Zenaida is a Force of Nature
“How did Zenaida Flores get the idea to start a nature advocacy nonprofit in Detroit? “
Seen Magazine
Rescue MI Nature Now is Turning Blight to Beauty
‘ With community gardens, urban acupuncture, a therapy forest and a youth stewardship program, Rescue MI Nature Now is making a big impact in the city.”
Outlier Media
“Tapping into people power to plant trees on vacant neighborhood land
As groups see their influence, undertakings grow, the struggle to balance an aspirational vision with resources and impact persists…”
Seen Magazine
“Within neglected quarters of Detroit, hyperlocal revitalization efforts to restore parts of the city’s sprawling alleyway network are reinventing their purpose in the process…”
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
“Transforming neighborhood blight into an approximately 2-acre, accessible therapeutic forest…”
Neighborhood Beautification Program Press Conference
Neighborhood Beautification Program grant awardees
RMNN is a 2022 Neighborhood Beautification Grant Awardee! Thank you CBS for highlighting our work in District 3 in Detroit!
Talk Tree to Me - Facilitating a Complex Conversation Around Trees in Detroit
The jury declared it an “innovative way to engage the public…especially during those days of isolation and uncertainty.” The project sought to call attention to the role trees play in urban areas and to facilitate a complex and nuanced conversation about the environment. Talk Tree to Me is an interactive design project that was installed for the Month of Design a month-long design festival in Detroit that explores the complex relationship between communities and trees.
2022 Jury Awards
The Nolan district in District 3 on the east side of Detroit is home to a standout case study. Butted against the I-75, a main artery connecting the downtown Detroit to Michigan’s northern frontier, 29 parcels of land with Nolan have been cleaned up and pointed towards nature. A collaboration steered by non-profit Rescue MI Nature Now has involved university students, local residents and city youth in a clean-up effort that started in 2019. University of Michigan-Dearborn Dr. Paul Draus has helped frame the project within the broader concept of Urban Acupuncture, enhancing spaces by making small changes the catalyze systematic change.
