About

Mission, Vision and Goals
Executive Committee
Board of Directors
Ex-Officio
Staff
History

NYSUFC 2024 Annual Report

The New York State Urban Forestry Council (NYSUFC) is a volunteer group, organized formally in 1999, to advise and assist the NYS Department of Conservation (DEC) in executing its Urban and Community Forestry policies. The Council’s major funding, supplied through the USDA Forest Service, is supplemented by membership dues and independent contributions.

Mission

New York State’s Urban Forestry program is a partnership of public, private and volunteer organizations and individuals that fosters comprehensive planning, management and education throughout New York to create a healthy urban and community forest and enhance quality of life.

Vision

The New York State Urban Forestry Council envisions that every community in New York State will recognize the value of trees and maximize the use of trees to help improve the community’s quality of life.

Goals

Strengthen Board Structure and Membership
Attract public, private and volunteer organizations, and individuals to help promote the mission and vision of the Urban Forestry Council.

Identify and Promote the Benefits of Trees
Promote the appreciation and understanding of the environmental, economic and social benefits of trees in the urban and community environment.

Provide Educational Tools
Advance Urban and Community Forestry outreach, training and education.

Provide Planning and Management Tools
Promote and support comprehensive Urban and Community Forestry planning and the application of industry Best Management Practices and current research.

Officers of the Board

Executive Committee- 2 year term

First	Last	Affiliation	Region	EC Term Exp	Title
Lori	Brocklebank	National Grid	9	2027	President
Joe	Charap	The Green-Wood Cemetery	2	2027	Vice President
Leanna	Wohl-Nugent	CCE Onondaga	7	2027	Treasurer
Mike	Treglia	Nature Conservancy	2	2027	Secretary
Jeanne	Grace	City of Ithaca	7	2027	At-Large
Ross	Hassinger	City of Buffalo	9	2027	At-Large
Andrew	Newman	NYC Parks	2	2027	At-Large
Andrew	Ullman	Davey Resource Group	2	2027	At-Large

Board of Directors- 3 year term

First	Last	Affiliation	Region	Board Term Exp
Nina	Bassuk	Cornell Urban Horticulture Institute	7	2027
Mark	Beamish	Orange & Rockland Utilities	3	2028
Emily	Booth	City of Rochester	8	2029
Karen	Emmerich	Town of Warwick	3	2029
Rachel	Grumm	NYC Parks – Queens Borough	2	2029
Andrew	Hillman	Town of Ulysses Tree Advisory Council	7	2029
Jay	Lavigne	City of Albany	4	2029
Greg	Michel	Onondaga Earth Corps	7	2028
Judy	Pangman	City of Oneonta	4	2028
Noreen	Riordan	Birdsong Landscape Design, ISA Arborist	8	2029
Melissa	Rivelis-Clarke	City of Rochester	8	2029
Michael	Sawyer	Buffalo Olmstead Park Conservancy	9	2029
Georgia	Silvera Seamans	Local Nature Lab	2	2028
Kate	Spector	SUNY Oswego	7	2028
Jeff	Speich	Baumwerks Consulting	5	2028
Dan	Zerbe	Tree Board Chair, Village of Perry	9	2028
Jean	Zimmerman	Editor Taking Root	3	2029

Ex-Officio

First	Last	Affiliation
Gloria	VanDuyne	Coordinator, Urban and Community Forestry Program, NYSDEC
Jill	Johnson	Forest Service Urban & Community Forestry Program Coordinator, USDA
Dan	Gaidasz	Technical Coordinator, Urban & Community Forestry Program, NYSDEC

Staff

Donna Gurnett	Executive Secretary
Chris Neuber	Deputy Secretary
Jean Zimmerman	Editor
Robin Granger	Website, Taking Root Blog & Newsletter, Annual Report

In accordance with Federal law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, and reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) To file a complaint of discrimination: write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326–W, Whitten Bldg, 1400 Independence Ave SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call 202-720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.