Was Live Friday, Dec 1, 2023
Guest Speakers
- Michael Jerrett, Professor, UCLA Department of Environmental Health Sciences and Co Director, Center for Healthy Climate Solutions, Fielding School of Public Health
- Rachel Malarich, City Forest Officer for the City of Los Angeles
- Marcos Trinidad, Senior Director of Forestry, TreePeople
- BZ Zhang, Project Manager, Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust
- Jon Christensen, Adjunct Assistant Professor, UCLA Institute of the Environment, Luskin Center for Innovation, and Laboratory for Environmental Narrative Strategies
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Event Overview
As many of our cities have grown, trees and green space often have been seen as little more than beautification strategies. Now we know that tree canopy and park space directly affect our health and our survival on Earth.
Freeways and palm trees have historically defined Los Angeles as the second-largest city in the United States. But new research and the realities of climate change have led to a push for more and better green space and efforts to address inequities in access to parks and shade.
Research by UCLA’s Fielding School of Public Health found that increasing tree canopy and park access, particularly in green-poor areas, could add nearly a million years of life expectancy across Los Angeles County and dramatically improve life for low-income residents of color.
Our panelists will explore Los Angeles as a case study in the importance of urban greening, explain the link between green space and human health, and map out what it will take to implement changes that benefit the whole city as an example for other cities across the country.
