GivingTuesday is a worldwide movement created in 2012 with a simple idea: a day that encourages people to do good. Every year it falls on the Tuesday after Black Friday and Cyber Monday, which this year is December 2.  CaUFC envisions thriving community forests, people enjoying the benefits of trees, and informed arborists and community leaders. Support this vision with a donation on, or before, GivingTuesday.

CENTRAL COAST REGIONAL URBAN FORESTS COUNCIL

The California Urban Forests Council is working to launch a regional urban forests council in the Central Coast area, specifically including San Luis Obispo County, Santa Barbara County, and Ventura County. If you are an arborist, tree advocate, or tree lover, who lives or works in one or more of these counties, please take our brief, seven-question survey to help us as we launch the Central Coast Regional Urban Forests Council.

Are you the tree manager for your city, town, or community? If so, please fill out the 2024 National Census for Municipal Urban Forestry by November 15. If multiple people manage your community’s trees, please coordinate a single response. The results of this important census are the basis for reports such as “Municipal Tree Care and Management in the United States: A 2014 Urban & Community Forestry Census of Tree Activities”.

An engaging discussion with Ricardo Aguilar as he reviews the top Plant Health Care (PHC) issues of 2025 — from emerging pests and diseases to shifting environmental conditions and client expectations. Ricardo will share key insights on what arborists and landscape professionals should anticipate in the coming year and offer practical strategies to prepare for a successful 2026.

As Southern California faces increasingly complex fire impacts, understanding how urban and community trees factor into planning, response, and recovery is critical. Join CAL FIRE, the USDA Forest Service, and the Council for Watershed Health for a three-part webinar series exploring how agencies, communities, and partners can better plan, respond, and recover in the face of post-fire challenges. Each session will feature experts and guest speakers sharing insights on critical topics.

URBAN FORESTRY TODAY

 

 

UTILITY ARBORIST ASSOCIATION

 

 

CAL FIRE

As Southern California faces increasingly complex fire impacts, understanding how urban and community trees factor into planning, response, and recovery is critical. Join CAL FIRE, the USDA Forest Service, and the Council for Watershed Health for a three-part webinar series exploring how agencies, communities, and partners can better plan, respond, and recover in the face of post-fire challenges. Each session will feature experts and guest speakers sharing insights on critical topics.

PLANIT GEO

How do communities protect their trees while supporting new development? This webinar explores how to design, strengthen, and implement tree preservation ordinances that balance urban growth with canopy goals. We’ll walk through ordinance frameworks, compare stem-based and canopy-based systems, and discuss how to incorporate incentives that encourage preservation beyond the minimum requirements. Real-world case examples will show what’s working (and what’s not) in different communities.

WCISA

 

 

 

The Myrtaceae is a large plant family of flowering plants, primarily woody trees and large shrubs, concentrated in tropical and subtropical regions, especially Australia and South America. Members of this family make up some of the most common and important species in the California urban forest. Examples of the many economically important members of the family include Eucalyptus (timber, pulpwood, essential oils), Psidium guajava (guava fruit), Syzygium aromaticum (cloves), and Acca sellowiana (feijoa). Dr. Matt Ritter will delve deeply into the family and help participants identify the members of the family that they commonly encounter while working with trees in the California urban forest. 

PLANIT GEO

Urban forestry saw significant developments in 2025. Join our panel of experts for a comprehensive review of the year’s most important trends, policies, and practices. We’ll explore:

GLOBAL CONSERVATION CONSORTIUM FOR OAK (GCCO) AND SAN DIEGO ZOO WILDLIFE ALLIANCE (SDZWA)

This event is meant to engage and inform those involved in or who may be interested in the Oaks of the Californias action plan, led by the Global Conservation Consortium for Oak (GCCO) and San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance (SDZWA) since 2021. We will meet to share updates on research and conservation work for six threatened California oak species in the U.S. and Mexico (Quercus cedrosensis, Q. dumosa, Q. engelmannii, Q. pacifica, Q. parvula var. parvula and Q. tomentella.) This will be a great opportunity to connect with old and new friends involved in California oak conservation!

The meeting will take place at the San Diego Zoo, with an optional second day consisting of a field trip to see populations of Quercus dumosa at Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve. See below for details:

Information will follow soon with details about recommended accommodations in the area and how to inquire about financial support. Please feel free to email myself (karinaorozco@mortonarb.org) or Christy Powell (cpowell@sdzwa.org) with any questions.

Please use this Google form to RSVP by Friday, November 14.

URBAN AND COMMUNITY FORESTRY SOCIETY

While many municipalities share common challenges, each community operates within a unique context that shapes the response to these challenges. In this webinar, we will introduce a Framework for Assessing Community Forestry Needs, a practical approach to identify the distinct characteristics, priorities, and conditions that influence local urban forestry programs — insights that are essential for developing or updating tree ordinances that serve as a strong foundation for cohesive and resilient municipal forestry efforts.

