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6 City Trees During our recent intense and productive two-day SMA Board Meeting in Dallas, Texas, we reviewed the results of our 2015 membership survey, and I wanted to share some findings with you. We received almost 600 responses to the survey! With that feedback in hand, we worked to identify challenges we face in growing the SMA, and we committed to strategically address these challenges over the next few years. Referencing our 2006 membership survey for comparison, our mem- bership demographic has not changed significantly since then; our members are generally municipal foresters and arborists, consultants, and utility arborists whose work is diverse and evolving. Members look to the SMA for research on new techniques, networking with other arborists, and support of the municipal arborist profession. Many of our survey respondents felt somewhat disconnected to other SMA members, and almost 60% of respondents reported that they have not attended the SMA annual conference in the past ten years. We are motivated to change that, and hope you will join us. We have prioritized the following challenges for the Board to focus on this year and will ask the respective SMA committees to help find potential solutions. We would like to: • better characterize urban forestry professionals, including their motiva- tions, attitudes, and perceptions; • expand our role in growing leaders; • increase the value of membership, increase conference attendance, and better connect members with one another; • define basic arboricultural knowledge and ensure that information is targeted to our members' level of expertise; • elevate the status of the ISA Municipal Specialist certification and the SMA Accreditation; • connect with student members and advance our partnerships with allied professions. We may be a small organization, but we're a great one with 50 years of history. At the end of 2015, we had more than 1,800 members from around the world. At the end of last month, we welcomed our elev- enth class of MFI alumni. We have more student members than we've ever had—more than 300! In fact, 10% of survey respondents were students, who are the real future of our industry and the SMA. We have many partners like the International Society of Arboriculture, Arbor Day Foundation, US Forest Service, Tree Care Industry Association, National Urban and Community Forestry Advisory Council, Sustainable Urban Forests Council, National Association of State Foresters, American Planning Association, and American Society of Landscape Architects, among others. Working with these partners and with one another, we can continue to grow the SMA and meet the challenges your survey responses identified. One of my favorite things to do with the SMA Board members is to think about the future of SMA. We do have over 50 years of history and hundreds of leaders who have led this organiza- tion through change, growth, and rein- vention. I often think it would be fun to get all the past board members togeth- er and trade stories about their time in office. I know it would be, well, interesting! The vision they had to take SMA to the next level, regardless of what that level was, was surpassed only by their passion. This year's board is no exception, and they are working hard to continue to make SMA membership valuable to our members. With the advent of Google, webinars, and social media, we could ask, why would anyone bother to join a professional association? Information is easy to get with an online search, free online educational credits are plentiful, and the ability to connect with one another is just a "friend request" away. Why pay annual dues for things you can find for free? Joining a professional association is one of the best ways to advance in your career. Getting involved in your profession- al association is even better. When all members of a group contribute, the net result is a better group. Connecting with your peers where you can share ideas, get and give advice, and learn about the latest products and services and meet the "leaders" in your profession are all good reasons to be an active SMA member. Growing your professional network is important when it comes time to change jobs for reasons like downsizing, relocation, and promotion. However, that is not the time to begin to develop your network. The best time for you to decide to get involved in SMA is right now. In order to continue to grow and remain relevant to our members, we need to not only hear from you, we need your experience and wisdom. Giving back is a great way to not only contribute, it's personally rewarding. We'll soon be soliciting proposals to speak at the SMA Annual Conference in Indianapolis this November, as well as at the Partners in Community Forestry Conference that immediately follows. What a great way for you to share your experiences. Frightened by public speaking? There's plenty to do behind the scenes in preparing for these events. Don't see anything that interests you in our list of committees? We are always ready to develop something new, so if there's something you are pas- sionate about, we want to hear from you. The future of SMA includes you. President's Message Jeremy Barrick Executive Director's Message Jerri J. LaHaie