www.urban-forestry.com 15
Index of tree canopy need/equity in Cleveland's neighborhoods.
right-of-way and 2) the majority of the urban forest lies within
said private residential lands.
Providing policies that allow for best tree care practices and
inclusion of community members in caring for trees will net the
largest return in growing a sustainable canopy for Cleveland's
urban and community forest. Coalition partners are poised to
continue advocacy, outreach, and education focused on putting
the Plan into action and rebuilding a dense green canopy across
the Forest City.
Author Chad Clink is the community forester for the Holden
Arboretum in Northeast Ohio. The Holden Arboretum is
an outdoor living museum that promotes the beauty and
importance of trees and other woody plants to create
sustainable and healthy communities in the Great Lakes
region and beyond. One of the Arboretum's strategic
goals is "Growing Trees and Communities: Interconnected
networks of trees and wooded environments—from street
trees to home gardens to green spaces—sustain the eco
-
logical health of the communities where we live and work."
The mission: to restore the forest to the Forest City.
Community forestry programs come in many
variations, but every well organized and profes-
sionally managed program provides a wide array
of valuable benefits to community residents and
to the world beyond. Evaluating the efficacy of
diverse and unique programs can be a challenge.
Communicating success stories to local residents
and community leaders can be just as challenging—
but is vitally important.
The Urban and Community Forestry Program
Accreditation offered by the SMA offers every com
-
munity the opportunity to both evaluate its local
program based on objective, professionally developed
standards and to communicate to others the value
and success of that local program.
To assist those communities that are thinking about
the value of accreditation or are considering an
application for accreditation, the SMA has developed
a list of Frequently Asked Questions regarding the
accreditation and application process. Please go to
www.urban-forestry.com/sma-accreditation
FAQ's for SMA's Urban & Community
Forestry Program Accreditation
