Climate Resiliency

60-Minute Education Session

SUN-B01 - Urban Forest Futures: Climate Change, Social Equity, and the Contemporary City

1.00 PDH, LA CES/HSW, AICP, FL, NY/HSW, ISA

Lead Speaker(s)

• 

  Eric Kramer, ASLA

  Principal
  Reed Hilderbrand

Speaker(s)

• 

  Deanna Moran, AICP

  Director of Environmental Planning
  Conservation Law Foundation
• 

  Kim Chapman

  Principal Ecologist/Regional Director
  Applied Ecological Services

Our urban forests are in severe decline. Climate change, pests, diseases, and development pressures threaten the urban canopy's ecosystem and cultural value. This panel discusses a research-based urban forest master plan for Cambridge, Massachusetts, that joins ecological planning, progressive policy, and cutting-edge practices to build a resilient and equitable future.

Learning Objectives:

• Define the value of the urban forest in terms the public understands and assess the future risks of urban canopy decline.
• Discuss the challenges of developing research-driven findings and making evidence-based decisions on a limited budget and within a constrained timeframe.
• Explore the different tools available to reverse canopy loss, including changing practices, educating the public, and writing good policy and regulation.
• Learn how to structure the right team—bridging science, policy, and design so that you can communicate clearly to public officials, engineers, and the public.