Share The Urban Trees Initiative, led by the USC Dornsife Public Exchange, is preparing research that will guide tree-planting efforts by the city of L.A. and others later this year. (Illustration/Esther Margulies and Yuliang Jiang) Anew blueprint by USC researchers identifies four places best suited to plant shade trees across Los Angeles’ Eastside to bring cooling relief to thousands of people at risk for heat waves and air pollution in a warming global climate. In some scenarios, the tree canopy could be doubled across much of El Sereno, Ramona Gardens and parts of Lincoln Heights near USC’s Health Sciences Campus, the researchers report. Today, the area is one of the most tree-poor urban landscapes in the city.