Mentee: Tony Mecum
I'm an urban forester in Oregon. I serve as the
Planting Program Supervisor for the Urban Forestry
Division of Portland Parks and Recreation. I lead a
team that coordinates tree plantings through our
opt-out street tree planting program, yard tree give-
away program, Learning Landscapes school plantings,
park tree replacements, and interagency projects.
Our team plants trees with the help of in-house staff,
contractors, volunteers, and students. We apply an
equity lens to each aspect of our program, guided by
current science from Portland State University and
other researchers that show the significant disparities in
our tree canopy coverage and how the disparities have
increased the burdens on our most vulnerable residents.
Fortunately, it's an exciting time to shape the urban
forest of Portland: voters approved a Parks levy in 2020
that has significantly increased funding for tree plant-
ings and proactive tree care. Prior to Portland Urban
Forestry, I was the Urban Forester for my hometown,
Grants Pass, Oregon, and a Senior Forester for New York
City Parks and Recreation. I have a Master of Forestry
from the Yale School of the Environment and I serve
on the Oregon Community Trees Board of Directors.
After completing MFI, I wanted to continue learning
from my urban forestry peers. The Diversity Mentorship
Program has been a great avenue for me to connect
with urban foresters and arborists from across the
country. I signed up to be a mentee because I wanted
to receive guidance from a seasoned professional.
The experience has been great. My mentor, Haywood,
and I connect at least once a month to discuss
everything from work issues to life successes and chal-
lenges. We established an action plan and Haywood
is helping me stay on track while providing guidance
along the way. The plan is for me to assist my col-
leagues on the Oregon Community Trees Board of
Directors in creating a website full of resources for
urban foresters across the state. The site will include
resources on tree codes, permits, best management
practices, planting program ideas, tree inventory
resources, research, case studies, and more. >>
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