Growing Together: Roots to Roofs
Southside ReLeaf and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation hosted the inaugural “Growing Together: From Roots to Roofs” summit with Virginia’s legislators, environmental leaders, urban planners, and housing advocates to explore how housing and the environment can grow together in partnership—not in competition.
Approximately 30 attendees gathered on October 9 and 10 at CBF’s Brock Environmental Center in Virginia Beach to hear presentations, successful land-use models, discuss regional challenges, and work toward a unified vision that supports affordable housing, tree preservation, and equitable urban development.
Summit Highlights
Day 1 Roots: Building Shared Understanding
Day 1, themed “Roots,” focused on laying the groundwork of connecting the dots between affordable housing, environmental justice, and community health. Speakers shared successful models from across Virginia and beyond, highlighting how cities and towns can balance growth with green infrastructure, preserve tree canopy, and address historic inequities in land use.
Day 2 Roofs: Turning Vision into Policy
Day 2, or “Roofs,” turned ideas into action. Participants developed six key policy recommendations for state and local leaders to advance equitable, sustainable development. These recommendations were shared with the Virginia Environmental and Renewable Energy (VERE) Caucus to help guide upcoming legislative action.
Our Shared Vision
“Every Virginian should live in a home that is affordable, safe, and surrounded by healthy green spaces that protect against heat, flooding, and pollution.”
The summit highlighted a desire for collaborative problem-solving that:
Addresses structural, political, and procedural barriers that limit equitable growth and erode public trust.
Reframes planning and development that’s community-driven.
Fosters a shared understanding and coordinated advocacy across sectors.
Expands the definition of success and profitability to include community well-being, sustainability, and resilience.
Achieving this vision requires breaking down silos between sectors and ensuring that growth in housing and canopy aligns with community values of equity, health, and sustainability.
Read the Summit Report
Our 2025 Roots to Roofs Summit Report captures the full discussions, findings, and policy recommendations that emerged from summit.