Indianapolis lost federal matching funds for replanting trees because of the word "diversity" in biodiversity

[In It to Win It]

https://www.indystar.com/story/news/environment/2025/02/26/feds-pull-tree-planting-grant-from-keep-indianapolis-beautiful/80473693007/

The USDA revoked a federal tree-planting grant to Keep Indianapolis Beautiful in a move the nonprofit's CEO said may be the result of anti-DEI initiatives coming from the Trump Administration.

Jeremy Kranowitz, president and CEO of KIB, said the $400,000 grant for urban forestry projects was awarded to the organization in January through the Arbor Day Foundation, but was then clawed back on Tuesday. Keep Indianapolis Beautiful is a nonprofit organization that plants trees throughout the city and coordinates large-scale clean up programs.

The Arbor Day Foundation did not immediately respond to IndyStar questions about the grant.

The money, reflecting about 6% of KIB’s annual funding, would have provided Indianapolis with a more biodiverse tree canopy and made tree plantings more equitable throughout the city. The use of the words “biodiversity” and “equity” may have been the reason the grant was revoked, Kranowitz hypothesized.

There’s growing evidence that words like “biodiversity” are being targeted by federal agencies bent on terminating Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives across the country.

[Prairie Gates]

1. They obviously should have used the better more beautiful word BioAmerica

They are aiming for as bioAmerican tree canopy to be placed in areas with all the best people, and definitely not in shithole areas. It's the essence of bioAmerica tree planting innovations!

[tulipsandroses]

2. Yes, because even trees put whiny white men at a disadvantage.

The absurdity

[tanyev]

3. Gott im himmel.

[Ocelot II]

4. Plant DEI. Woke trees. Can't have that, can we?

Maybe they'll require cities to plant only dioecious trees (those that have separate male and female individuals), like boxelder, persimmon, white ash, ginkgo, holly, red cedar, aspen and willow; but trees that produce male and female parts - pollen and fruit - on the same individual will be forbidden. So, no oak, maple, birch or pine trees because obviously those trees are bi or gay or trans or whatever. There are two genders, male and female, and trees shouldn't be able to break the rules and be all DEI like that.

[RandomNumbers]

6. hey don't give them ideas!

we can only hope their utter ignorance of science prevents them from going down that particular path.

How sad is it that I can contemplate them taking such an idea seriously?

[Ocelot II]

10. My city has planted a number of ginkgo trees along the boulevards,

but not because they're dioecious, since Minneapolis is notoriously woke. Ginkgo trees are very tough and can handle weather extremes, compacted soil and road salt, all of which we have in abundance. The problem with them is that the female trees produce fruit that smells like vomit, so in late summer when the fruit ripens and falls on the sidewalk the whole block smells like puke. They planted a decorative Harbin pear on my boulevard, which is DEI and monoecious, producing small, hard pears that fall on the sidewalk and squish and attract wasps, but at least they don't smell like puke. This should be a warning to the morons who don't understand science: Ginkgo is stinko.

[RandomNumbers]

5. The stupidity

burns

[Ping Tung]

7. Indianapolis should be "detained" and deported to Andorra or Belize.

[spanone]

8. In Indiana 58.6% voted for this.

[ChcioInf]

9. Thought this was a joke initially

God in Heaven is right. Height of stupidity, ignorance and illiteracy. What are we becoming. A waste land...

[Kid Berwyn]

11. Frigging NAZIs don't miss a thing.

Rules. Regulations. Records…

And they HATE the Constitution of the United States.

[House of Roberts]

12. There's growing evidence that ignorance of context

is all it takes to be Republican these days...

[Attilatheblond]

13. Was just thinking: Ignorance isn't bliss

It is the biggest threat to our democracy