Research in Action
The Faculty of Forestry at UBC possesses a wealth of expertise in urban forest issues. This expertise is not just applicable to research issues, but is a valuable resource to local municipalities to provide solutions to specific concerns.
Research provides the basis for informed decision making. UBC’s Urban Forestry Faculty is already working with local municipalities to effectively aid in the elimination of invasive plants and evaluate the benefits of commuting greenways and use greening to make our cities more resilient to climate change. UBC’s Faculty of Forestry has demonstrated experience to address a multitude of urban forestry issues.
To date, professionals in Canada have had to rely on their own ingenuity to train as “urban foresters”. We at Tree Canada are very proud that the University of British Columbia’s Faculty of Forestry has sought to remedy this situation. Besides fulfilling one of the Action Items of the Canadian Urban Forest Strategy, this program will help ensure that the greenspaces of Canada’s growing urban areas are better protected, managed and expanded.
Researchers are working to establish ways to improve the city’s active program to inventory and remove invasive plant species from their parks. Currently, city field staff are employed to both detect and remove the plants. However, field crew techniques vary slightly and with limited access due to difficult terrain in certain areas, inventories are not complete. Learn more >
Resarchers are developing Digging In: An Educational Tool Promoting Science Citizenship for the Introduction to Soil Science. Maja Krzic asserts that meaningful teaching and learning about natural resources, including soils, requires in-the-field observations of concepts introduced in a classroom setting. Learn more >