Tempe is working to develop a green stormwater infrastructure that endeavors to combat extreme heat with trees and vegetation by capturing rain to use in the landscape where it falls.

Tempe’s first GSI master plan is called Rain to Roots, and members of the community are invited to help shape it.

The Rain to Roots Ambassador Program will allow residents to assist in the planning process while learning about the city’s stormwater management, urban forestry and sustainability initiatives.

The first Rain to Roots Ambassador meeting is 5:30-6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 13, at the Pyle Adult Recreation Center, 655 E. Southern Ave.

After that, participants will meet on the second Wednesday of each month, either in person or online, through fall 2024. Participants are not required to attend every session, and new members can join any time.

For more details and to sign up for the program, complete an interest form.

“This is an opportunity, without spending a lot of money, (to use) some pretty innovative ideas and strategies,” John Kane, Tempe-based architect and former chair of Tempe’s Sustainability and Resilience Commission, said.

“The more we can do to create a resilient city to live in and easier to walk in with more shade, it’s a great way to approach things.”

GSI is important because “as our city continues to experience the effects of climate change, increasing heat in the city, it’s going to be important that we not only have additional shade but that we have vegetative spaces near where we walk and where we live to lower the ambient temperature,” said Shawn Swisher, architect and member of Tempe’s Sustainability and Resilience Commission.

For more: www.tempe.gov/GreenCodes.