At our third quarter educational program, we'll feature projects that show that community growth and preserving and planting trees can and should work together. We'll put the spotlight on exciting new projects that communities have undertaken or are planning to implement that take into the urban forest into consideration as a vital element of a healthy environment. Steve Sanchez, Principal at HGOR landscape architecture and planning firm, will explore the efforts to expand our native plant selections and how they are being designed into commercial developments. This will include the "knowledge community" of Rowen in Gwinnett, Westside Park, Grant Park and the new Trees Atlanta Treehouse, among others. Learn more about HGOR and their legacy of work at https://www.hgor.com.

We'll hear from Edward Morrow and Kathryn Kolb with their talk, "Living with Trees: Promoting Eco-Literacy and Embracing Atlanta's Urban Forest." Living with Trees (LWT) is a neighborhood, tree Walk-and-Learn program created by the Atlanta nonprofit Eco-Addendum. Master Naturalist Kathryn Kolb and ISA Certified Arborist ® Edward Morrow partner in providing this engaging programming in neighborhoods throughout metro Atlanta. LWT offers an engaging, accessible presentation for all residents on how to recognize trees that may be at risk of falling before they create damage, sharing lots of fascinating tree facts and showing the surprising character of the trees and urban forest found right in our backyards. This program made possible by The Atlanta Tree Conservation Commission and Georgia Forestry Commission's Trees Across Georgia program includes in-person as well as virtual learning events to help property-owners and all neighborhood residents better understand how to live healthily with the trees in their communities. Edward is known as "The Tree Doctor," and is an ISA-certified arborist and tree risk educator, as well as an author. Read more about Edward at https://edwardthearborist.com and about Kathyn Kolb and Eco-Addendum at https://www.ecoaddendum.org/.

City of Marietta Arborist Rich Deckman will present on the streetscape project that was implemented over the last 10 years that has helped transform the historic downtown area of Marietta into an active destination for visitors to the area. He'll discuss how the project was initiated, the phased approach to the implementation, means, methods and experimentation, and the current status of the work.

Cobb County Arborist Bragg Vaughn will discuss the growth of the Cobb county tree ordinance, the challenges of defending it from those that wish to change it to benefit particular interests; adapting it to incorporate new technologies and practices; and updating it so that it better addresses specific types of development that may not have been common in Cobb when the ordinance was first adopted, such as mixed-use development, high density student housing, tear/down rebuilds, and EV charging stations.

See full agenda by clicking on the link below.

Registration: $55, general admission
$40, Georgia Tree Council members

Lunch included.
CEUs: 3 ISA Arborist, 3 Municipal Specialist, .5 BCMA Science, 1 BCMA Practice, .5 BCMA Management
3 SAF Registered Forester CFEs, category 1
Landscape Architects and others will receive a certificate documenting 3 continuing education hours.

Register by clicking on the "Register Now" button at the top right or by clicking on the link below.