Trees as an Asset: Elements of a Modern Urban Forestry Program
Monday, August 18, 2025: 4:00 PM - 4:50 PM
Speaker(s)
Description
Often seen as a liability rather than an asset, a community’s urban forest has the potential to provide multiple social, economic, and public health benefits. A well-managed urban forest can often increase the profile of a community and can contribute to a higher quality of life for its residents.
The Village of Oak Park, a suburban collar community of the City of Chicago was named the first municipal arboretum in the state of Illinois and fourth in the nation in 2015. The public works staff tasked with managing this urban arboretum, while small, represent some of the most educated and credentialed in the state.
Oak Park takes a proactive, modern approach to managing its urban canopy. While many forestry programs have historically focused on pruning, planting, and removals, Oak Park goes well beyond these three staples to maximize the benefits and value the community gets from its urban canopy while managing cost.
Municipal forestry programs are not one-size-fits-all so this Jam Session will also rely on hearing from the audience about what they have tried for growing their programs, what has worked, and what challenges they have faced. All of this should help attendees get creative and think of new ways they can grow their existing programs.
Track(s)
Learning Objectives
After this session, participants will be better able to:
• Identify opportunities to expand your municipal forestry program.
• Recognize ways to analyze your existing tree canopy and use it as a baseline to assess if it grows over time and justify policies to increase canopy growth.
• Analyze your community’s tree equity to determine where tree planting or elective tree maintenance is needed most.
Additional Info
Session Evaluation:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/98PK2HD