Coordinators Corner – June

A monthly message from Ben Thompson, Urban & Community Forestry Program Manager Greeting fellow tree advocates! Washington is known for its rainy weather, but this is getting a little ridiculous, don’t you think? I’m ready for summer.  Here at the DNR Urban & Community Forestry Program we have a lot of expectations for this summer, …

Coordinator’s Corner – May

By Ben Thompson, Urban & Community Forestry Program Manager Greetings to all my fellow tree advocates! Since the last edition of Tree Link my family and I moved into a “new” house after a lengthy renovation. It’s a lovely older home built in 1947 with mature landscaping and trees that were planted following the initial …

Coordinators Corner − April 2022

Happy Arbor Month everyone! It is April, which means blossoms and leaves are unfurling by the day, and area nurseries are bursting with trees waiting for permanent homes to bolster our collective urban forests. Every year the month of April provides us the wonderful opportunity to begin breaking out of our winter routines by appreciating …

Coordinators Corner − February 2022

Happy February everyone! The Olympics are on, love is in the air, and here in Olympia we have buds starting to swell and crocuses starting to pop. Our Eastern Washington friends need to hold out a bit longer for signs of spring, but they, too, are so close. Wenatchee, WA. January 2022 You might notice …

Coordinators Corner − January 2022

Another year in the books! I hope that each of you found respite and relaxation in your time away from work over the Holiday season. And maybe you’ve enjoyed all the beautiful snow with your sleds or skis. The break has been restorative and energizing for me, which is good because I’m going to need …

Coordinators Corner − December 2021

This past year has been such a wild ride with a lot of changes underway for DNR’s Urban & Community Forestry Program. Next year is gearing up to bring even more changes, and if you’re wondering what I mean by that, then please read this entire post. We came into 2021 with the state legislature …

Coordinators Corner − November 2021

By Ben Thompson, Urban Forestry Program Manager, Washington State Dept. of Natural Resources I am sliding into November here with good news to share on a number of different fronts. First, congratulations to Brandy Reed on her new position as Director of the Whatcom Conservation District. Brandy had previously worked for King Conservation District where …

Coordinators Corner − October 2021

By Ben Thompson, Urban Forestry Program Manager, Washington State Dept. of Natural Resources Did the temperature in Washington state just suddenly drop by 10 or 12 degrees? Summer was so gracefully stretching into late September, and seemingly out of nowhere its puffy jackets and beanies wherever I go. I’ll bet many of you working from …

Coordinators Corner − September 2021

Since 1991, the DNR Urban & Community Forestry Program has only had two, full-time permanent employees. We supplemented our staffing over the years in different ways, such as pursuing grants to fund special project coordinators, hiring contractors with pass-through funding, and even hiring some existing DNR staff for part-time or temporary work. Flashback! A photo …

Washington Community Forestry Council Seeking New Members

The Washington Community Forestry Council (WCFC) is a statewide advisory council comprised of volunteer members representing diverse perspectives on urban forestry in Washington state. Their purpose is to help support the mission of DNR’s Urban & Community Forestry Program* and advise the Commissioner of Public Lands and DNR on statewide issues pertaining to urban and …

Coordinators Corner − August 2021

Our communities are continuing to face unprecedented challenges, though I am hopeful our constituents will have greater capacity to apply for grants this year because our 2022 grant program is expanding in a BIG way. We’ve already been receiving questions about our grants, so this is an apt time to mention where we are in …