When I was working as the Superintendent
of Parks and Trees for Wellesley,
Massachusetts, I joined the SMA.
Throughout my career I enjoyed
writing articles about our success
stories, including writing for City Trees,
for which I was eventually appointed
Editor. After 20 years in that role, I
decided to leave my active involvement
with the SMA as well as City Trees.
It was then that I started Online Seminars
for Municipal Arborists. This website
has evolved to become a resource for
arborists and foresters to become more
informed and to earn ISA CEUs. I also
joined LinkedIn and started their Urban
Forestry discussion group. Four years after
starting the Seminars, I was contacted by
Richard Gibney, an ISA Certified Arborist
and owner of a landscape architecture
firm who had a sideline of providing
education programs for LAs who needed
credits for their registration renewals.
We agreed to merge our programs,
which took a big load off my shoulders.
Now I spend my time writing new articles
for the quarterly Seminars and updating
existing ones. I also annually review our
typical specifications page and the article
about how to prepare a street tree master
plan. The updates also include the most
popular feature on the website, the
Arborist's Dictionary. I plan to continue this
effort for as long as I am able. Through this
and other means, I am trying to do my part
to help arborists and landscape architects
better understand each other and work
together in harmony. I also enjoy having
the time to appreciate the trees in my
yard, and taking daily walks with my wife.
—Len Phillips
"I am trying to do my part
to help arborists and
landscape architects better
understand each other..."
24 CityTREES
