Volunteers can comprise an essential component of
urban forestry programming, helping to establish, care
for, and study trees in the urban forest. Governments,
non-profit organizations, and academic institutions
readily rely upon a flow of skilled volunteers (for
example, arborists or urban foresters) and volunteers
from the public. Volunteers are often recognized for
their time, skills, and passion in caring for the urban
forest, participating in local events such as tree planting
days, neighbourhood clean-ups, and educational work-
shops, where they actively contribute to the greening
and beautification of the urban forest. Their motivations
and values have been studied in recent literature on
urban forestry, recognizing a general interest in volun-
teers towards social and environmental betterment.
Volunteers are a multi-faceted group, bringing diverse
experience and expertise to the role, which bene-
fits and enriches urban forestry programming through
their unique perspectives and backgrounds. The
involvement of volunteers in urban forestry program-
ming not only helps to expand the capacity of urban
forestry initiatives but also fosters a sense of commu-
nity ownership and engagement, which can have a
lasting beneficial effect on the urban environment.
There is an increasing interest in engaging diverse
communities in urban forestry programming, par-
ticularly communities that have faced systemic
barriers to involvement and engagement. >>
Newburgh, New York Community Tree Pruners in action. Photo by Gloria Van Duyne
Exploring
Inclusive
Alternatives
to
"Citizen
Science"
and
"Citizen
Pruner"
By Alexander Martin, Board Certified Master Arborist and
Certified Treecare Safety Professional, and Jenna Valiquette,
Indigenous Cultural Facilitator at Altered Minds Inc.
urban-forestry.com 25
