Promoting Sustainability, Education at the L.A. Arboretum

Edison volunteers join cleanup efforts to maintain more than 100 acres of public gardens.
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Stories : Giving Back
Stories : Giving Back

Promoting Sustainability, Education at the L.A. Arboretum

Edison volunteers join cleanup efforts to maintain more than 100 acres of public gardens.
Contributors
Photo Credit: Erika Potter and Jaivon Grant

The Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden has helped more than 14,000 underserved students from schools in lower-income communities with limited resources for environmental education.

This month, Southern California Edison volunteers traversed 127 acres of the Arboretum gardens, where staff provided information on specific sustainable gardening techniques, including lasagna mulching, weeding and planting.

Volunteers helped pull weeds, remove waste that threatened plants and wildlife, and used mulching techniques to discourage the growth of new weeds to improve the Arboretum’s soil.

Elijah and Eileen Chen with one of the many peacocks that roam the Arboretum's grounds.
Elijah and Eileen Chen with one of the many peacocks that roam the Arboretum's grounds. PHOTO CREDIT: Erika Potter

“We are proud to partner with this organization that shares our commitment to environmental stewardship and community engagement. It’s exciting to learn about the Arboretum’s work and be able to give back,” said Erika Potter, SCE senior specialist, who works on volunteer coordination.

Edison International has partnered with the organization since 2018, contributing more than $90,000 in charitable giving toward shared goals. This year, Edison will give $20 million to local communities within the company’s pillars of education, environment, civic engagement and public safety.

“Edison International and SCE have been great partners,” said Judith Hamilton-Márquez, development manager for the Arboretum. “They’ve really invested in our educational programming, and I can’t say enough about what these contributions mean to us and allow us to do.”

SCE's Nolan Kelleher, Strategic Project Development senior manager, removes non-native plants from the Arboretum grounds.
SCE's Nolan Kelleher, Strategic Project Development senior manager, removes non-native plants from the Arboretum grounds. PHOTO CREDIT: Erika Potter

In addition to its contributions to education and the community, the Arboretum promotes the future of environmental sustainability, most recently installing a stormwater capturing system under its parking lot pavement.

Water, collected from surface runoff from parking and plaza areas, will be pumped through an elaborate underground filtration system called a modular wetland. The water captured within the cisterns will enter the Rio Hondo drainage via gravity feed, with more than 90% of the captured water flowing into the aquifers.

Here are more photos of the volunteer event:

Edison volunteers descend the stairs to the Arboretum's signature Meyberg Waterfall.
Edison volunteers descend the stairs to the Arboretum's signature Meyberg Waterfall. PHOTO CREDIT: Erika Potter
The Meyberg Waterfall was built in 1969.
The Meyberg Waterfall was built in 1969. PHOTO CREDIT: Jaivon Grant
Weeding prevents unwanted plants from taking valuable nutrients and space from the Arboretum's plant life.
Weeding prevents unwanted plants from taking valuable nutrients and space from the Arboretum's plant life. PHOTO CREDIT: Jaivon Grant
Despite hosting 700,000 visitors annually, the Arboretum offers serenity and solitude in a natural setting.
Despite hosting 700,000 visitors annually, the Arboretum offers serenity and solitude in a natural setting. PHOTO CREDIT: Jaivon Grant

For more information about Edison International’s philanthropic efforts, visit edison.com/community.