Creating More Resilient Urban Canopy
After earning a degree in environmental science, John joined Climate Impact Corps to begin dedicating his professional life to climate action. Now having completed two years of service, he’s made an incredible impact and is well on his way to launching a full-time career!
John found Climate Impact Corps when a family member recommended the program as a good fit. Having some seasonal environmental work experience, John thought service would be the perfect opportunity to take his interest in climate change to the next level. In addition to building his professional resume, serving as a Climate Impact Corps member also gave him an outlet for his passion.
“I just kind of have a draw to the natural world: wildlife, plants, the general environment,” he says. “If you study animals or if you study plants, you find that the two interweave harmoniously. I want to see the full picture; I just want to know more.”
John’s passion shines through when he observes the natural world: even something as simple as listening to the wind through the trees.
"Trees can make different sounds,” he explains. “Poplars have a completely unique sound when they're rustling in the wind versus a maple or an oak. It’s almost like a soft kind of clapping. I just love learning these things about the world, all these nuances.”
For his two years in Climate Impact Corps, John served with the city government in Lakeville, Minnesota. There, he focused predominantly on planting and maintaining a variety of trees in public parks and conservation areas. In the summer, he made weekly rounds to water over 300 trees, driving a City of Lakeville pickup truck with a large water tank to fill bags of water placed at the base of young trees. Then in the fall and spring, he switched his focus to transplanting saplings around the city.
“Fall and spring are perfect times to plant trees because it gives them time to allow the root system to root-in better and compete with other plant life,” he explains.
Emerald ash borer beetle
John planted a variety of tree species to increase the city’s urban forest’s resiliency to pests and disease. One common arboreal pest, Emerald ash borer, infests and eventually kills ash trees. Borers are especially threatening in urban areas of Minnesota where up to 60% of trees are ashes. Another common issue, Dutch elm disease, is found in every county in Minnesota and is estimated to have killed 95% of the state’s elm population since the 1970s. These issues can greatly reduce tree canopy coverage which provides important benefits like decreasing mental stress, cleaning the air, encouraging exercise, and reducing surface and residence temperatures.
“You lose your shade and you don't want to really walk outside,” John confirms. “Having large trees and green leaves really improves a person's mood, and brings a sense of calm. It's all this nuance that we wouldn't really notice until it all goes away or until we actually have it.”
As climate change continues to lead to more extreme heat in the summer, a full urban canopy can lower the temperature of city streets by 11-19 degrees! Climate Impact Corps members like John are making their communities more resilient: in total, John and volunteers from his community planted over 100 trees! Species included gingko, honey locust, and hackberry. These trees will help achieve the State of Minnesota’s goal of 30% overall tree canopy cover by 2030 and 40% by 2050.
Another part of John’s service was meeting with Lakeville residents to provide forestry education. Residents can schedule meetings with the city’s forestry team to ask questions about which trees to plant, how to best care for their trees, what to do if one gets infested, and more.
“I really enjoyed that,” says John of the community conversations. “It was something that helped out residents but also helped me learn about what forestry is and does.”
In addition to going out into the community to meet people and take care of trees, John also spent time in the office tracking inventories of over 4,000 trees, locating the city’s utility lines to avoid when planting, and connecting with city staff.
“Not just the service, but the people make up half the experience,” he says. “All the office tasks felt like a project I would have done in college. It it was really cool that I could use that knowledge that I went to school for. A lot of people ask, ‘When am I ever going to use this?’ Well, I did!”
John finished his second year of service with Climate Impact Corps in July. He is currently interviewing to become a full-time employee with the same forestry team where he served at the City of Lakeville! We are so excited to see where his service takes him!
If you or someone you know is interested in serving your community and our environment, join Climate Impact Corps! As John says, “If I went back in time two years ago, I would absolutely do it again.” Visit ampact.us/environment to learn more and apply.