NPSO State Secretary Kim Brown Awarded the Botanical Society of America 2025 Service and Advocacy Grant
Last Updated on October 3, 2025 by Tom Pratum
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| Kim Brown, NPSO State Secretary and Portland Chapter member, won the Botanical Society of America’s Advocacy and Service Grant for her proposal on creating accessible and educational native plant gardens. Every year Kim organizes a community “bike-planting” event in Portland called the Beecycle. Beecycle seeks to boost native plant knowledge amongst the community and increase people-plant connection by utilizing spaces that urban residents see and use every day – street strips. Street strips are the greenspaces along roads, ubiquitous in the urban environment, and have been overlooked for their potential to serve as interactive and educational spaces for native plants. Each year Kim chooses two to three homeowners to assist in transitioning their street strip to native plants, prioritizing homeowners from marginalized communities. With the help of enthusiastic bicyclist volunteers, the group transports and plants hundreds of native plants over the course of a day. After planting, the volunteers install a sign with a QR code so that people passing by can scan and learn about the plant species, their growing requirements, and their environmental benefits. Additional details can be found at the Beecycle website. –Kim Brown |
 Photo by Kim Brown |