Collected by Phillip Rodbell

National Program Lead, Urban Sustainability Research
U.S. Forest Service

https://www.fs.fed.us/research/urban/  

Advocacy News –

• Cleveland.com – Cuyahoga County will need ‘all hands on deck’ to grow a healthy tree canopy
• E&E News – Biden seeks farm conservation, forestry hikes
• ESRI – Urban parks play a key role in curbing inequity and climate impacts
• GreenWire – Biden calls for $10B Civilian Climate Corps
• Honolulu Magazine – Honolulu is losing trees when we need them more than ever
• SFI – New collaboration to develop urban and community forest sustainability standard
• National Public Radio – What the cherry blossom bloom can tell us about climate change
• New York Times – Why you should plant oaks
• NOAA Heat Health Information – NOAA and communities to map heat inequities in 11 states
• Philadelphia Inquirer – Philly asks residents what they think of trees for city’s 10-year plan
• Yale 360 – Are huge tree planting projects more hype than solution?
• Wired – Reforestation is great! But we’re running out of seeds
• World Economic Forum – Eight reasons we need to protect our forests

Products and Happenings –

• New Cross-Pollinator Issue #3 from Forest Service R&D: A threat to ecological Investments: Plant pathogens in landscape restoration projects.
• New Report from American Forests: Climate change and urban forests – source from FS David Nowak, Eric Greenfield, Alexis Ellis.
• New Toolkit from ICLEI and BCNUEJ: Policy and planning for urban green justice
• New platform for learning: European Forum on Urban Forestry
• New book: Resilient Urban Futures – open access, includes FS Tischa Muñoz Erickson
• New Video PSAs – North Carolina Urban Forest Council: Importance of Urban Trees & Tree Care
• EPA – Cool your community social media toolkit
• The Nature Conservancy – Inequality Atlas of urban tree cover
• TED Talk – Why the “wrong side of the tracks” is usually the east side of cities – Stephen DeBerry
• USDA Forest Service funds 15 Landscape Scale Restoration projects in Northeast, Midwest 
• i-Tree News – A series of newsletters with network events and product updates here.  

• Vibrant Cities Lab – Home base for urban forest research, advocacy, and action.

NEW – Phytoremediation with poplar trees

New and Recent Research –

• Anderson, Sarah M.; Heath, Linda S.; Emery, Marla R.; Hicke, Jeffrey A.; Littell, Jeremy S.; Lucier, Alan; Masek, Jeffrey G.; Peterson, David L.; Pouyat, Richard; Potter, Kevin M.; Robertson, Guy; Sperry, Jinelle. 2021. Developing a set of indicators to identify, monitor, and track impacts and change in forests of the United States. Climatic Change.
• Engebretson, J.M.; Nelson, Kristen C.; Larson K.L.; Andrade, R.; Wheeler M.M.; Lerman, S.B.; Locke, D.H.; Trammell, T.L.E.; Groffman, P.M. 2021. Ambiguity and clarity in residential yard ordinances across metropolitan areas in the United States. Journal of Urban Affairs.
• Lin, Jian; Kroll, Charles N.; Nowak, David J. 2021. An uncertainty framework for i-Tree eco: A comparative study of 15 cities across the United States. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening.
• Locke, D.H., Hall, B., Grove, J.M. et al. 2021. Residential housing segregation and urban tree canopy in 37 US Cities. npj Urban Sustainability.
• Martinuzzi, Sebastian; Locke, Dexter H.; Ramos-González, Olga, et al. 2021. Exploring the relationships between tree canopy cover and socioeconomic characteristics in tropical urban systems: The case of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening.
• Pataki Diane E.; Alberti M.; Cadenasso M.L. et al. 2021. The Benefits and Limits of Urban Tree Planting for Environmental and Human Health. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution.
• Piana, Max R.; Hallett, Richard A.; Aronson, Myla F. J.; Conway, Emily; Handel, Steven N. 2021. Natural regeneration in urban forests is limited by early‐establishment dynamics: implications for management. Ecological Applications.
• Roman, Lara A.; Catton, Indigo J.; Greenfield, Eric J.; Pearsall, Hamil; Eisenman, Theodore S.; Henning, Jason G. 2021. Linking Urban Tree Cover Change and Local History in a Post-Industrial City. Land
• Schelhas, John; Brandeis, Thomas J.; Rudel, Thomas K. 2021. Planted forests and natural regeneration in forest transitions: patterns and implications from the U.S. South. Regional Environmental Change.
• Tanner, Sophia J.; Escobedo, Francisco J.; Soto, José R. 2021. Recognizing the insurance value of resilience: Evidence from a forest restoration policy in the southeastern U.S. Journal of Environmental Management.
• Theall, K.P.; Morrison, C.N.; Jacoby, S.F.; Tucker, A.; Wallace, M. E.; Kondo, M.C.; Branas, C.C.; Gustat, J. 2021. Neighborhood Blighted Property Removal and 311 Calls for Non‐Emergency Services: A Test of a Marker of Social Control. Geographical Analysis.
• Zhu, Zhi-Xin; Escobedo, Francisco J.; Revell, Liam J.; Brandeis, Thomas; Xie, Jun; Wang, Hua-Feng. 2021. Using phylogenetic diversity to explore the socioeconomic and ecological drivers of a tropical, coastal urban forest. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening.

