A presentation about neighborhoods and urban forest protection in the Seattle area. This presentation highlights many aspects of the urban forest and neighborhood livability, culminating with a brief overview of an innovative project we branded "tree census," where neighbors can walk their neighborhood and record vital information about trees along their streets and in their backyards. The goal is to have a tree census for the entire City of Seattle online.

1. Urban Habitat:
Birds, Backyards and Neighbors
Promoting our Interconnections
Matthew Mega, AICP
July 13, 2013
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2. 2000 and 2004 Advocacy 101 classes
2003 Gardening for Life
2005 Seattle Urban Nature Habitat Map
2007 Riparian project
2012 Seattle Forest Canopy Cover
2013 Seattle Tree Inventory
VISION: Interconnected corridors of urban habitat
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3. The Individual Backyard
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6. The Collective Backyard
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8. Interconnected Urban Corridors
Citywide and Neighborhood Backyards
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9. Urban
Greenway
Backyard
Wildlife
City Park
High Density Development
with Creek Restoration
Public Utilities
Land

10. Provide Information
Awareness
Appreciation / Understanding
Sense of Stewardship
Engagement
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11. Photo by Tom
Sanders

12. Canopy Connections
• Inventory: collect, analyze and
disseminate data on the urban forest (tree
census and canopy analysis).
• Enhance: identify habitat improvement
opportunities and promote activities that
enhance wildlife corridors or
neighborhoods with low tree canopy.
• Outreach: Advocate for regulations and
their enforcement. Create incentives. Help
promote planning efforts like the Urban
Forest Management Plan. Talk to your
neighbors
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15. • Keep the big Picture
in View
• Engage neighbors in
their backyard first
• Help them see their
neighborhood is a
collective backyard
• Creative solutions
are possible
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16. "When one tugs at a single thing
in nature, he finds it attached to
the rest of the world.“
-John Muir
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