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Theodore S. Eisenman
Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning, University of Massachusetts–Amherst, 551 North Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA 01003, USA

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Short Biography

My principal scholarly interest concerns the historical, scientific, cultural, and design bases of urban greening, which I define as a social practice of organized or semi-organized efforts to introduce, conserve, or maintain outdoor vegetation in urban areas. This research encompasses tree planting initiatives (TPIs), urban ecosystem services and disservices, human health and wellbeing links with urban flora, design and planning norms, equity, and governance. It also includes an emerging area of interest that I describe as travelscapes – the spaces people move through on a daily basis that may be one of our dominant experiences of landscapes.

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Journal article
Published: 12 April 2021 in Land
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Municipal leaders are pursuing ambitious goals to increase urban tree canopy (UTC), but there is little understanding of the pace and socioecological drivers of UTC change. We analyzed land cover change in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (United States) from 1970–2010 to examine the impacts of post-industrial processes on UTC. We interpreted land cover classes using aerial imagery and assessed historical context using archival newspapers, agency reports, and local historical scholarship. There was a citywide UTC increase of +4.3 percentage points. Substantial UTC gains occurred in protected open spaces related to both purposeful planting and unintentional forest emergence due to lack of maintenance, with the latter phenomenon well-documented in other cities located in forested biomes. Compared to developed lands, UTC was more persistent in protected open spaces. Some neighborhoods experienced substantial UTC gains, including quasi-suburban areas and depopulated low-income communities; the latter also experienced decreasing building cover. We identified key processes that drove UTC increases, and which imposed legacies on current UTC patterns: urban renewal, urban greening initiatives, quasi-suburban developments, and (dis)investments in parks. Our study demonstrates the socioecological dynamism of intra-city land cover changes at multi-decadal time scales and the crucial role of local historical context in the interpretation of UTC change.

ACS Style

Lara Roman; Indigo Catton; Eric Greenfield; Hamil Pearsall; Theodore Eisenman; Jason Henning. Linking Urban Tree Cover Change and Local History in a Post-Industrial City. Land 2021, 10, 403 .

AMA Style

Lara Roman, Indigo Catton, Eric Greenfield, Hamil Pearsall, Theodore Eisenman, Jason Henning. Linking Urban Tree Cover Change and Local History in a Post-Industrial City. Land. 2021; 10 (4):403.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Lara Roman; Indigo Catton; Eric Greenfield; Hamil Pearsall; Theodore Eisenman; Jason Henning. 2021. "Linking Urban Tree Cover Change and Local History in a Post-Industrial City." Land 10, no. 4: 403.

Dataset
Published: 07 April 2021 in Forest Service Research Data Archive
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ACS Style

Lara A. Roman; Indigo J. Catton; Eric J. Greenfield; Hamil Pearsall; Theodore S. Eisenman; Jason G. Henning. Philadelphia land cover change data, 1970-2010. Forest Service Research Data Archive 2021, 1 .

AMA Style

Lara A. Roman, Indigo J. Catton, Eric J. Greenfield, Hamil Pearsall, Theodore S. Eisenman, Jason G. Henning. Philadelphia land cover change data, 1970-2010. Forest Service Research Data Archive. 2021; ():1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Lara A. Roman; Indigo J. Catton; Eric J. Greenfield; Hamil Pearsall; Theodore S. Eisenman; Jason G. Henning. 2021. "Philadelphia land cover change data, 1970-2010." Forest Service Research Data Archive , no. : 1.

Journal article
Published: 02 February 2021 in Urban Forestry & Urban Greening
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Municipal leaders worldwide are showing substantial interest in urban greening. This encompasses incentives, policies, and programs to vegetate urban landscapes, and it often includes urban tree planting initiatives (TPIs). Over the past decade there has been a seven-fold increase in scholarly use of terms denoting TPIs, and roughly two-thirds of associated studies address TPIs in the United States (U.S.). This reflects a bloom of scholarly interest in TPIs. Yet, there has been limited research on contemporary TPIs as historically situated cultural phenomena, and there has to the best of our knowledge been no nationwide survey of TPIs across municipal scales. Addressing these gaps, this article presents findings from a survey of 41 TPIs in the United States. We report on typical traits of U.S. TPIs across six themes: background, dates and goals, public awareness, funding and governance, planting, and stewardship. Respondents identified over 115 traits that distinguish TPIs from typical urban tree planting activity, suggesting that TPIs are a discrete form of urban forestry. Over two-thirds of TPIs are funded separate from traditional urban forestry, and lack of institutionalization raises questions about long-term viability. TPIs mobilize political and financial resources for program launch, tree purchasing, and planting, but there may be a need for greater investment in stewardship activities and the social infrastructure that undergirds green infrastructure. Large shade trees for ecosystem services and native trees are the principal factors informing TPI species lists. Beautification and regulating ecosystem functions are, in turn, the principal benefits animating tree planting goals, yet few TPIs have conducted research to assess the fulfillment of associated outcomes. This study provides a foundation for future interdisciplinary scholarship on TPIs across the humanities, natural sciences, and social sciences.

