Little Forests Kingston

“Imagine it is 2030. Every child looks out their window and sees trees. On the hottest day they can walk along a tree-lined street to a nearby forest to play or hug a tree. This City in a Forest will emerge neighbourhood by neighbourhood thanks to the resilient ecosystem of relationships we grow, the knowledge strategy we craft and the forest stewards we train. Each unique, biodiverse Little Forest our collaborators plant and care for, is a visible symbol of the change that’s hopeful, possible and urgently needed.”

We’d love feedback on the draft of the 2BT Capacity Building Grant. Read the draft of our application here. We’ll be submitting the application on Thursday February 17.

Little Forests City Council Delegations

We were originally meeting tomorrow to continue work on our values & decision making framework. Instead, because of the release of the Intensification, Redevelopment and Climate Change Report, we’ll be discussing our strategy for Tuesday’s City Council meeting.

When: Saturday February 12 10:00 am

Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83651860259?pwd=QUIrR1cwbmxadm5jbVl4WldLWUl1UT09

In the Report, they mention Little Forests Kingston:

In line with the Climate Leadership Plan strategic framework on next steps and implementation, staff are also exploring the opportunity to partner with Little Forests Kingston to undertake climate risk assessments and develop a climate heat risk map that will include the mapping of tree canopy within neighbourhoods that will help to identify neighbourhood risks and resiliency. This partnership is intended to foster transformational change by engaging community leaders and the public on the implementation of this action to bridge the gap between the current state and where the community wants to be in the future. Little Forests Kingston is seeking funding forthis initiative through the 2 Billion Tree Capacity Building Grant.

The 2BT grant priorities are carbon sequestration, human health and biodiversity. However the City’s report only focuses on carbon sequestration.

What is an urban heat island?

An important concept we included in the 2BT grant is Urban Heat Islands (UHIs). UHI refers to warmer temperatures in urban areas. And after a great meeting with Julie Salter-Keene from the Climate Leadership Team, Phil Healey City of Kingston GIS Manager & Neal Scott Professor of Geography from Queen’s looks like by the end of the summer we’ll have a Urban Heat Map for Kingston.

UHI’s are linked to tree equity (the images above show the equity disparity in Toronto) and can be used identify neighbourhoods at risk during extreme heat events.

Lots of great data & linked benefits of reducing UHI through greening in this 2020 Report Reducing Urban Heat Islands to Protect Health in Canada.

Why is this critical? From “Hyperthermia is already one of the most common causes of natural-disaster mortality. As global temperatures rise, owing to human-caused climate change, we will see more and more of it.” During BC’s heat dome this summer 595 people died.

An example of density with green! (though missing a Little Forest :>)