Urban and Community Forestry Projects

Arizona Urban Tree Map 

A multi-year project funded by the USDA Forest Service to conduct urban forest inventories in partnering communities.

This project's goal was to:

• compile existing urban forest inventory and resource information from communities, towns, and rural areas statewide;
• develop and implement a pilot project for gathering data in multiple Arizona communities; and
• develop and implement protocols and opportunities for community engagement and long-term urban forest sustainability.

Diverse Urban Forests

Southwest urban forest contains a variety of tree species—native and nonnative—some of which produce edible seeds, nuts, fruits, and pods. Edible trees are under-used resources that provide a wide range of environmental services plus meet important community food and sustainability needs. Use of historically, culturally and genetically significant edible heritage tree species increases diverse public engagement in urban forest stewardship. This is a multi-year project to produce resources and tools that will increase the use of edible trees in Arizona communities.

Desert Canopy

A multi-state, multi-region project funded by the USDA Forest Service to conduct urban forestry ecosystem services assessments in partnering communities. This project utilized i-Tree Eco to capture baseline data that can be used to assist communities to develop municipal and regional planning goals and implement strategies that address regional attainment of federal air quality standards. 

2017 Shade Tree Planting Prioritization

The intent of the Shade Tree Planting Prioritization analysis was to:

• Rapidly and strategically assess Arizona’s urban forest communities to inform Urban and Community Forestry planning.
• Identify Arizona’s underserved cities and communities based on state-wide, best available, and relevant socio-economic and environmental data.
• Account for a city’s commitment to their urban forest (sustainability) as it applies to UCF partnerships and projects.
• Keep spatial and quantitative analysis simple and transparent.
• Generate summaries and geospatial products for internal and public dissemination.