The legacy of institutional racism including redlining and other discriminatory policies have paved the way for an urban landscape that is deeply divided. Too often, a map of tree canopy is also a map of income and race, with corresponding public health disparities. To address this critical issue, American Forests partnered with the State of Rhode Island to pilot a suite of tools and resources that seek to maximize urban forests for climate and health outcomes through the lens of Tree Equity. In this webinar, Molly Henry and Chris David of American Forests share about the Rhode Island project and demonstrate two new tools: 1) Tree Equity Score, which provides a standardized way to measure how well a neighborhood or municipality is delivering the many climate, health, and economic benefits that trees provide, and 2) the Rhode Island Tree Equity Score Analyzer (TESA), an interactive planning tool that supports both policy and project-level interventions to achieve Tree Equity. Cassie Tharinger will describe how the Providence Neighborhood Planting Program is applying these new resources, along with a newly available Climate and Health Action Guide, to inform their community-driven planting model and Providence's forthcoming strategic urban forest master plan.
Molly Henry, Senior Manager for Climate and Health, American Forests
Chris David, VP for GIS and Date Science, American Forests
Cassie Tharinger, Executive Director, Providence Neighborhood Planting Program oundwork, USA
