Urban Forest Connections Webinar Series

The Forest Service Urban Forest Connections webinar series brings experts together to discuss the latest science, practice, and policy on urban forestry and the environment. Our webinars are organized by themes into three mini-series per year.

For 2022, the themes are:

• Racial equity and environmental justice (Spring 2022)
• Mitigating urban heat (Summer 2022)
• Climate change resilience and adaptation (Fall 2022)

Tune in every other month on second Wednesdays from 1:00pm - 2:15pm ET.

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Upcoming Webinar Series

Mitigating Urban Heat

Climate change will likely lead to more frequent, more severe, and longer heat waves during summer months. These extreme heat events often affect our most vulnerable populations first. Urban heat islands occur when cities replace natural land cover with dense concentrations of pavement, buildings, and other surfaces that absorb and retain heat. Trees, green roofs, and vegetation can help reduce urban heat island effects by shading building surfaces, deflecting radiation from the sun, and releasing moisture into the atmosphere. Join us for our summer webinar series addressing this important topic.

June 8th, 2022: Engaging Community Residents in Heat Mitigation and Canopy Expansion 

The West Mesa River Community Heat Action Project, a recent initiative of the Rio Reimagined partnership, focuses on addressing heat mitigation along the eastern reach of the Salt-Gila River corridor through Metropolitan Phoenix. The two-year project (2020-2022) engaged over 350 residents, 8 faith-based organizations, 15 social service organizations, and 34 local businesses, with more than 300 trees planted to date. In this webinar, Paul Coseo and Cecilia Riviere will share strategies and lessons learned from the multi-faceted project, which included social vulnerability mapping, tree inventory, community engagement, education, and implementation of urban canopy to cool local river neighborhoods. 

Click here to join the meeting

Or call in (audio only) 

+1 872-395-5961, 862045389#   United States, Chicago

Phone Conference ID: 862 045 389#

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August 9th, 2022: Save the Date - More information coming soon!

Past Webinars 

2022

• April 2022: Greenspace Preservation in Distressed Communities
• March 2022: Building Workforce Equity and Community Capacity through Pre-Apprenticeship
• Feb 2022: Methods and Public Health Impacts of Community Based Urban Forestry Efforts

2021

• April 2021: Trees, Woodlands, Lawns and Right of Ways: Best Practices for Biodiversity 
• March 2021: Tree Equity for Climate and Health: State and Local Applications
• February 2021: Extreme Events in the Urban Forest: Assessment, Response, and Recovery
• January 2021: Seeing the Landscape from the Trees: An Ecosystemic Approach to Urban Forestry

2020

• December 2020: Biolcultural Stewardship: Transforming our Urban and Community Forestry Practices
• October 2020: Millions, Billions, and Trillions: Do you have the Tools to Keep New Trees Alive?
• September 2020: New Guidance for Tracking Long-Term Tree Survival, Growth and Health
• August 2020: Redlining's Intensifying Harm: Rising Temperatures, Hotter Neighborhoods, and How Trees Can Help 
• July 2020: RX for Hot Cities: Urban Greening and Cooling to Reduce Heat-Related Mortality in Los Angeles and Beyond
• June 2020: The Science and Practice of Managing Forests in Cities
• May 2020: Addressing Loss of Tree Cover in Urban Watersheds: The Importance of Local Codes and Policies
• April 2020: CommuniTree: A Model for Engaging Communities in Tree Planting and Maintenance Projects
• March 2020: A Call to Action for Ash Tree Conservation and Resistance Breeding
• February 2020: Phytoremediation of Soils Using Fast Growing Trees in Vacant Lots and Landfills 
• January 2020: Investigating the Stormwater: Quantity and Quality Impacts of Urban Trees