ACS Style

Theodore S. Eisenman; Tamsin Flanders; Richard W. Harper; Richard J. Hauer; Katherine Lieberknecht. Traits of a bloom: a nationwide survey of U.S. urban tree planting initiatives (TPIs). Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 2021, 61, 127006 .

AMA Style

Theodore S. Eisenman, Tamsin Flanders, Richard W. Harper, Richard J. Hauer, Katherine Lieberknecht. Traits of a bloom: a nationwide survey of U.S. urban tree planting initiatives (TPIs). Urban Forestry & Urban Greening. 2021; 61 ():127006.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Theodore S. Eisenman; Tamsin Flanders; Richard W. Harper; Richard J. Hauer; Katherine Lieberknecht. 2021. "Traits of a bloom: a nationwide survey of U.S. urban tree planting initiatives (TPIs)." Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 61, no. : 127006.

Original research article
Published: 23 November 2020 in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution
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Municipal leaders around the world are demonstrating significant interest in urban greening to realize a range of socioecological benefits. The urban greening toolkit often includes street trees, an essential component of urban design informed by historic legacies of both human and environmental factors. To date, there has been little comparative analysis of street tree density and distribution across international and intercontinental settings, and associated research has not been situated within the broader discussion of historical legacies. This study focuses on five capital cities (Ottawa, Stockholm, Buenos Aires, Paris, and Washington, DC) situated in two climate zones and it addresses two research questions: (1) What are the density and distribution of street trees across a given city and its street hierarchy? and (2) How do these metrics compare within and between cities by climate zone? The analysis draws upon up-to-date datasets from local authorities and includes geospatial analysis of street trees across hierarchical street classes within the central zones of each city. The results show clear differences in street tree density in cities within and between climate zones as well as differences in street tree distribution in cities within the same climate zone. Substantial differences within climate zones further suggest that cultural factors—including but not limited to urban form, aesthetic norms, and governance regimes—may play a pivotal role in the distribution and density of street trees. This illustrates the importance of place-specific cultural and environmental legacies as determinants of street tree density and distribution and supports further comparative research on the topic.

ACS Style

Nicholas Smart; Theodore S. Eisenman; Andrew Karvonen. Street Tree Density and Distribution: An International Analysis of Five Capital Cities. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 2020, 8, 1 .

AMA Style

Nicholas Smart, Theodore S. Eisenman, Andrew Karvonen. Street Tree Density and Distribution: An International Analysis of Five Capital Cities. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. 2020; 8 ():1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Nicholas Smart; Theodore S. Eisenman; Andrew Karvonen. 2020. "Street Tree Density and Distribution: An International Analysis of Five Capital Cities." Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 8, no. : 1.

Perspective
Published: 04 October 2020 in Ambio
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The provision of ecosystem services is a prominent rationale for urban greening, and there is a prevailing mantra that ‘trees are good’. However, understanding how urban trees contribute to sustainability must also consider disservices. In this perspective article, we discuss recent research on ecosystem disservices of urban trees, including infrastructure conflicts, health and safety impacts, aesthetic issues, and environmentally detrimental consequences, as well as management costs related to ecological disturbances and risk management. We also discuss tradeoffs regarding species selection and local conservation concerns, as well as the central role of human perception in the interpretation of ecosystem services and disservices, particularly the uncritical assertion that ‘everybody loves trees’. Urban forestry decision-making that fails to account for disservices can have unintended negative consequences for communities. Further research is needed regarding life cycle assessments, stakeholder decision-making, return-on-investment, and framings of services and disservices in urban forestry.

ACS Style

Lara A. Roman; Tenley M. Conway; Theodore S. Eisenman; Andrew K. Koeser; Camilo Ordóñez Barona; Dexter H. Locke; G. Darrel Jenerette; Johan Östberg; Jess Vogt. Beyond ‘trees are good’: Disservices, management costs, and tradeoffs in urban forestry. Ambio 2020, 50, 615 -630.

