners will be recycled into tote bags and sold as original works of functional art. All proceeds from the project will benefit the Baltimore City Department of Recreation & Parks Tree Baltimore Campaign for a greener city. The best thing about Baltimore: The Urban Forest Project? It produces no waste!

Baltimore: The Urban Forest Project is coming to Baltimore April 11th-June 28th

- To create awareness about TreeBaltimore, the Mayorial initiative to increase the tree canopy by 2030 from 20% to 40%
- 185 professional banners placed all over the city (see map)
- 150 K-12 student banners to be placed in 3 city parks
- Banners are designed to be representatives of trees created by local designers, artists and students
- 6 area park installations and events to take place for the 11 week period (go to events tab to learn more)
- At the end of the project the banners are taken down and made into one-of-a-kind functional tote bags
- All proceeds go to benefit TreeBaltimore to continue creating awareness and to expand the program
- By coming to an event, promoting the project or participating, we are 1 step closer to creating change

Bmore: The Urban Forest Project Exhibition Map

The Urban Forest Project is a growing global exhibition started by World Studio Foundation in NYC. Tilt Studio Foundation, Inc. is located in Baltimore and we discovered this project when it ran in 2006 in Times Square NYC. Check out the original project’s website: www.urbanforestproject.org

The project brings together 185 artists, designers and College students, 250+ K-12 students, and 100+ businesses to produce a visual story based on the image of a tree and the idea of sustainability. Each participant was asked to design a banner, to be hung throughout Baltimore City. The banners will lead visitors to 6 area parks (Druid Hill Park, Wyman Park Dell, Herring Run Park, Patterson Park, Clifton Park and Carroll Park). In each park, we will have installations and day long events that help to promote and drive traffic to the park.

After the closing, the banners will be recycled into tote bags and sold as original works of functional art. All proceeds from the project will benefit the TreeBaltimore Campaign for a greener city. The best thing about Baltimore: The Urban Forest Project? It produces no waste!