Shade for Munich: Why We Support the Tree Decision

There’s that one moment on a hot summer day in Munich: You’re walking down one of those bare, sweltering streets, the asphalt shimmering, and then you turn the corner and suddenly there are trees. The air becomes noticeably cooler, the light softer, and you breathe a sigh of relief. It is precisely this difference that lies at the heart of what the “https://www.baumentscheid-muenchen.de/” is fighting for. And it’s a cause that is very close to our hearts here at TreeSense.

Who is behind BaumEntscheid?

BaumEntscheid München is a citizens’ initiative backed by more than 100 dedicated Munich residents from civil society, academia, and the business community, under the project leadership of Joseph Coenen and Stefanie Günther. As an independent initiative within BaumEntscheid e. V., the project is funded exclusively through donations and deliberately operates on a nonpartisan basis. After all, protection against heat ultimately affects everyone, no matter who you vote for.

The goal is specific: The initiative is calling on the city to adopt a binding action plan that addresses three key points. First, a comprehensive network of street trees providing at least 30% canopy cover along all municipal roads, consisting of climate-resilient trees that are maintained on an ongoing basis. Second, so-called “heat-prone neighborhoods” should be prioritized for greening: areas where it is particularly hot, where shade is lacking, and where many older people and families with young children live. And third, new tree sites should be secured early on and firmly integrated into street and infrastructure planning—without encroaching on bike paths or sidewalks.

Why this is urgent

The figures are sobering. Between 2018 and 2025, Munich lost over 15,000 urban trees—one of the highest absolute losses in the German Environmental Aid Association’s 2026 nationwide heat check. Only about a quarter of the city’s area is shaded by tree canopies today, placing Munich in the middle of the pack in a comparison of cities. On the heat vulnerability index, the city is just below the red warning threshold and is therefore already considered to be severely affected by heat.

And heat isn’t just an abstract concept. It makes it hard to concentrate at the office, to sleep in an attic apartment, and, in the worst case, it can harm your health—especially for older adults and young children. In densely built-up neighborhoods like Maxvorstadt or Schwanthalerhöhe, the nights hardly cool down at all. If temperatures continue to rise as predicted, these very neighborhoods will be hit the hardest.

Trees are one of the most effective solutions we have to all of these problems. They act like a natural air conditioner: they provide shade, cool their surroundings by several degrees through evaporation, filter particulate matter, store rainwater during heavy downpours, and, as an added bonus, provide habitats for birds and insects. In short: they make our neighborhoods livable.

Why We're Getting Involved

For us at TreeSense, BaumEntscheid is an initiative that aligns well with our work. Our work begins after planting. After all, planting a tree in the ground is only the first step. Young street trees in hot areas have it especially tough: drought stress, compacted soil, and high temperatures take a toll on them. Whether they survive the first few years and eventually develop a canopy large enough to provide noticeable shade is determined primarily during this early phase.

This is exactly where we come in. With our sensors, we give trees a voice: They show when a tree needs water, how healthy it is, and where care is most urgently needed. This transforms “planting more trees” into “keeping more trees alive in the long term.” The “BaumEntscheid” initiative explicitly calls for new street trees to be kept healthy through active care—and that’s our world. More trees, plus the right technology to help them stay healthy through climate change: This will ensure that Munich remains a city of shade well into the future.

Here's how you can help

The beauty of a citizens’ initiative is that it thrives on every single signature. To make the referendum possible, the initiative needs about 33,000 valid signatures; to be on the safe side, 40,000 will be collected to ensure a solid buffer. The collection period runs until August 31, 2026.

You can sign if you’re over 18 years old, have your primary residence in Munich, and hold an EU passport. And it’s really easy: you can do it from the comfort of your own home, at over 80 signature collection boxes throughout the city, or with the mobile collection teams that will be out and about in Munich all summer long. You can find all the information, maps, and instructions directly on the BaumEntscheid München website: baumentscheid-muenchen.de