AMA Style

Lara A. Roman, Tenley M. Conway, Theodore S. Eisenman, Andrew K. Koeser, Camilo Ordóñez Barona, Dexter H. Locke, G. Darrel Jenerette, Johan Östberg, Jess Vogt. Beyond ‘trees are good’: Disservices, management costs, and tradeoffs in urban forestry. Ambio. 2020; 50 (3):615-630.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Lara A. Roman; Tenley M. Conway; Theodore S. Eisenman; Andrew K. Koeser; Camilo Ordóñez Barona; Dexter H. Locke; G. Darrel Jenerette; Johan Östberg; Jess Vogt. 2020. "Beyond ‘trees are good’: Disservices, management costs, and tradeoffs in urban forestry." Ambio 50, no. 3: 615-630.

Erratum
Published: 11 February 2020 in Landscape and Urban Planning
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ACS Style

Theodore S. Eisenman; Galina Churkina; Sunit P. Jariwala; Prashant Kumar; Gina Lovasi; Diane E. Pataki; Kate R. Weinberger; Thomas H. Whitlow. Corrigendum to “Urban trees, air quality, and asthma: An interdisciplinary review” [Landscape Urban Plan. 187 (2019) 47–59]. Landscape and Urban Planning 2020, 199, 103772 .

AMA Style

Theodore S. Eisenman, Galina Churkina, Sunit P. Jariwala, Prashant Kumar, Gina Lovasi, Diane E. Pataki, Kate R. Weinberger, Thomas H. Whitlow. Corrigendum to “Urban trees, air quality, and asthma: An interdisciplinary review” [Landscape Urban Plan. 187 (2019) 47–59]. Landscape and Urban Planning. 2020; 199 ():103772.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Theodore S. Eisenman; Galina Churkina; Sunit P. Jariwala; Prashant Kumar; Gina Lovasi; Diane E. Pataki; Kate R. Weinberger; Thomas H. Whitlow. 2020. "Corrigendum to “Urban trees, air quality, and asthma: An interdisciplinary review” [Landscape Urban Plan. 187 (2019) 47–59]." Landscape and Urban Planning 199, no. : 103772.

Review
Published: 01 February 2020 in Land
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Greenways are multifunctional linear landscapes that provide a range of socio-ecological benefits. As a domain of landscape planning research, greenways gained traction in the late 20th century and today, there is substantial interest in greenway planning and design. This is especially true in urban areas, as noted at the sixth Fábos Conference on Landscape and Greenway Planning. Yet, cities encompass biophysical flows, sociopolitical relationships, and formal structures that are distinct from non-urban areas and urban greenways may reflect an evolving type of landscape planning and design that is related to but distinct from greenways writ large. To the best of our knowledge, there has been no previous review of scholarship on greenways in an urban context. We address the aforementioned gaps by reporting on a systematic assessment of peer-reviewed literature. The review encompasses 52 refereed articles using the term “urban greenway” or “urban greenways” in the title, abstract, or keywords drawn from three prominent academic databases. Our analysis covers seven research categories, and this undergirds a typology and definition of urban greenways. In so doing, we seek to illuminate typical traits of urban greenways to inform future landscape planning scholarship and practice.

ACS Style

Olivia S. Horte; Theodore S. Eisenman. Urban Greenways: A Systematic Review and Typology. Land 2020, 9, 40 .

AMA Style

Olivia S. Horte, Theodore S. Eisenman. Urban Greenways: A Systematic Review and Typology. Land. 2020; 9 (2):40.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Olivia S. Horte; Theodore S. Eisenman. 2020. "Urban Greenways: A Systematic Review and Typology." Land 9, no. 2: 40.

Journal article
Published: 02 July 2019 in Urban Forestry & Urban Greening
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Stewardship is essential for the survival of trees planted in challenging urban conditions and for reaching canopy cover goals and anticipated benefits. The governance structure of the stewardship network can dictate stewardship efficacy and ultimately, tree survival. While many planting initiatives are managed locally, the stewardship network and survival rates of a state-managed initiative are not commonly addressed in scholarly literature. The Greening the Gateway Cities Program (GGCP) in Massachusetts is planting thousands of trees in post-industrial cites around the state. We carried out a mixed-methods case study of tree planting in Holyoke, a GGCP pilot city, from 2014-2016 to assess the factors that influence survival. Specifically, we interviewed program stakeholders and coupled that data with field monitoring of trees planted along streets and on commercial and institutional landscapes. A logistic regression model shows that trees stewarded by state foresters were approximately 5.18 times more likely to survive, and trees which were not impacted by a summer 2016 drought were approximately 2.80 times more likely to survive. However, the drought impact was muted for trees stewarded by the state, and species characteristics were not significantly related to survival. Stewardship and planting site type strongly overlapped, such that street trees were nearly exclusively watered by state foresters and trees planted on local institutional and commercial landscapes were maintained by the local program recipient. Interviews with tree recipients found that they had neither the time nor staffing to adequately care for their trees. The local municipal public works department was intended to assume stewardship responsibility but was unable and/or unwilling to do so due to a lack of funding and misalignment of goals, leaving stewardship as the state’s responsibility. Dedicated funding and staffing for maintenance may enable effective partnerships with local entities and improve survival of large-scale urban tree planting.

