Research in Context
Research Programs around the world
Projects in the USA
FLORIDA
University of Miami
Department of Biology and Jungle Biology Lab
https://www.junglebiology.org/research
Professor of Biology Kenneth J. Feeley and doctorate student Alyssa Kullberg have led a team of ecologists on the effect of rising temperatures on the urban trees in subtropical Miami. With extensive data analysis, the impact of climate warming was assessed on 235 tree species. Further analysis aimed to compare impact on native and on exotic species.
The focus of the analysis was the thermal safety margin (TSM) in Miami for each urban tree species. This parameter is defined as the difference between the maximum temperature experienced by a species within its range and the current and future (2100) projected maximum temperature in the city. However other abiotic stressors were also taken into account such as each species’ drought, wind, and salt tolerance.
For the mapping of the current geographic distribution of each species two datasets were used:
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Botanical Information and Ecology Network (BIEN) which is funded by the University of California, Santa Barbara.
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Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) which is an international network and data infrastructure. It is funded by many governments and organizations.
Global bioclimatic variables for different change scenarios were extracted from the WorldClim database.
At the discussion section of the paper's publication in the journal Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, one can find a very insightful review of aspects to be considered for new tree plantings in the urban setting.
(Kullberg et al 2024, Tannen 2024).
Palm trees on a street in Miami. For the cooling of the city, planners give currently preference to hardwood shade tree species for new plantings. Image credit: Wix Studio Image database. "Colorful Streetfront"
Central Florida Cities and Counties and the University of Florida
A participatory research approach in central Florida (United States), which focuses on selecting and testing of underutilized native tree species in two urban settings, streetscape and park, in four communities .
“However, the testing of species specifically for diversity and climate preparedness is a newer avenue of research, as is the inclusion of stakeholders through participatory research approaches.”
With a review of the history of relative studies and a participatory process, the research team concluded tofive species selected for testing with new plantings. The paper's diagrams could serve as templates for other relative projects. Regarding stakeholders involvement and filtering tree species lists for further testing. (Hilbert & Koeser et al 2022).
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Treescape in the state of Florida. The urban tree canopy is characterized by a large variety of tree species. Image credit: JSB Co. 2023. [Online] Unsplash https://unsplash.com/photos/a-row-of-palm-trees-in-front-of-a-blue-sky-mKO-YOPF6rQ
CALIFORNIA
University of California Davis and USDA Forest Service USA
For almost a decade a long-term study of drought-tolerant trees is under way northern California to assess the survival, growth, and climate vulnerability of six tree species. (McPherson et al., 2017). Part of the project evolved with the use of the University campus as a living lab. Aiming to adapt the tree canopy to the climate change of the region in the next decades. On-campus trials are carried out with tree species selected from the state of Texas (Burke et al. 2023, Dawson 2023, UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden n.d., UC Davis. n.d. a & b).
Apple Park (Apple, Inc., Cupertino campus)
Trial and error plantings on uncommon oaks for use in California have been carried out by ISA Board -Certified Master Arborist David Muffly (Hilbert & Koeser et al 2022 and Oaktopia n.d.).
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Josh Withers 2019. Tall Trees. Cupertino, CA, USA [Online] Unsplash https://unsplash.com/photos/tall-trees-0OlzUl3wqak
Stanford University
David Muffly has also established a cooperation with the University for the tree management of the campus landscape. He has contributed to drafting of the University's Tree Report. (Muffly and Sairus 2025). Further notes on this initiative in the page "Quest for Plant Material".
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Robert Gareth 2023. Stanford University Campus. A large building with a clock tower in the background. [Online] Unsplash https://unsplash.com/photos/a-large-building-with-a-clock-tower-in-the-background-_ge2fkbfR6U
University of California
Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources (UCANR) Cooperative Extension
At the UCANR Extension, researcher Igor Lačan's work focuses on the use of SelecTree with climate projection models. (McBride and Lačan 2018, UCANR n.d.). Further notes on this initiative in the page "Future projections and evaluations".
