Parks for People—Bay Area

San Francisco | California

What We’re Doing
Connecting people to the benefits of nature by putting parks where they’re needed most.

Our Goal
Create a future where every Bay Area community has safe, equitable access to a high-quality park within a 10-minute walk of home.

Support Our Work in California

A man and a child playing on a playground.

Creating Green Spaces, Building Community Places

Across the Bay Area, parks help confront some of today’s most pressing challenges. They offer places to play, exercise, unplug, and connect with others in our communities, all of which have a direct impact on our personal health and physical well-being.

But access to these beloved green spaces isn’t created equally. Even in major urban centers that have many parks, outdoor spaces are often small, crowded, and distributed inequitably among residents. In San Francisco, residents in neighborhoods of color have 56 percent less park space as those in white neighborhoods. The same is true for residents in lower income communities, who have 55 percent less park space than those in high-income neighborhoods. These disparities have serious consequences that can endure for generations.

At Trust for Public Land, we’re working to change that. We believe development should happen for people, not to them, which is why we take a community first approach, collaborating with residents, teachers, students, and more to help realize their vision. A successful TPL park project is not a product, it’s a process.

We leverage data to prioritize the creation and revitalization of green spaces where they’re needed most. We utilize environmental and sustainable practices to build parks, trails, and schoolyards to reflect the local community they serve. And we’re on the right path.

From India Basin Waterfront Park, Richmond Wellness Trail, Buchanan Street Mall, and Oakland Community Schoolyards, we’re working to connect more people to the joys and benefits of the outdoors—now and for generations to come.