Climbers' Corner • Tree Academy
Monday • Tuesday • Wednesday
Managing Our Urban Forest: What do Leaders and Professionals Think and Need?
Summary
Why do some
cities manage their urban forests while others seem to ignore them? What
elements of urban forestry management are most important to cities, and do
urban forestry perspectives differ between elected community leaders and
natural resource professionals who work for them? These are just a few of the
questions being answered by a new research study organized by Oregon State
University in cooperation with METRO, the state forestry agencies from
Washington and Oregon, and the Intertwine Alliance. These partners have come
together to create a regional strategy to advance urban forestry in the
Portland-Vancouver Metro area. Now in its second year, this project includes 1)
an ecosystem analysis and needs assessment survey, 2) stakeholder workshops and
forums, and 3) local projects focused on the health of the urban forest as a
whole. In addition, this strategy will
provide a replicable template for other metropolitan areas looking to advance
regional urban forestry efforts as part of the national Vibrant Cities and Urban Forests initiative sponsored by the US
Forest Service and the Sustainable Urban Forests Coalition. This presentation
will focus on the preliminary results of the needs assessment survey which was
sent to 350 community leaders and urban forestry professionals in the
Portland-Vancouver metro region. Survey results will serve to inform the
development of the Regional Urban Forestry Strategy by identifying the barriers
and needs to urban forestry management in the region and advancing current and
future urban forestry efforts. Because the urban forest knows no political
boundaries, this research will encourage collaboration across jurisdictions,
helping to increase the livability and environmental sustainability of the
Portland-Vancouver metropolitan area while allowing local jurisdictions to achieve
successful urban forestry programs that increase the health of our urban
forests while reaping the benefits trees provide.
Conference Proceedings Documents
Presenters
Abbey Driscoll is a current graduate student studying urban forestry at
Oregon State University. She hopes to graduate with her Master’s degree in
Summer 2014. Her research focuses on better understanding urban forestry
management needs at the city and county level. Abbey obtained her undergraduate
degree in Environmental Science from the University of Oregon. She also has
professional experience at the state urban forestry level and in environmental
remediation.
Paul D. Ries has
over 25 years of urban forestry experience at the local, state, national,
international, non-profit, and academic level. He currentlyteaches urban forestry and arboriculture courses at Oregon State
University as an Instructor and Extension Specialist in the OSU College of
Forestry, and also manages the state Urban and Community Forestry program for the
Oregon Department of Forestry. He serves as a lead incident public information
officer for wildfires and all risk incidents, and is a member of the Board of
Directors for the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA), a non-profit professional
society with 20,000 members worldwide. He holds a Masters degree from the Ohio
State University, and is an ISA Certified Arborist.
Climbers' Corner • Tree Academy
Monday • Tuesday • Wednesday