Performing Department
Social Sciences
Non Technical Summary
Anecdotes suggest urban trees and forests contribute to human health and well-being (HHWB). Nearly forty years of research confirms and provides fuller description of such benefits. The studies are distributed across many disciplines and publications, making them difficult to access. A UW team prepared a series of web-based summaries of the studies in 2010. For this project the HHWB benefits will be translated to economic valuations. Our approach includes a multidisciplinary collaborative team to translate the evidence of HHWB benefits to economic values. We will prepare a comprehensive framework of valuation approaches, demonstrating why communities should invest in urban forestry to enhance social benefits. An expert panel will review and revise the core work of the project team. Also, at this time HHWB benefits are not adequately represented in the i-Tree suite of analysis tools. The HHWB research summaries and economic benefits framework will serve as the foundation for development of "i-Tree Community" to provide a practical analysis tool. This project will generate the economic basis of an i-Tree Community tool, expanding the current environmental benefit focus of i-Tree to include an expanded range of urban forest benefits, and build better support for urban forestry across U.S. cities.
Animal Health Component
0%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
100%
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
These are the expected outcomes for this project: 1. Further demonstrate human health and well-being (HHWB) benefits and the importance of nearby nature in moderate to high density population centers in a complete and comprehensive way, including economic aspects. 2. Improve understanding of all aspects of HHWB benefits and their economic importance for local government decision making concerning urban forestry. 3. Provide a more complete understanding of return-on-investment for public spending on urban forest planning and management. 4. Explore ways to entice a buy-in on the part of the private sector for urban forestry, as innovative markets are now emerging for traditionally nonmarket goods (such as carbon and other ecosystem services). 5. Provide justification for public investment in urban nature in health, healing, and human services. 6. Expand ecosystem services conceptualization to include distinctly urban services and reveal economic value potential. Timeline/Milestones: Literature review of HHWB benefits studies having valuation potential, Sept-Oct 2011. Literature review of valuation approaches and models, Oct-Dec 2011. Progress report to USFS, Dec 2011. Literature synthesis for valuation framework, Jan-June 2012. Progress report to USFS, June 2012. Science partners critique and evaluation (white paper), July 2012. Advisory scientists critique and evaluation (webinar workshop), Dec 2012. Progress report to USFS, Dec 2012. Synthesis and summary of all evaluation to generate economic modeling, Jan-Mar 2013. Preparation and submittal of scholarly manuscripts, June 2013. Consultation with i-Tree developers re i-Tree Community potential, June 2013. Progress report to USFS, June 2013. Preparation and submittal of professional publications, Aug 2013. Preparation of fact sheets and outreach web content, Aug 2013. Completion of all products, Dec 2013. Progress report to USFS, Dec 2013. Ongoing scholarly and public outreach of results, Jan-Dec 2014. Progress report to USFS, June 2014. Final progress report to USFS (or earlier as project tasks are completed), Dec 2014.
Project Methods
Our work will start with a conceptual framework of a wide range of potential valuations across diverse benefits types. Coinciding with this effort will be an examination of the costs involved with implementing a particular program or activity. First efforts will be broad in scope, proposing a full conceptual framework of valuation approaches. Once a full framework is drafted, several specific valuation analyses will be done, premised on existing research findings of net benefit outcomes. This work will be a strategic, phased process. Collaborators will direct the project, providing theoretical and conceptual foundations. Economics research associates will be hired to execute framework construction. The associates will work from the research literature to assemble valuation approaches, develop valuation scenarios based on benefits literature and urban lands applications, and assist with framework application to pilot situations. As the valuation framework takes form, collaborators will recruit colleagues to provide important feedback and framework revisions. This will happen via e-communications, and culminate in one face-to-face meeting in which preliminary frameworks are critiqued and expanded. The emerging valuation models will be published and publicized to attract critiques from economists, and perhaps, to stimulate interdisciplinary collaboration. It is expected that the preliminary valuation framework will attract economists who have an interest in nonmarket value theory and urban natural resources, and then their feedback can be integrated into this project through active collaboration.