Journal Arboriculture and Urban Forestry https://auf.isa-arbor.com/ 

What are the biggest challenges for tomorrow's forests and/or ecosystems found within forested landscapes?

Cecil : The world's forests are under increasing pressure. I would like to highlight the impacts of climate change, from increasing drought to forest fires and more outbreaks of pests and diseases. We also see these in urban areas, where I mostly work, not in the least because of urban heat islands and the fact that many cities already at the climate change frontier. This also brings me to urbanisation (especially urban sprawl) and the densification of urban areas, both of which often result in the loss of forests and trees and threats to resilience.

In which area(s) should research focus for improving the resilience of tomorrow's forest landscapes?

Cecil : As an urban forestry expert, I tend to stress the importance of cities and urban landscapes. The majority of us humans live in these areas and interact with trees and forests here. Trees and forests, captured under the concept of 'urban forests', are essential for keeping our urban areas liveable, resilient, and healthy. But our knowledge of growing trees in urban areas still has important gaps, especially also when thinking of developing socio-ecological urban forest systems. How can we develop resilient and multifunctional urban forests for the benefit of people and non-human city dwellers? This will also help us rebuild relationships between people and trees, communities and forests more general.

How can local communities best contribute to protecting vulnerable ecosystems?

Cecil : In cities we see a lot of community involvement, both through individual residents, neighbourhood groups, and a wide range of non-profits. Especially where city authorities don't have sufficient resources to grow the urban forest, local residents and NGOs step in. This happens across the world and has resulted in novel partnerships and steward approaches for urban forests. It is key to (re)build relationships between urban residents and urban forests, also as a way to foster local action and advocacy. Research has shown that this can also lead to more environmentally friendly behaviour more general and impacts the way we look at forests and nature more broadly.