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Jason An 2023. A group of people sitting on top of a lush green park. University of California, Shields Avenue, Davis, CA, USA. [Online] Unsplash https://unsplash.com/photos/a-group-of-people-sitting-on-top-of-a-lush-green-park-onZDKyobk00
REFERENCES
PAPERS
Hilbert, Debora., Koeser Andrew, Roman Lara A., Andreu Michael, Hansen Gail, Thetford Mack and Northrop Robert J. 2022.
“Selecting and Assessing Underutilized Trees for Diverse Urban Forests: A Participatory Research Approach.”
Front. Ecol. Evol., 03 February 2022, Sec. Urban Ecology, Volume 10 - 2022
https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2022.759693
Hilbert, Deborah., Koeser Andrew, Andreu Michael, Clarke Mysha, Hansen Gail, Roman Lara & Thetford Mack. 2023.
“Expanding Urban Tree Species Diversity in Florida (USA): Challenges and Opportunities for Practitioners.”
SOCIETY & NATURAL RESOURCES 2023, VOL. 36, NO. 8, 891–908
https://doi.org/10.1080/08941920.2023.2175285
Kullberg, A.T., Aragón, L., Bernal-Escobar, M., Fortier, R., Lautenschlager, L., Ballantyne, J. and Feeley, K.J. 2024.
Rising temperatures will make Miami’s street life even more exotic,
Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, Volume 101, p.128502.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2024.128502
McBride, Joe R, Lačan, Igor. 2018.
The impact of climate-change induced temperature increases on the suitability of street tree species in California (USA) cities.
Urban Forestry & Urban Greening. Volume 34: 348-356.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2018.07.020
McPherson, E. G., Berry, A. M., and van Doorn, N. S. (2018).
Performance testing to identify climate-ready trees. Urban For. Urban Greening 29, 28–39.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2017.09.003
McPherson, E. G., van Doorn, N., and Teach, E. (2017).
“Structure, function and value of street trees in California, USA” Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 17:104-115.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2016.03.013
SCIENCE NEWS WEBSITES
Phys.org
Tannen, J. N. (2024, October 15).
To keep Miami’s tree canopy resilient, tropical species may be the best option for planting.
https://phys.org/news/2024-10-miami-tree-canopy-resilient-tropical.html
UNIVERSITY AND RESEARCH WEBSITES
Muffly David and Patel Sairus. 2025, May.
Stanford University - Land, Buildings & Real Estate
Stanford Arboretum Tree Report: A Climate-Forward Approach to Future Planting
ARB-Tree-Report-2025.pdf. on Google Docs.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/18SY8xvgFKRbU7PPhAxOF3f-CRd1nkkv1/view
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources UCANR. n.d.
Street Trees and Climate Change.
Igor’s webpage. Updated April, 2023
https://ucanr.edu/sites/Igor/Street_Trees_and_Climate_Change/
University of California Davis, Arboretum and Public Garden. n.d.
Texas Tree Trials Database.
https://arboretum.ucdavis.edu/tree-database
Burke, Mary., Socolofsky Kathleen, Segar Bob, Griswold Emily, Griffith Lucas, Stromberg Ingrid, and Nishimura Kelly. 2023.
UC Davis, Campus planning.
“Living Landscape Adaptation Plan.”
https://campusplanning.ucdavis.edu/living-landscape-adaptation-plan
UC Davis. n.d.-a.
Climate Ready Trees study.
https://climatereadytrees.ucdavis.edu/
UC Davis. n.d.-b.
Climate-Ready Gardening Toolkit.
https://arboretum.ucdavis.edu/climate-ready-toolkit
University of Miami
Tannen, J. N. (2024, October14).
The trees of Miami’s future.
https://news.miami.edu/stories/2024/10/the-trees-of-miamis-future.html
PRIVATE INITIATIVES
Oaktopia. n.d.
About Dave - Apple Park.
https://www.oaktopia.org/about
DATASETS
Botanical Information and Ecology Network BIEN. (n.d.).
https://bien.nceas.ucsb.edu/bien/
Global Biodiversity Information Facility GBIF. (n.d.).