A nationwide survey commissioned by the National Association of State Foresters (NASF) was recently completed to assess key public perceptions and values related to forests. The new results reveal a striking consensus among Americans: Voters strongly value the...
Research
Oaks in the Urban Landscape
Oaks are highly valued in urban areas for their aesthetic, environmental, economic and cultural benefits. However, significant impacts to the health and structural stability of oaks have resulted from urban encroachment. Changes in environment, incompatible cultural...
New web portal for climate and land use planning information
The State of California has embarked on an effort to encourage and promote sustainable land use planning through passage of legislation such as Senate Bill 375, and the funding of several grant programs. Under Senate Bill 375, Metropolitan Planning Organizations...
U.S. Forest Service Funds Tree Inventory for Urban Planners
New research funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 will help city planners make better decisions about their urban trees for a range of benefits, including energy savings and improved access to nature. Researchers, led by U.S. Forest Service...
Your input needed to develop an Urban Forestry Toolkit for Storm Response
The Friends of Hawaii’s Urban Forest was awarded a 2009 Forest Service National Urban and Community Forestry Advisory Council (NUCFAC) Best Practices Grant to develop an Urban Forestry Emergency Operations Plan Toolkit for Storm Response. Your input is need to...
Green infrastructure and climate change adaptation reports
The Center for Clean Air Policy (CCAP) recently released two new reports on improving community resilience and economic prosperity by incorporating climate change adaptation best practices into city planning strategies. The reports, The Value of Green Infrastructure...
Can trees make you happy?
Read this interview from OnEarth Magazine with Dr. Kathleen Wolf, a social scientist at both the University of Washington’s School of Forest Resources and at the U.S. Forest Service, who studies how trees and green spaces can make urban dwellers healthier and...
New software puts forest ecology in public hands
The U.S. Forest Service and its partners released this morning the newest version of their free i-Tree software suite, designed to quantify the benefits of trees and assist communities in gaining support and funding for the trees in their parks, schoolyards and...
Study about the motivations of urban forestry volunteers
A new study, “Examining Volunteer Motivations and Recruitment Strategies For Engagement in Urban Forestry” has been released by Cities and The Environment (CATE). Abstract: Few studies in urban forestry have examined the motivations of urban forestry volunteers. In...
Selecting locations for Urban Tree Canopy
A 2010 research paper titled: Prioritizing Preferable Locations for Increasing Urban Tree Canopy in New York City presents a set of Geographic Information System (GIS) methods for identifying and prioritizing tree planting sites in urban environments. It uses an...