PROFESSIONAL TREE CARE ASSOCIATION OF SAN DIEGO

Join PTCA-SD at the Stein Family Farm in National City for this hands-on demonstration and in the field practice to increase your skills and knowledge of deciduous fruit tree pruning.  This workshop requires your participation in pruning of these trees. Workshop Leaders: Kurt Peacock (Consulting Arborist), Dave Ephron (Arborist, One Tripp Tree Service), Matt Smith (Arborist, Smith Family Tree Service).

CALIFORNIA URBAN FORESTS COUNCIL (CaUFC)

If you are an arborist, tree advocate, or tree lover, who lives or works in one or more of the Central Coast counties (San Luis Obispo County, Santa Barbara County, Ventura County), please join CaUFC for one or more of our formation meetings for the “Central Coast Regional Urban Forests Council”, which will serve as one of seven regional urban forests councils under the California Urban Forests Council.

 

 

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CONSULTION ARBORISTS

Learn the essentials of being a successful Consulting Arborist AND begin the process of becoming a Registered Consulting Arborist® (RCA). The Consulting Academy topics include standards of professional practice, forensics, report writing, and legal aspects of consulting

Registration is sold out. Add your name to the waitlist: ASCA-Consultants.org

WESTERN CHAPTER ISA

 

 

Presidio Trust, based in San Francisco, is hiring:

Kern Community College District is hiring:

Canopy, based in Palo Alto, is hiring:

Friends of the Urban Forest, based in San Francisco, is hiring:

A team of researchers from Auburn University, the University of Alabama, and the University of Georgia are seeking to better understand how the US insurance industry is influencing homeowner decisions regarding yard trees.

The UCFS Industry Trends committee is monitoring the growing concern around insurance companies requiring homeowners to prune or remove trees. This issue impacts our goals to grow the urban forest and negatively impacts the public we serve each day. UCFS and TCIA are collaborating on this issue and are currently working to gather information and decide next steps. We continue to seek your feedback to gather stories and evidence so that we can fully understand the breadth of the issue.

California Urban Forests Council

CaUFC’s 2025 Conference “Rooted in Resilience: Fire, Recovery, and Urban Forestry” was held in Vallejo on September 13. The highlight reel and conference presentations from this very successful event can be found HERE. We are grateful to our co-hosting organization (the Urban Canopy Collaborative), to our speakers, to our many attendees, and to our sponsors (Davey Tree Experts, West Coast Arborists, and Arborjet)!

National Urban and Community Forestry Advisory Council

 

 

The National Urban and Community Forestry Advisory Council is pleased to announce the National Urban and Community Forestry Ten-Year Action Plan’s public input website is open and available for public comments/suggestions related to urban and community forestry. This Action Plan for (2027-2037) serves as a guidance document for the Forest Service’s Urban and Community Forestry Program. State Urban and Community Forestry Programs also use the Action Plan as a guidance document for their Urban and Community Forestry Programs and State Forest Action Plans. Annual Action Plan accomplishments and recommendations are reported to the Secretary of Agriculture and applicable Congressional committees.

 

Voluntary comments will be accepted through June 30, 2026. If a commenter would like to provide a comment/suggestion, or for more information, please visit ActionPlan.UrbanAndCommunityForests.org.

Oregon State University

The Graduate Certificate in Urban Forestry program at Oregon State is the first of its kind offered online. Courses are delivered through Ecampus – a national leader in online education. No other university in North America currently offers a graduate urban forestry education in this flexible, accessible format. The knowledge and skills you gain from this program will help you:

International Society of Arboriculture

 

 

Effective November 5, 2025, ISA is implementing changes to its Tree Risk Assessment Qualification (TRAQ) credential, including changes to the length of time between renewals as well as the renewal process. Must be an ISA member to access the full article.

 

WCISA

 

 

Help us celebrate excellence in arboriculture by recognizing the outstanding contributions of your peers. The WCISA Awards Committee is now accepting nominations from active members for our annual awards, presented at the Western Chapter ISA Conference. These awards honor individuals and organizations that have made a meaningful impact on the urban environment through education, public outreach, and volunteerism. Nominations close December 31, 2025 — don’t miss the chance to spotlight someone’s great work!

 

Award Categories Include:

 

Click here to submit a nomination

Click here to view past award recipients

The Guide to Using Recycled Water in Bay Area Landscapes is now available – FREE download from The Britton Fund. Developed with input from landscape professionals, scientists, and water engineers, this practical tool helps you design, adapt, and manage landscapes that thrive with recycled water.

Download your FREE copy from The Britton Fund website

Certified Urban and Community Forester Credential

Society of American Forester's partnership with the California Urban Forests Council sprouted the future of this credential for professionals across the map. Together we had a vision for professionals in the urban and community forestry space, and now we are making strides to offer this certification to the workforce. The "Certified Urban and Community Forester" credential promotes the holistic nature of urban and community forestry that's focused on resource conservation across the canopy intersected with the complex and dynamic infrastructure and stakeholder ecosystem. Learn more on the Society of American Foresters website and in this article, Certified Urban and Community Forester Credential Aims to Elevate the Profession and Grow SAF by Eric Wiseman, PhD.