Public Health Findings –

• EEworks – Impact of EE on conservation and environmental quality
• The Hill – New study finds birds give people as much happiness as money
• Horizon EU – What urban nature really means for insect biodiversity
• NewScientist – Green spaces aren’t just for nature – they boost our mental health too (synthesis)
• Washington Post – Opinion: We must invest in black neighborhood safety (synthesis)

Webinars and Events –

• Webinar – Green Roofs for healthy cities: Urban food production virtual symposium: Date:  May 11

• Webinar – Urban Forest Connections – monthly webinar series from the USDA Forest Service. Next up: Taking Flight: Urban forest stewardship for bird conservation using i-Tree Eco w/s/g Drs. Wayne Arendt and Jerry Bauer, USDA Forest Service, and Rob Northrup, University of Florida: Date: May 12

• Video: American Assn of Geographers 2021 – Trees in the City Session 1
• Podcast – Plant a Trillion Trees w/s/g/ Lara Roman

• The Nature of Cities Festival – Global event, innovative platform, 24/7: Visit the website to see available micro-talks, plenaries, seed sessions, and Field Trips.

• Video series – Beyond Trees Network – Hosted by U.S. Forest Service International Programs
• Webinar series – TREE Fund Webinars
• Webinar series – Penn State Extension Urban Forestry archive.
• Webinar series – UMass Urban Forestry Today archive.

Opportunities –

• FAO – 1^st Africa Forum on Urban Forests – Proposal for presentation: Submit by May 5; Event July 5-9

• EPA – Environmental Justice Small Grants Program: Deadline: May 7

• ISA – International Society of Arboriculture virtual conference, Call for Abstracts: Deadline: May 14

• USDA National Agroforestry Center – Request for proposals: Deadline: May 28

• FAO – World Forestry Congress – Abstract submission: Deadline: June 30 (May 2-6, 2022 in Korea or virtual)

• MDPI Sustainability – Special issue: Citizen Science for Sustainable Cities: Deadline: June 30

• MDPI Land – Special issue: Ecosystem disservices across heterogeneous urban landscapes: Deadline: October 15
• MDPI Sustainability – Special issue: Forward thinking UF management for sustainable Cities: Deadline:  March 31, 2022

• National Science Foundation – Funding for “urban” research: Deadline: Various and rolling.

Upcoming Meetings –

• Online TreeVitalize conference – Envisioning a just future in community forests: May 5 & 12 (12-1:30)

• UW Urban Forest Symposium – Urban Forest Reboot: Challenge and Change: May 18
• Congress for the New Urbanism - CNU 29: Design for Change: May 19-21
• Climate Leadership Conference: May 24-26
• International Walk21 Conference on Walking and Livable Communities: May 26-28
• Cities in a Changing World: Questions of Culture, Climate and Design: June 16-18
• FAO 1^st African Forum on Urban Forests: July 5-9