ACS Style

Benjamin Breger; Theodore S. Eisenman; Madison E. Kremer; Lara A. Roman; Deborah G. Martin; John Rogan. Urban tree survival and stewardship in a state-managed planting initiative: A case study in Holyoke, Massachusetts. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 2019, 43, 126382 .

AMA Style

Benjamin Breger, Theodore S. Eisenman, Madison E. Kremer, Lara A. Roman, Deborah G. Martin, John Rogan. Urban tree survival and stewardship in a state-managed planting initiative: A case study in Holyoke, Massachusetts. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening. 2019; 43 ():126382.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Benjamin Breger; Theodore S. Eisenman; Madison E. Kremer; Lara A. Roman; Deborah G. Martin; John Rogan. 2019. "Urban tree survival and stewardship in a state-managed planting initiative: A case study in Holyoke, Massachusetts." Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 43, no. : 126382.

Correspondence
Published: 01 July 2019 in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine
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Air pollution is now the greatest environmental cause of premature death, and more than 80% of people living in urban areas that monitor air pollution are exposed to air quality levels that exceed WHO limits. Likewise, prevalence of asthma—which has been linked to poor air quality—has been increasing in many countries over the past few decades. In both scholarly literature and popular media, one strategy to address these seemingly interconnected problems has received increasing attention, namely, urban greening and tree planting in particular. This attention is reflected in recent issues of The Lancet Respiratory Medicine.1Soyiri IN Alcock I Green spaces could reduce asthma admissions.Lancet Respir Med. 2018; 6: e1Summary Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (0) Google Scholar, 2van Dorn A Urban planning and respiratory health.Lancet Respir Med. 2017; 5: 781-782Summary Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Google Scholar

ACS Style

Theodore S Eisenman; Sunit P Jariwala; Gina Lovasi. Urban trees and asthma: a call for epidemiological research. The Lancet Respiratory Medicine 2019, 7, e19 -e20.

AMA Style

Theodore S Eisenman, Sunit P Jariwala, Gina Lovasi. Urban trees and asthma: a call for epidemiological research. The Lancet Respiratory Medicine. 2019; 7 (7):e19-e20.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Theodore S Eisenman; Sunit P Jariwala; Gina Lovasi. 2019. "Urban trees and asthma: a call for epidemiological research." The Lancet Respiratory Medicine 7, no. 7: e19-e20.

Review article
Published: 02 April 2019 in Landscape and Urban Planning
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A “call to action” has been issued for scholars in landscape and urban planning, natural science, and public health to conduct interdisciplinary research on the human health effects of spending time in or near greenspaces. This is timely in light of contemporary interest in municipal tree planting and urban greening, defined as organized or semi-organized efforts to introduce, conserve, or maintain outdoor vegetation in urban areas. In response to injunctions from scholars and urban greening trends, this article provides an interdisciplinary review on urban trees, air quality, and asthma. We assess the scientific literature by reviewing refereed review papers and empirical studies on the biophysical processes through which urban trees affect air quality, as well as associated models that extend estimates to asthma outcomes. We then review empirical evidence of observed links between urban trees and asthma, followed by a discussion on implications for urban landscape planning and design. This review finds no scientific consensus that urban trees reduce asthma by improving air quality. In some circumstances, urban trees can degrade air quality and increase asthma. Causal pathways between urban trees, air quality, and asthma are very complex, and there are substantial differences in how natural science and epidemiology approach this issue. This may lead to ambiguity in scholarship, municipal decision-making, and landscape planning. Future research on this topic, as well as on urban ecosystem services and urban greening, should embrace epistemological and etiological pluralism and be conducted through interdisciplinary teamwork.

ACS Style

Theodore S. Eisenman; Galina Churkina; Sunit P. Jariwala; Prashant Kumar; Gina Lovasi; Diane E. Pataki; Kate R. Weinberger; Thomas H. Whitlow. Urban trees, air quality, and asthma: An interdisciplinary review. Landscape and Urban Planning 2019, 187, 47 -59.

