How urban forestry is transforming cities
From Brazil to Sierra Leone, cities are putting nature in the driving seat
By Augusta Dwyer
Think Landscape
December 13, 2023
Excerpt:
In São Jose dos Campos, a city of 700,000 in the state of São Paulo in southeastern Brazil, the trees send residents a message.
“I am your tree. Look after me well,” reads a plaque above an informational QR code.
The plaques are just one of the many public policy measures the municipality has taken to improve the urban environment.
In recent years, the city has also introduced electric-powered public transport, installed a satellite monitoring system to prevent illicit land use change, and even rewritten building codes to compel developers to obtain green certification, install permeable surfaces, plant trees in nearby public spaces and contribute to the local community.
São Jose’s residents are the main driving force behind these advances, says Marcelo Manara, the municipal secretary of urbanism and sustainability. “Joseenses are very engaged with these environmental concerns. It’s a population that demands this kind of caution and care for the environment from its governors.”
Recognized as one of 170 Tree Cities of the World by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), São Jose set an ambitious urban forestry goal in 2018: adding 56,000 new trees to its existing inventory of 80,000 by 2029. About 10 percent of these were to be planted in spots that residents have earmarked on a public database.
