Note: This article was revised on April 15, 2021, to include information about attending a public tree planting event that will take place on Monday, April 19, near the Elliott University Center.
UNC Greensboro has been honored with a “2020 Tree Campus Higher Education” recognition by the Arbor Day Foundation for the twelth year in a row for its commitment to effective urban forest management.
“Tree Campuses and their students set examples for not only their student bodies but the surrounding communities showcasing how trees create a healthier environment,” said Dan Lambe, president of the Arbor Day Foundation. “Because of UNC Greensboro’s participation, air will be purer, water cleaner and students and faculty will be surrounded by the shade and beauty trees provide.”
The Tree Campus Higher Education program, formerly Tree Campus USA, honors colleges and universities for effective campus forest management and for engaging staff and students in conservation goals. UNCG achieved the title by meeting Tree Campus Higher Education’s five standards, which include maintaining a tree advisory committee, a campus tree-care plan, dedicated annual expenditures for its campus tree program, an Arbor Day observance, and a student service-learning project. Currently, there are 403 campuses across the United States with this recognition.
“Spartans take a lot of pride in how beautiful our campus is. And we get a lot of enjoyment from it too,” said Sean MacInnes, UNCG Sustainability Specialist. “Our Grounds crew deserve a lot of credit for the work they do to make campus so welcoming. But it’s everyone’s responsibility to help keep campus and our communities clean and beautiful, and I also want to thank the Peabody Park Preservation Committee and all of the students and employees who have ever put our motto of service into action by helping to pick up trash and remove invasive species.”
If you want to say thanks in person and learn more about our campus landscaping practices, please join our Grounds crew on Monday, April 19, for a tree planting in honor of North Carolina’s Arbor Day. Meet at 1 p.m. at the outdoor seating area at the southwest corner of the Elliott University Center, near the Mossman Administration Building. Please wear a mask and follow campus COVID protocols.
The Arbor Day Foundation has helped campuses throughout the country plant thousands of trees, and Tree Campus Higher Education colleges and universities invested more than $51 million in campus forest management last year. This work directly supports the Arbor Day Foundation’s Time for Trees initiative – an unprecedented effort to plant 100 million trees in forests and communities and inspire 5 million tree planters by 2022. Last year, Tree Campus Higher Education schools have collectively planted 39,178 trees and engaged 81,535 tree planters – helping us work toward these critical goals.
More information about the program is available at treecampushighered.org.
About the Arbor Day Foundation: The Arbor Day Foundation is a million-member nonprofit conservation and education organization with the mission to inspire people to plant, nurture, and celebrate trees. More information is available at arborday.org.