Green gratitude: Passion connecting communities to urban forestry drives Francisco Escobedo

Francisco Escobedo stands on a rocky outcropping by a lake in the Inyo National Forest. USDA photo by Hilary Clark.

CALIFORNIA - As a social scientist for the Pacific Southwest Research Station, Francisco Escobedo thinks a lot about his audience and how to reach them.

His career has mainly focused on studying and promoting the socioeconomic benefits of trees in and around cities, known as urban forestry. According to the World Bank, roughly 4.4 billion people live in cities. He feels these population centers are where his work can make the most impact.

Escobedo believes it's imperative to communicate why trees and forests matter to urban residents. Trees provide shade and wildlife habitat, sequester carbon, filter pollutants and much more. According to some of his research, neighborhoods with more trees can experience less violent crime.

Trees are like altruistic neighbors that give back to the community without expecting anything in return. But how do social scientists and ecologists explain the economic benefits and costs of trees to people who haven't spent time in nature? It's a question with which Escobedo and fellow researchers grapple.

"Many underserved communities don't have the resources to visit national forests. But even one tree in their neighborhood can provide reprieve from the built environment."

The view of an urban forest in Los Angeles from Griffith Park. USDA photo by Hilary Clark.

However, Escobedo stated, along with benefits, trees also come with shortcomings. Some urban trees require regular watering. Construction activities in cities can weaken and compromise trees' root structures. Intensifying effects of climate change are leading to prolonged droughts and devastating wildfires, which can kill trees.

Escobedo, who is fluent in Spanish, enjoys visiting local communities in Southern California and asking residents how they feel about trees in their neighborhood. "I want to meet people where they are, even if they say they're allergic to certain trees or don't like them."

Escobedo is able to explain urban forestry in a way that anyone unfamiliar with science can understand it. His face lights up as he tells me about the journey that led him to where he is today.

Growing up in the Las Cruces, New Mexico/El Paso, Texas area, Escobedo's connection to nature and exposure to different cultures started as a child and continued throughout his career. "Nature captivated me. Living on the border, I also enjoyed meeting different people."

Escobedo majored in soil science and geology at New Mexico State University, which helped him land a paid internship with the Forest Service. Stationed at the Albuquerque Regional Office, he mapped vegetation throughout New Mexico.

Later, he left his desert roots for a wildly different landscape-Alaska. Mapping vegetation in the Tongass National Forest and exploring a land of greenery, glaciers and grizzlies was thrilling for Escobedo.

After returning from Alaska, he continued his Forest Service adventures. While pursuing a master's degree in watershed management at the University of Arizona, he worked as a soil scientist for the Coronado and Gila national forests.

He thrived in these varied positions, but still felt something was missing. "I was out in the field all the time and didn't get to interact with people." That realization marked a pivotal shift in Escobedo's career path. It led him to pursue his doctorate at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse, focusing on forest policy.

Using economic and forestry models, he showed people how to measure the services trees or forests could provide. For instance, he discovered an urban forest in Santiago, Chile removed 3,500 metric tons of air pollutants in one year.

Francisco Escobedo Leads a Science Exchange Discussion Panel at the Los Angeles Urban Center. USDA photo by Hilary Clark.

Escobedo continued his postdoctoral research on urban forestry, which launched him into academia. He was a forestry professor at the University of Florida for several years and, later, taught socio-ecological systems at the Universidad del Rosario in Colombia, South America. In Colombia, Escobedo worked with municipalities and communities to show how conserving tropical forests provides socioeconomic benefits.

Escobedo's international work extended beyond Colombia, and led him to Argentina, Sri Lanka, and Italy. These experiences stayed with him when he returned to the States. They also helped him secure a social science position with the Forest Service's Pacific Southwest Research Station.

Three years later, he's still passionate about his job and the recent influx of more than $1 billion in federal funding for tree planting initiatives in California. He believes this investment in urban forestry spotlights the need for more outreach to local communities.

"The Forest Service hears from their visitors but how do people who don't go to national forests feel? I believe speaking to these groups about urban forestry is key for the program's success."

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