By Dan Buckler, DNR Urban Forest Assessment Specialist; Daniel.Buckler@wisconsin.gov or 608-445-4578
It was 2021 and the West Allis Forestry Division faced a crisis. For all intents and purposes, its tree inventory was no longer functional. The division had always been a program that kept and used a lot of data, but inefficiencies in the inventory process abounded, and now the software where the data was stored was essentially crashing. The status quo was clearly not working.
But as Winston Churchill apocryphally said, “Don’t let a crisis go to waste.”
Continue reading “Community Spotlight: West Allis’ Tree Inventory System”
Trees grow, change and like all living things, eventually decline or die. Sometimes trees are removed from urban areas due to safety concerns, tree health or insufficient space. But when these urban and community trees are viewed not as waste, but as a valuable material resource, their story doesn’t end – it continues.
Do you have a tree inventory but have a hard time keeping it up to date? Or are you interested in inventorying trees from scratch?
Volunteers are needed to be on the ground and up in the tree. Tasks on the ground include helping parents fill out waiver forms, outfitting kids in helmets and saddles and belaying kids up into the tree using pulley systems. Volunteers are needed in the tree to teach kids limb walking, hanging upside down, etc.
Wheels to Woods is a school to forest or forestry-related field trip transportation grant program supported and administered by the WI Society of American Foresters DEI Committee.
*These training opportunities are provided as an information service only and do not constitute an endorsement from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is hosting a webinar to help you develop a competitive urban forestry grant application. This webinar will guide you through the application form so you can submit a strong application that aligns with the DNR’s Urban Forestry Program funding priorities.
The annual WAA/DNR Urban Forestry Conference will again be held at the KI Convention Center in Green Bay, Wisconsin. More information will be available soon! 
Tree managers met at 
The Urban and Community Forestry Society (UCFS) Industry Trends committee – charged with monitoring the issues impacting your work – is seeking information on your experiences with insurance companies and urban tree canopy. There is growing evidence that insurance companies are directing the pruning or removal of trees, and the committee wants to fully understand the issue. Your responses to the survey below will help compile stories and evidence so that UCFS can work with industry partners and draft position statements.