15th SUFC Annual Meeting: Call for Collaboration

Request for Proposals

Greetings SUFC Members and Supporters,

Following three successful years of the Sustainable Urban Forests Coalition (SUFC) Networking Initiative, we are pleased to present the 2020 Request for Proposals (RFP) to feature your innovation at the upcoming SUFC 15th Annual Meeting on Wednesday, March 4, 2020. This meeting will be held at the University of Virginia Darden Center in Arlington, Virginia, and will follow with an evening reception at U.S. Botanic Garden in Washington, DC.

SUFC will select up to four programs, research ideas, new technologies or campaigns (collectively referred to as “projects”) to be featured at the Annual Meeting. Each of the four chosen project representatives will present an overview of their respective project, along with a “Call for Collaboration” to the SUFC membership and supporters.

Previous themes have included “nature’s impact on public health,” and “urban forest resilience,” and the “future of urban forestry.” This year, we have two themes: 1) Creative Funding Strategies for Urban & Community Forestry, and 2) New Technologies for Urban Forestry. Insufficient funding is often a barrier to truly successful urban and community forestry (UCF) programs and projects. SUFC seeks to highlight new and novel approaches to funding UCF efforts at local, state, regional, or even national scales. Also, an oft-cited barrier to meaningful engagement with nature is an overexposure to electronic devices. In that way, technology has become problematic for UCF, yet technology also holds promise in addressing threats to urban canopy and in creating resilient communities capable of withstanding the impacts of climate change. The SUFC is seeking up to four programs or projects (total) related to either of these themes. We look to you to inspire the SUFC membership and the broader UCF community at large.

Those who submit successful proposals will have the opportunity to:

  1. Present their project or idea and corresponding Call for Collaboration at the SUFC Annual Meeting on March 4, 2020, in Arlington, Virginia;
  2. Receive SUFC endorsement as an existing or emerging innovation in urban forestry; and,
  3. Access the diverse members and supporters of the Coalition to form partnerships to assist with their work throughout the year.

Click HERE to submit a proposal. The deadline for submission is December 30th, 2019.

Please direct any questions to Rachel Holmes ([email protected]).