Hope College has received 2021 Tree Campus Higher Education® recognition from the Arbor Day Foundation, the fourth year in a row that the foundation has honored Hope for its commitment to effective urban forest management.
The Tree Campus Higher Education program honors colleges and universities for effective campus forest management and for engaging staff and students in conservation goals. Hope achieved the title by meeting Tree Campus Higher Education’s five standards, which include maintaining a tree advisory committee, a campus tree-care plan, dedicated annual expenditures for its campus tree program, an Arbor Day observance and student service-learning project. Currently there are 393 campuses across the United States with the recognition.
“Trees not only play a vital role in the environment but also in our daily lives,” said Dan Lambe, chief executive of the Arbor Day Foundation. “Having trees on college and university campuses is a great way to show a commitment to students and faculty’s overall wellbeing.”
The Hope campus is populated more than 2,000 trees, representing approximately 100 different species from around the world, spread across some 200 acres. Among its other activity focused on the campus’ trees, Hope has made a tradition of planting trees during each Campus Sustainability Month (October), Earth Day (April 22) and Arbor Day (the last Friday in April).
During the past four summers, faculty and student researchers at the college have worked in partnership with the City of Holland and Holland in Bloom on an Urban Tree Canopy Research Project to inventory trees on city property and campus. Those interested in learning about any specific tree can do so via the app TreeSap, which was developed by a Hope faculty-student research team and is available for iOS.
Founded in 1972, the Arbor Day Foundation has grown to become the largest nonprofit membership organization dedicated to planting trees, with more than one million members, supporters and valued partners. Since 1972, almost 500 million Arbor Day Foundation trees have been planted in neighborhoods, communities, cities and forests throughout the world. More information is available at arborday.org
The foundation began the Tree Campus Higher Education program in 2008 to encourage colleges and universities to plant trees on their campuses.