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Title:
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MOU with American Forests on Tree Equity Projects
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Title
MOU with American Forests on Tree Equity Projects
Description
Request to authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding between the City of Phoenix and American Forests for a five-year collaboration to achieve a shared vision of “tree equity” in Phoenix neighborhoods. There is no financial impact to the City associated with this item.
Report
Summary
Trees are more than just scenic amenities in neighborhoods fortunate enough to have them; they are critical infrastructure that improve quality of life by lessening the impacts of climate change and corresponding heat-related illnesses, dramatically improving air quality, increasing positive behaviors, and providing tree care industry careers. Tree Equity is the term American Forests trademarked to raise awareness about the need to address historic disparities in tree canopy in cities throughout the United States.
American Forests is the oldest national nonprofit conservation organization in the United States. Since its founding in 1875, they have been the pathfinders for creating healthy forests from coast to coast. In the early 1900s, for example, they rallied forest advocates to champion creation of the U.S. Forest Service, and in 2018, won a decade-long campaign persuading Congress to provide stable funding for preventing and fighting forest fires.
Today, American Forests is focused on building a reforestation movement in America, by partnering with cities to grow the urban forest in neighborhoods that need it most--heat vulnerable communities that have a limited tree canopy. American Forests has established connections with businesses and philanthropy desiring to invest in vulnerable communities, and has selected a handful of communities to partner with, including Phoenix--given our clear goals, a growing investment in the urban forest, and vision for the path forward.
Goal of Tree Equity Partnership
Achieving Tree Equity means all of Phoenix’s neighborhoods will reach a minimal standard of tree canopy cover that is feasible and appropriate for the city’s desert climate and conditions by 2030.The Phoenix Tree Equity Partnership will use American Forests’ impact model to pursue Tree Equity and produce outcomes at scale across the City. Partners will focus on the six different aspects of the impact model, shown below.
Stakeholder Facilitation - The social, public health and environmental benefits trees provide impact both individual people and governmental services on many levels. The City and American Forests will collaborate and invite further collaboration with neighborhood and community groups, nonprofit organizations, industry professionals, academic researchers and county, state, tribal and federal agencies also wanting to contribute to achieving a citywide Tree Equity goal. Facilitation and other roles will be determined based on staffing capacity and funding.
Planning - The partnership will use as-needed technical resources such as existing Phoenix tree canopy inventories and assessments, walk-shed and “cool corridor” mapping analyses, the findings of the urban forest climate vulnerability assessment recently undertaken by the U.S. Forest Service (Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science) and American Forests’ Tree Equity Score Analyzer, Vibrant Cities Lab and Career Pathways Action Guide. The objective is to identify existing inequities in tree canopy cover throughout Phoenix and optimize the urban forest for future climate scenarios to protect public health. Similar scientific resources that optimize protection of existing trees and planting new ones for public health and climate change outcomes will be used whenever possible.
Advocacy - Partners will cooperate with one another to engage state and federal policy makers, agencies and civic leaders to attract resources and advance programs that help every census block group neighborhood achieve a passing Tree Equity Score.
Funding - Existing levels of funding for urban forestry are inadequate. Partners to this agreement will collaborate amongst themselves and with other stakeholders to align the funding needs necessary to achieve Tree Equity with the interests of governmental, corporate and philanthropic funding entities as appropriate. Partners will also make use of innovative funding alternatives such as exploring environmental impact investing and carbon credits.
Planting and Protecting - Achieving Tree Equity across the Phoenix region will be a function of preserving existing tree canopy and planting new trees in locations where their climate and public health benefits are maximized. Tree planting and maintenance work also offers the opportunity to advance Tree Equity even further by intentionally training and hiring people from population groups who have typically been under-represented in urban forestry careers.
Communicating and Replicating - Achieving Tree Equity will only be achievable and sustainable if the benefits and progress of doing so are widely shared and made known. Partners will identify strategic opportunities and milestones and use the commercial and proprietary broadcast, print and electronic media resources available to them to promote Tree Equity efforts.
This Memorandum of Understanding reflects a commitment among the parties to work toward the vision and purpose described above. This Memorandum of Understanding is an affirmative expression of each partner’s intent to collaborate by putting forth their best, professional efforts and does not obligate or restrict the activity of any party in any way.
Contract Term
The Memorandum of Understanding will remain in effect for five years from the date of signing but could be cancelled with 60-days’ notice by either party.
Financial Impact
There is no financial impact associated with this item.
Concurrence/Previous Council Action
The Transportation, Infrastructure and Innovation Subcommittee approved this item on April 7, 2021, by a vote of 4-0.
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Deputy City Manager Karen Peters and the Office of Sustainability.