Applications for the 2021 Tree Campus Higher Education Recognition Are Now Open

LINCOLN, Nebraska (Sept. 8, 2021) – The Arbor Day Foundation opened applications for 2021 recognition through the Tree Campus Higher Education program.

This program focuses on helping colleges and universities establish and sustain healthy community forests. There are currently over 390 colleges and universities with Tree Campus Higher Education status, attended by over 4.6 million students.

“Trees are a solution to some of the greatest issues we face,” said Dan Lambe, president of Arbor Day Foundation. “The Tree Campus Higher Education program creates campuses that not only benefit and create a more sustainable environment, but instills pride in students, faculty members and the community.”

Trees also benefit campuses and communities by reducing energy consumption and increasing green spaces that promote mental health benefits to students and faculty and improved air quality – all from investing in a more dense campus tree canopy.

To receive Tree Campus Higher Education recognition, two and four-year accredited colleges and universities must meet these five core standards:

1. Establish a campus tree advisory committee
2. Have a campus tree care plan
3. Verify dedicated annual expenditures on the campus tree plan
4. Be involved in an Arbor Day observance
5. Demonstrate a service-learning project aimed at engaging the student body

Colleges and universities who meet these standards will receive recognition materials to showcase their dedication to the campus environment which can be distributed on campus and in the community. These include a flag and plaque to add new emblems each year as campuses build their Tree Campus legacy.  

The Arbor Day Foundation’s Tree Campus Higher Education program is made possible through the professional partnership of Bartlett Tree Experts, the world’s leading scientific tree and shrub care company and known for helping both residential and commercial customers maintain beautiful, healthy trees.

For more information about the Tree Campus Higher Education program or to apply, visit https://www.arborday.org/programs/tree-campus-higher-education/. Applications are accepted through the end of the year depending on the state.

About the Arbor Day Foundation

Founded in 1972, the Arbor Day Foundation has grown to become the largest nonprofit membership organization dedicated to planting trees, with more than one million members, supporters and valued partners. Since 1972, more than 400 million Arbor Day Foundation trees have been planted in neighborhoods, communities, cities and forests throughout the world. Our vision is to help others understand and use trees as a solution to many of the global issues we face today, including air quality, water quality, climate change, deforestation, poverty and hunger.

As one of the world's largest operating conservation foundations, the Arbor Day Foundation, through its members, partners and programs, educates and engages stakeholders and communities across the globe to involve themselves in its mission of planting, nurturing and celebrating trees. More information is available at arborday.org.

About Bartlett Tree Experts

The F.A. Bartlett Tree Expert Company was founded in 1907 by Francis A. Bartlett and is the world's leading scientific tree and shrub care company. The organization's current chairman, Robert A. Bartlett Jr., represents the third generation of Bartlett family management. Bartlett provides services in 32 U.S. states, Canada, Ireland and Great Britain. The Company offers species-specific tree care services including pruning, pest and disease management, fertilization and soil care, cabling and bracing, tree lightning protection systems, and tree/stump removal as well as tree inventory and management plans. Its corporate offices are located in Stamford, Connecticut.