Reimagine Urban Life. Together.
Imagine a year from now.
There's a pocket forest growing in your city. Native species are thriving. The air is cooler. A community gathers around something they built together.
You made it happen. That journey starts here.
Ambition
We believe every individual deserves access to thriving, biodiverse nature. SUGi has planted almost 270 pocket forests. Our ambition is 1,000 across 100 cities by 2030. No organization can do that alone. The Academy exists to grow the number of people who can make it happen.
About SUGi
SUGi enables the creation of dense, native pocket forests in cities around the world, restoring biodiversity, building climate resilience, and reconnecting communities to nature and each other. 265+ pocket forests. 65 cities. 86% survival rate. The methodology works. Now we're building an Academy to scale our movement.
Who it’s for
Built for the doers.
Maybe you're already working in restoration, permaculture, or agroforestry, and you want to add the most rigorous urban forest method in the world to your practice.
Maybe you saw a SUGi Pocket Forest and felt something shift. But you don't know where to start.
Maybe you’ve spent years bringing people together, and a pocket forest is exactly what your community needs. You just need the method and credential to make it real.
Or maybe you've had a successful career building something else. And now you're ready to build something that grows.
Whoever you are, if you're ready to act, the Academy is for you.
12 Week Course: $600 USD, a special rate for the founding cohort.
Applications close on August 5th.
How we learn
Three modes. Every week. From hope to action.
Learn
Live sessions with experts, articles, and podcasts. Content that feels like a gift.
Act
Activities and an interactive workbook. Where inspiration becomes action.
Connect
Community discussions, pods, and mentorship. People learn from each other as much as from content.
What you will learn
Foundation. Practice. Proof.
A structured journey to a Pocket Forest Plan.
Week 1. Welcome + Foundations
Meet your cohort, SUGi's story, expectation setting, and join your grove.
Weeks 2–10. Core Modules
9 modules covering the SUGi method grounded in Miyawaki’s science. From site and soil to stakeholders, funding, and delivery.
Week 11. Final Project
You’ll walk away with a real blueprint that will help you mobilize people, get approval, and get started building your pocket forest.
Week 12. Celebration
Reflection, commitments, and community celebration.
What you will be able to do
By the end of 12 weeks, you’ll be able to:
— Find and secure a viable site for your pocket forest.
— Build the case to landowners, councils, and funders.
— Plan your first pocket forest to the SUGi standard.
— Gather and lead the community that will plant with you.
— Steward your forest into a self-sustaining ecosystem.
What’s included
Learning Modules Ground in Science
Live Sessions
Tools Built for the Field
The SUGi Canvas
Your Cohort of Forest Makers
Peer Review & Feedback
SUGi Academy Alumni
The Alumni Network
Join a global network of forest makers reimagining urban life.
Spots are limited. The founding cohort is for people ready to help shape the program and plant their pocket forest.
For the founding cohort, we're offering it at a discounted rate of $600 USD. You're shaping the Academy with us, and the price reflects that.
SUGi believes thriving nature should be accessible to everyone. Three full scholarships are available. If cost is a barrier, reach out and tell us your story.
Applications close by August 5th.
"For about 2 years we researched the Miyawaki method but did not have the necessary funds or skills to execute it. In 2020, we met SUGi who trained and equipped us to bring this project to completion. SUGi made it a reality. We are truly grateful for them believing in us and the work we are doing here. We believe it's partnerships such as these that will enable us to transform our world for the better. We cannot wait to see how the forest will do in the next few years. Our hope is that others can come here, learn from it and go home to replicate the same."
Frequently Asked Questions