AMA Style

Theodore S. Eisenman, Galina Churkina, Sunit P. Jariwala, Prashant Kumar, Gina Lovasi, Diane E. Pataki, Kate R. Weinberger, Thomas H. Whitlow. Urban trees, air quality, and asthma: An interdisciplinary review. Landscape and Urban Planning. 2019; 187 ():47-59.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Theodore S. Eisenman; Galina Churkina; Sunit P. Jariwala; Prashant Kumar; Gina Lovasi; Diane E. Pataki; Kate R. Weinberger; Thomas H. Whitlow. 2019. "Urban trees, air quality, and asthma: An interdisciplinary review." Landscape and Urban Planning 187, no. : 47-59.

Journal article
Published: 01 April 2018 in Urban Forestry & Urban Greening
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ACS Style

Lara A. Roman; Hamil Pearsall; Theodore S. Eisenman; Tenley M. Conway; Robert T. Fahey; Shawn Landry; Jess Vogt; Natalie S. van Doorn; J. Morgan Grove; Dexter H. Locke; Adrina C. Bardekjian; John J. Battles; Mary L. Cadenasso; Cecil C. Konijnendijk Van Den Bosch; Meghan Avolio; Adam Berland; G. Darrel Jenerette; Sarah K. Mincey; Diane E. Pataki; Christina Staudhammer. Human and biophysical legacies shape contemporary urban forests: A literature synthesis. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 2018, 31, 157 -168.

AMA Style

Lara A. Roman, Hamil Pearsall, Theodore S. Eisenman, Tenley M. Conway, Robert T. Fahey, Shawn Landry, Jess Vogt, Natalie S. van Doorn, J. Morgan Grove, Dexter H. Locke, Adrina C. Bardekjian, John J. Battles, Mary L. Cadenasso, Cecil C. Konijnendijk Van Den Bosch, Meghan Avolio, Adam Berland, G. Darrel Jenerette, Sarah K. Mincey, Diane E. Pataki, Christina Staudhammer. Human and biophysical legacies shape contemporary urban forests: A literature synthesis. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening. 2018; 31 ():157-168.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Lara A. Roman; Hamil Pearsall; Theodore S. Eisenman; Tenley M. Conway; Robert T. Fahey; Shawn Landry; Jess Vogt; Natalie S. van Doorn; J. Morgan Grove; Dexter H. Locke; Adrina C. Bardekjian; John J. Battles; Mary L. Cadenasso; Cecil C. Konijnendijk Van Den Bosch; Meghan Avolio; Adam Berland; G. Darrel Jenerette; Sarah K. Mincey; Diane E. Pataki; Christina Staudhammer. 2018. "Human and biophysical legacies shape contemporary urban forests: A literature synthesis." Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 31, no. : 157-168.

Journal article
Published: 14 November 2016 in Urban Planning
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We analysed observations from 31 neighbourhood parks, with each park mapped into smaller target areas for study, across five US cities generated using the System for Observing Play and Recreation in the Community (SOPARC). In areas where at least two people were observed, less than one-third (31.6%) were populated with at least one white and one non-white person. Park areas that were supervised, had one or more people engaged in vigorous activity, had at least one male and one female present, and had one or more teens present were significantly more likely to involve interracial groups (p < 0.01 for each association). Observations in parks located in interracial neighbourhoods were also more likely to involve interracial groups (p < 0.05). Neighbourhood poverty rate had a significant and negative relationship with the presence of interracial groups, particularly in neighbourhoods that are predominantly non-white. Additional research is needed to confirm the impact of these interactions. Urban planning and public health practitioners should consider the health benefits of interracial contact in the design and programming of neighbourhood parks.

ACS Style

Amy Hillier; Bing Han; Theodore S. Eisenman; Kelly R. Evenson; Thomas L. McKenzie; Deborah A. Cohen. Using Systematic Observations to Understand Conditions that Promote Interracial Experiences in Neighbourhood Parks. Urban Planning 2016, 1, 51 -64.

AMA Style

Amy Hillier, Bing Han, Theodore S. Eisenman, Kelly R. Evenson, Thomas L. McKenzie, Deborah A. Cohen. Using Systematic Observations to Understand Conditions that Promote Interracial Experiences in Neighbourhood Parks. Urban Planning. 2016; 1 (4):51-64.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Amy Hillier; Bing Han; Theodore S. Eisenman; Kelly R. Evenson; Thomas L. McKenzie; Deborah A. Cohen. 2016. "Using Systematic Observations to Understand Conditions that Promote Interracial Experiences in Neighbourhood Parks." Urban Planning 1, no. 4: 51-64.