LSU named Tree Campus by Arbor Day Foundation | News

BATON ROUGE – LSU is a Tree Campus USA for the first time, the Arbor Day Foundation has announced.

Tree Campus USA is a national program created in 2008 to honor colleges and universities for effective campus forest management and for engaging staff and students in conservation goals.

“Achieving recognition as a Tree Campus USA is an important component in the overall management of the Urban Forest at LSU,” said Fred Fellner, assistant director of LSU Landscape Services. “The size and value of the campus forest, both in literal and perceptive terms, is enormous. The trees are recognized world over and are a signature element at LSU.

“The Tree Campus designation with associated requirements provides a framework for professional observation and care, reporting of planting and removals, disaster response and mitigation, and communication and education. The Arbor Day Foundation is a premier, long standing organization which embodies the Tree Campus focus. This focus is consistent with the mission of Landscape Services.”

LSU achieved the title by meeting Tree Campus USA’s five standards, which include maintaining a tree advisory committee, a campus tree-care plan, dedicated annual expenditures toward trees, an Arbor Day observance and student service-learning projects.

“Students are eager to volunteer in their communities and become better stewards of the environment,” said John Rosenow, founder and chief executive of the Arbor Day Foundation. “Participating in Tree Campus USA sets a fine example for other colleges and universities, while helping to create a healthier planet for all of us.”

Toyota helped launch the program and continues its generous financial support this year.

“Toyota is so proud to support a program that we believe has a tremendous impact on both reducing the environmental footprint of a college campus and inspiring college students to become the conservation leaders of the future”, said Patricia Salas Pineda, group vice president of National Philanthropy and the Toyota USA Foundation.

The Arbor Day Foundation and Toyota have helped campuses throughout the country plant hundreds of thousands of trees, and Tree Campus USA colleges and universities invested $23 million in campus forest management last year. More information about the program is available at arborday.org/TreeCampusUSA.

The Arbor Day Foundation

The Arbor Day Foundation is a nonprofit conservation and education organization of one million members, with the mission to inspire people to plant, nurture and celebrate trees. More information on the foundation and its programs can be found at arborday.org, or by visiting on Facebook, www.facebook.com/arborday; Twitter, @arborday; or The Arbor Day Foundation Blog, http://blog.arborday.org/.

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