Applications Invited for Bob Skiera Memorial Fund Building Bridges Initiative and John P. White Grant Program

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About the Organization

Tree Research and Education Endowment Fund (TREE Fund) is shaping the future of trees, the arboriculture profession, and our world. Established in 2002 via a merger of the International Society of Arboriculture Research Trust and the National Arborist Foundation of the National Arborist Association (now Tree Care Industry Association), TREE Fund has awarded more than $5.4 million in grants toward its mission of identifying and funding programs that support the discovery and dissemination of new knowledge in arboriculture and urban forestry.

About the Grant

Bob Skiera was an urban forestry pioneer, known for his ability to communicate the needs and benefits of the urban forest and helped build bridges of trust and cooperation between urban foresters and other urban planning and management professionals. He was a past President of both the International Society of Arboriculture and the Wisconsin Arborist Association, served memorably as a Milwaukee City Forester and is a member of the Wisconsin Forestry Hall of Fame.

John White was an arborist and urban forest influencer in Florida. He loved trees and the community that was connecting with trees. He knew how to build up the relationships of the tree community to those who had great impacts on those trees.

Established jointly by TREE Fund, the Skiera Family, Wisconsin Arborist Association and the International Society of Arboriculture, The Bob Skiera Memorial Fund now provides financial support for the “Building Bridges Initiative”. The Initiative is intended to help arborists and urban foresters communicate the value of trees and urban forests through engagement via collaborative research and other projects with public works officials, risk assessment professionals, civil engineers, wildlife researchers, soil scientists and others. The maximum award value of grants under the Building Bridges Initiative is $30,000, with $25,000 provided annually by the Bob Skiera Memorial Fund and $5,000 provided annually by the John White Memorial Fund.

Note: The 2024 Building Bridges Initiative Grant(s) will be focused on research to facilitate or engage interactions between urban forest managers, arborists, and other professionals committed to maximizing value/use of the urban forest resource. Suggested areas of investigation (this list is not all-inclusive) might include:

• Quantitative and/or qualitative analysis of urban forest benefits to humans and communities;
• Policy formation and program implementation;
• “Nature Based Solutions”;
• Ecosystem services;
• Etc.

TREE Fund welcomes research proposals and applications from a wide range of academic and technical disciplines, of both a qualitative and a quantitative nature. TREE Fund does not fund the following types of projects, and will not accept applications for such work:

• Grants to individuals;
• Projects that are primarily municipal tree surveys or assessments;
• Tree planting programs;
• Studies focused on traditional forestry and timber production, agroforestry, and ecology and conservation of forested and other natural areas,
• Product testing primarily for the benefit of the company that manufactures the product.

How to Apply

The first step to apply for this grant is to send an email containing a Letter of Inquiry (LOI) of no more than 100 words describing your project title and concept to hhupke@treefund.org between August 1, 2025 and September 15, 2025.

LOI Requirements:

• No more than 100 words
• Include project title and concept
• Identify Principal Investigator and Institution who will be contracted for the work
• Note you wish to apply for the Bob Skiera Grant Program

Application Requirements can be found here.

For more information please check the Link

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