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2023 Event Details

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Society of Municipal Arborists Workshop & Conference

November 14 –15, 2022

Presented by: Society of Municipal Arborists

Event Information

The Society of Municipal Arborists (SMA) will hold its 58th annual International Urban Forestry Conference and Trade Show November 14th–15th at the Westin in Seattle, Washington. The theme of this year’s conference is the successful melding of trees and infrastructure, as well as successful partnerships between municipalities and nonprofits to further canopy goals in communities. Sessions at the conference will address:

  • Using green infrastructure to improve tree equity and the mitigation of urban heat islands
  • Integrating trees into planning and budgeting for gray infrastructure
  • Adoption of municipal codes to accommodate green infrastructure design
  • Collaborating with Engineering and Public Works departments to improve the melding of green and grey infrastructure

Agenda

Tentative, subject to change.
All events are at the The Westin Seattle unless otherwise noted.

Monday, November 14, 2022

  • 12:00–7:00 p.m. Registration Open
  • 1:00–4:00 p.m. Pre-Conference Workshop (bus Tour)

    Visit Seattle's SEA Streets pilot project, constructed in 2001, where drainage was designed to mimic a natural landscape, rather than installing a traditional piped system. The series of swales and cascades has been shown to reduce the volume of stormwater leaving the street by 99 percent. The tour will also visit Carkeek Park, which is 'downstream' from the project. The park is home to a salmon stream, which benefits directly from the improved water quality.

  • 5:00–6:00 p.m. Fun Run, Walk, or Watch Participate in 2-mile run-walk excursion along a portion of Seattle’s waterfront. Proceeds will support SMA’s Urban Forest Foundation.
  • 6:00–9:00 p.m. MFI Reunion The Pike Pub, Upper level of Microbrewery Museum, $30. Limited to 60 people.

Tuesday, November 15, 2022

  • 7:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m. Registration Open
  • 7:00–8:00 a.m. Breakfast with Exhibitors
  • 7:00–8:00 a.m. First-Time Attendees Breakfast with Organization Leaders
  • 8:00–8:10 a.m. Welcome & Opening Comments
  • 8:10–8:40 a.m. Urban Forest Management in Seattle, WA

    Overview of Seattle’s Urban Forest and the people that manage the departments.

    Seattle’s Urban Forest Nolan Rundquist, City Arborist and staff
  • 8:40–9:20 a.m. Governing the urban forest: changing models and municipal forester roles for new demands

    An international perspective on new modes of urban forest governance and the changing role of municipal arborists and urban foresters. Strategic decision making, different models of governance and different roles of public, private, and civic actors will be discussed as will theemerging trend of hybrid governance between the public sector and other actors (e.g. management of Central Park in NYC).

    Cecil Konijnendijk, Director, Nature Based Solutions Institute, Barcelona, Spain
  • 9:20–9:50 a.m. Trees rooted in infrastructure across Idaho's "City of Trees"

    Learn how the non-profit, the Treasure Valley Canopy Network (Network), collaborates with communities to increase tree canopy across southwest Idaho through a network of over a dozen public and private partners.

    Matt Perkins, Urban & Community Forestry Program Coordinator, Idaho Public Lands
  • 9:50–10:15 a.m. Break with Exhibitors
  • 10:15–10:45 a.m. The Challenges and Opportunities to Increase Canopy in the City of Syracuse

    The 2020 Master Plan goals to increase canopy 7% are confronting canopy loss driven by once-in-a-generation investments in transportation, sidewalks, housing, highway removal and the rebuilding of a red-lined neighborhood. City departments are responding by integrating trees into plans and budgets across departments and by involving the community in the design process, planting and management.

    Steve Harris, City Arborist, Department of Parks Cimone Jordan, Dir. of Neighborhood Planning, Dept. of Neighborhood & Business Development, City of Syracuse
  • 10:45–11:15 a.m. Converting Grey to Green Infrastructure in the District of Columbia

    Learn how DC turns grey into green in pursuit of DC 40% canopy goal.

    Alexander Grieve, Urban Forester JoElle Burgard, Landscape Architect DC Urban Forest Administration
  • 11:15–11:30 a.m. Hello from exhibitors
  • 11:30 a.m–1:00 p.m. Awards Luncheon
  • 1:05–1:15 p.m. Welcome from new SMA leadership
  • 1:15–1:45 p.m. Leveraging the Community to Elevate City Forestry

    This talk will highlight how Jersey City gained funding and community buy-in for their forestry program through the work of the non-profit group Sustainable Jersey City.

    Kieran Hunt, Municipal Manager, Asplundh
  • 1:45–2:15 p.m. Planting Partners: Baltimore Tree Trust and Baltimore City Public Schools

    BTT’s mission is to increase tree canopy at the neighborhood level. Recognizing schools as the nexus of neighborhoods, BTT partnered with the Baltimore School District to (1) develop relationships and build trust (2) provide a pathway for the district to meet their sustainability and education goals and (3) engage youth in positive and impactful planting and maintenance as they learn how to become environmental stewards.

    Elliot Weidow, Director of Neighborhood Forestry Gabriela Amaya-Williams, GIS Analyst
  • 2:15–2:40 p.m. Break with Exhibitors
  • 2:40–3:10 p.m. Rapid-round presentations (12 minute talks)
    • Successful Collaborative Interdepartmental infrastructure Retrofits - Green Stormwater Connections in Renton, WA

      A highlight of the collaborative efforts in Renton to incorporate trees and green infrastructure into grey infrastructure retrofits in the urban landscape.

      Ian Gray, Urban Forester & Natural Resource Manager, City of Renton, WA
    • Trees as Shelter: Shelterbelt Design and Management for Mixed Objectives

      In rural communities, trees serve as green infrastructure to shelter houses from the wind and snow, offering considerable benefits on the micro and mesoscales. Through his work with rural and Indigenous communities throughout Canada, presenter Alexander Martin offers insight into the difficulties of rural communities to establish urban forest management plans, finding themselves situated on the periphery of urban forest research and community forestry.

      Alexander Martin, Director, Ironwood Urban Forestry Consulting, Winnipeg, CA
  • 3:10–3:40 p.m. Outreach in the time of COVID

    This presentation will highlight necessary adaptions that the DC Urban Forestry Administration deployed to deliver their community outreach programming during the COVID pandemic. Delivery methods included increased collaboration and social media, the use StoryMaps and more. Attendees will learn how to develop and implement new outreach efforts aimed at connecting trees and people.

    Kasey Ytulrrade, Forest Health & Community Outreach Specialist, DC Urban Forest Administration
  • 3:40–4:10 p.m. Redesigning Our Urban Forests for Future Climate Change

    The research presented throughout this talk explores the potential challenges that we face if climate change predictions hold true. Opportunities to design more sustainable and resilient urban forests will also be presented.

    Ryan Klein, Assitant Professor of Arboriculture, University of Florida
  • 4:10 Close of conference
  • 5:00–6:00 p.m. Board Meeting
  • 6:00–7:30 p.m. Reception with Exhibitors and Other Partners Silent Auction Proceeds support SMAs’ Professional Exchange Program

2022 Sponsors

Platinum Sponsor

Silver Level
Additional Sponsors