Abstracts

Assessing climate risk to support urban forests in a changing climate

by Manuel; Rymer, Paul D; Power, Sally A; Barton, David N; Cariñanos, Paloma; Dobbs, Cynnamon; Eleuterio, Ana A Esperon-Rodriguez

Globally, cities are planning for resilience through urban greening initiatives as governments understand the importance of urban forests in improving quality of life and mitigating climate change. However, the persistence of urban forests and the ecosystem benefits they provide are threatened by climate change, and systematic assessments of causes of tree dieback and mortality in urban environments are rare. Long-term monitoring studies and adaptive management are needed to identify and prevent climate change-driven failures and mortality. Research and monitoring when coupled with systematic forecasting will enable governments to incorporate climate change resilience into urban forestry planning. Future scenarios in which urban forests are resilient or in decline will depend on the management and planning actions we make today.