Career Pathways Action Guide
Across the country, urban forestry employers face an unprecedented labor shortage. More than 7,000 positions are projected to open in tree maintenance and plant health care through 2026, not including another 95,000 positions in landscaping.
Who will fill these slots? Well, the right people may already be right around the corner from where more trees and tree maintenance are needed most. Learn more in the Career Pathways Action Guide, recently launched on the Vibrant Cities Lab!
Cities like Detroit, Milwaukee, Atlanta, Pittsburgh, and more have faced their labor shortages through programs designed for residents who face barriers to employment, inclusively rebuilding tomorrow’s urban forestry workforce. You can too.
This Guide is based on the Tree Equity: Career Pathways initiative work from American Forests’ Sarah Lillie Anderson, Eboni Hall, PhD, and Ian Leahy Anderson.
Urban Wood Use Action Guide
The new Urban Wood Use Action Guide is live on the Vibrant Cities Lab! Wood is an abundant, renewable resource. Yet each year over 78,000 tons of urban wood is wasted in Baltimore alone—about 3,900 truckloads. Throughout the country, more than 28,000,000 tons of urban wood waste may be available annually for recovery in the U.S. —from clearing for development, demolition of abandoned buildings, to removal of dead or diseased trees.
But when you treat wood as waste, you spend money you needn’t, and miss opportunities you shouldn’t. Baltimore took advantage of these “invisible” assets and moved their community closer to its vision of a sustainable future. Visit the new Urban Wood Use Action Guide to learn how your community can do the same.